I still remember the first time I cooked risotto, it was a mess! Then I stopped making risotto for a long time and after a year eating Jonathan's risotto which is mind blowing, studying cookbooks, reading recipes and watching as many as video recipe as I could, I finally come out with a very tasty and perfect risotto! After another year I finally have the confidence to share it with you all. Hope you enjoy my recipe. Risotto is a north Italian dish cooked and prepare with risotto rice, onion, wine, butter, parmesan cheese and broth, all come together to make a creamy consistency rice dish. The broth can be derived from meat, fish, or vegetable. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. Risotto is consider a Primo (first course) here in Italy. This is my basic risotto, Italian called the simple risotto "risotto bianco" means white risotto and you can add anything you want to it, make it your own special risotto.
Serves 4 People
Ingredients:
3-4 table spoon
extra virgin olive oil
1 liter broth (veg, chicken, fish, meat)
a knob of butter
1 large white onion, 150 gram
1 stick celery
400 g risotto rice ( Carnaroli )
2 cup or glass dry white wine
salt
pepper
50 g butter
100 g parmesan cheese
Method:
Prepare your broth in advance, I have the chicken broth recipe here if you need. Heat the broth on low heat leave it there while your making the risotto. Put the pan or the pot on low-medium heat and prepare your "Soffritto", add the olive oil and the butter, when is hot add the chopped onion and celery and cook them for 6-7 minutes. (or until soft and translucent). Add the rice and fry it together with onion and celery on medium-high heat. As soon as you see your rice quit translucent, add the dry white wine and make the wine evaporate on medium-high heat. Don't be afraid of the heat, if you watch your risotto you can understand if you should turn down the heat or turn it to high heat! It's important that you don't burn your rice, but slightly toast it. Wine gives a very mysterious smell and taste to the rice.
When the smell of alcohol gone and the wine in risotto become half, start to add the first cup of broth and salt, and give a good stir to it, then turn the heat down and let it cook for 2-3 minutes while stirring. This is when the inside of the rice should be cook. If you suddenly bring it to boil you gonna end up with rice which is cooked outside but not inside.
little by little turn the heat up and start to add the second cup of broth, continue stirring and add the broth when needed, this make your risotto creamier and tastier. Adding broth and stirring will take 12 to 15 minutes, depends where you live, the oven you use and the type of rice. Check if the rice is cook and if not continue to adding broth and stirring. The most important thing to make the perfect risotto is to bring it to boil but not let it boil. The broth should be slightly on top of the rice, rice should not be drowning in to the broth or to get dry.
After almost 15 minutes add a good cup of the broth into the risotto (if it's thick) and turn the heat off, add the butter and the parmesan cheese and give a good stir and cover for 5 minutes. Consider that when the risotto is hot it should be a little bit runny and loose cause as soon as it gets warm it gets thicker too and you gonna have the perfect creamy risotto, so don't be afraid of turning the heat off when your risotto is still a bit washy.
Serve warm with a good wine of your choice. For Serving, a perfect Italian risotto should be creamy, yet not runny, cooked "all’onda" this is what Italian called a perfect consistency of risotto which means "to be wavy". Each individual grain of risotto should be slightly firm to the bite and also should be able to move in your plate or pan like a wave without using any spoon or fork.