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Risotto, a versatile Italian dish very popular around the world for it’s creamy and cheesy texture made with Arborio rice. Risotto was discovered to be an excellent way of using the shorter-grained rice, the starchy component of the dry grain mixing with the stock to create a thick, creamy sauce. At its simplest, risotto is a heart-warming rice dish, rich with the flavors of the stock used in its making, as well as parmesan, butter and any of the hundreds of ingredients that match so perfectly with it. We can make various combinations of risotto using tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus, pumpkin, broccoli etc. Well, I made an easy cheesy risotto using sun-dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese.
When I started preparing this risotto, my kids exclaimed, “Mom, this is known as the ‘death dish’ in Masterchef Australia! People always fail to impress the judges with this dish”. I took it as a challenge to try and please my kids with this dish. And I succeeded in my challenge as they loved this dish. So I would like to share this recipe with y’all!
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Risotto Recipe:
Put the vegetable stock into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer over low heat. Season it well. I used the vegetable stock powder from the market that comes with the seasoning. I mixed 4 tea spoons of the stock powder in 4 cups of water.
Heat the butter over a medium heat, in a heavy skillet or wide, heavy saucepan. Add in the minced garlic and fry it for two minutes. Then add the chopped onions and a pinch of salt and fry till the onions turn translucent. Add a few leaves of freshly picked thyme. Thyme elevates the aroma of the dish.
Add the rice and stir it nicely till the grains of the rice get separate and begin to crackle. The authentic risotto is made by using white wine. But as I wanted my kids to eat this Italian dish, I just skipped adding the wine. You can add about 1/2 a cup of white wine and stir it nicely till the wine is evaporated and absorbed by the rice. Then begin adding the simmering stock, about 1/2 cup at a time. Let the rice cook on a low flame. The stock should just cover the rice, and should be bubbling, not too slowly but not too quickly either. Cook, stirring often, until it is just about absorbed. Add another 1/2 cup of the stock and continue to cook in this fashion, adding more stock and stirring when the rice is almost dry. To cook one cup of rice I needed to add 3 and 1/2 cups of stock. You do not have to stir continuously, but stir often and when you do, stir vigorously. When the rice is just tender all the way through but still chewy (al dente), in 25 to 30 minutes, it is done. Add in some more stock if needed.
Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and sauté it well. I used the sun-dried tomatoes that come in a jar so they were tender. If you are using the dry ones then keep them in hot water for 10 mins to make them soft and then add them to the rice. Finally add some finely grated parmesan cheese and turn off the flame.
Serve it hot to enjoy the real cheesy taste of it. A glass of wine by the side will complement this dish for your special day. 😀
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