by Gary O'Neill

Created on: January 14, 2009   Last Updated: January 28, 2009

Risotto is served as a first course or with the main course in northern Italy. Risotto has a rich, creamy texture and is made with medium grain rice instead of the long grain rice more typical in American diets.

Risotto is a great base for combining other vegetables and spices. Because of its reputation for needing constant stirring over a very long time, many shy away from this great dish. Risotto needs attention, but not constant supervision, and it's well worth it.

Risotto is most often made with arborio rice. In northern Italy, risotto is often made with other medium grain varieties, known as Carnaroli and Vialone Nano, which can be hard to find in the US. Preparing Risotto requires a large amount of water or stock, which must be warmed on medium heat (not to a boil) and added gradually to release the starch from the rice's surface during cooking.

The first step is to heat two tablespoons of olive oil on medium high heat. A couple of tablespoons of butter, while optional, help to bring the creamy texture to the risotto. Add a couple of cloves of minced garlic and a small, finely chopped onion, stirring until they become translucent. Add the rice (1 cup for 4 servings) and stir the rice until the oil coats it completely. Let the rice cook for up to a minute and then add a small amount of wine (a half cup). White wine is used most often but adding red wine will turn the risotto into a mauve mixture. Now it is time for the stock, a ladle at a time (about a half cup). Stirring with a wooden or non stick spoon, make sure that the stock is evenly incorporated with the rice and simmer the combination at medium heat. As the stock and rice combine, the liquid reduces, and more stock is added, a half cup to a cup at a time. Stir the rice occasionally to prevent it from sticking. Depending on the heat used and the amount of stock (typically 5-6 cups for each cup of rice), the risotto will take between 17-25 minutes to finish cooking. When the rice is done, butter and grated parmesan cheese are added to finish the dish.

When adding vegetables, timing is everything. Mushrooms or fennel need to be added at the beginning to make sure they are cooked. Spinach needs to wait until the very end.

Pairing artichokes and tomatoes with risotto is a very popular. For this recipe, use uncooked artichoke hearts, sliced into wedges about 1/8 inch thick. Preparing the oil and onions as above, add the tomatoes. After the tomatoes have cooked for about 3 minutes, add the sliced artichoke hearts and one cup of stock and simmer for about 10 minutes. At this point, add the arborio rice and continue with the basic recipe.

Another interesting variant is to add lemon. Prepare the basic risotto, and after 15 minutes, add a teaspoon of grated lemon zest and minced fresh sage leaves. Continue cooking until the last of the stock is in and add 2 tablespoons of juice and some minced fresh parsley. Finish the risotto with butter and parmesan cheese.

Risotto is a great dish to serve on its own or as a part of the main course. Experimenting with different combinations of stock, spices and additional vegetables can give this basic dish a wide variety of flavors and companions.

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