how would you make risotto??

[lucysmam]

i'd like someone to point me in the right direction for how to make this please like do you need a specific kind of rice or can you put anything you want in it kinda stuff as ive not got a clue

Arborrio rice

I do:

chicken and mushroom
pea and ham

Make sure you chuck plenty of parmesan in whilst cooking for best flavour!

It's pretty simple, we have it probably once a week. You do need proper risotto rice though - Arborio is the most easily available in supermarkets.

This recipe looks good here My top tip is to keep your stock in another saucepan on a low heat over the hob, as the risotto cooks more quickly and the result is better. And never leave the risotto for more than a couple of minutes at most without stirring or it will stick to the pan.

We like: Pea and lemon, butternut squash, mushroom, green vegetables, tomato. You can experiment with lots of different things but you need to get the basic idea first.

is the rice fairly cheap ish to buy? & thank-you, wasnt sure at asda earlier so left it but will invest and have a go now i know.

what would you serve with or is it enough of a meal in itself?

I have a recipe for an oven baked risotto that you don't have to faff over.

I our local supermarket I think it is £1.20 a packet, which makes probably 4 or 5 huge portions. We just have risotto by itself as it is so filling.

Rice is about 73p for 500g iirc. That would do plenty for 4 adults.

I use normal easy cook long grain and it's fine.

Minced beef
onion
pepper
tin of tomatos
mushroom
tom puree
garlic
andything else you fancy
i use 1/2 mugful of rice for 3 and that does enough for 4.
3/4's pint of water and I use a quarter of a stock cube
boil for about 40-50 mins checking every 5 mins and stirring making sure it doesn't dry and maybe adding more water.

Arborio or carnaroli rice. You want three times as much stock (in ml) as rice (in g).

Bring stock to a simmer and keep on a v low heat. If using onions, garlic, bacon, etc., in your risotto, fry those in butter or olive oil to soften. Then add (dry) rice and lightly fry, stirring constantly, for a couple of minutes. Add ladleful of hot stock to rice and stir constantly until it's all absorbed. Then add another ladleful. Keep going until all the stock has been added and absorbed. Add a knob of butter, some grated Parmesan, and other risotto ingredients (e.g. peas, herbs, broad beans), stir and cook for another couple of minutes.

For it to be risotto you need to use short grain rice as this, when stirred with hot stock, disintegrates slightly around the edges of the grain giving the porridge-like texture.

Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano or the typical types of Italian risotto rice.

By all means make a savoury rice with an other type of rice but it won't be risotto unless it you use short grain.

And you have to use a decent stock and imo, a decent slug of wine, plenty of butter and lots of parmesan.

SoupDragon, could you post your recipe please? I usually do it on the hob but like things I can bung in the oven - mmmm, does it get a nice crispy topping sort-of like proper rice pudding? tia. Am starving just thinking about it.

I will do. It doesn't get crusty as you leave the lid on the pot It was my standard meal when the boys were doing tennis as I'd make it and put it in the oven and it would be done when we got back.

Baked rissotto sounds great.

i am the risotto queen. it's easy

warm some olive oil, saute some onion. add the rice (has got to be arborio or carnaroli or vialone nano), saute for 30 secs or so, pour in half a glass of white wine (optional), then add the stock (chicken or veg), mix occasionally. keep adding stock if it's drying up. after about 10 mins add whatever ingredients you want (i put mushrooms, or peas, or courgettes, or squash, or just whatever i find in the fridge- often frozen veg too). when its been cooking for about 20 mins, turn off, add a knob of butter and loads of parmesan, stir it all in. you should have a delicoulsy oozy and slightly liquid consistency.

good luck!

wow! thankyou! will def give it a go, sounds a lot simpler than i expected it to be which is fab & i'm sure even my lo might try some