risotto, demystified

Wait, don't run away; it's easy, I promise! If you've never made risotto before, I'm here to help.

When I think of risotto, I think of love. It is a dish that is made with care (compared to boxed mac and cheese), and is almost always appreciated by those you make it for. Since the end product has such a rich and creamy consistency, risotto is made with a special kind of rice, instead of long-grain, as it needs a high starch variety that is able to absorb a lot of liquid and release said starch. Arborio is the type I see most often in grocery stores, but there are certainly other kinds of rice (and real Italians would probably have some opinions).

Step 1: Heat up some oil or butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 cup of rice and stir to coat the grains with the fat and cook for a minute or two. (Meanwhile, heat up about 2-3 cups of stock in a separate pot and keep it hot for later steps. If I'm lazy I'll just zap some stock in a large pyrex measuring cup for liquids, and continue zapping it to maintain temperature. Adding hot liquid to the cooking rice is important in maintaining the overall temperature of the cooking environment; adding cold stock will halt the absorption process until everything can come back up again, and we want to avoid rollercoasters.)

Step 2: Add a good slosh of white wine to the rice. It doesn't have to be great, I usually just use the token mostly-consumed bottle hanging out in the fridge. Stir occasionally until the wine is absorbed.

Step 3: Add about 1 cup of hot stock to the rice. Stir every few minutes. You will get a better product if you stand there and stir more frequently, but for everyday purposes I don't think it's necessary. The purpose of stirring is to loosen starch molecules from the surface of the rice grain and distribute it into the liquid component (stock), allowing the rice to uniformly absorb more liquid and release more starch. This is where the creamy consistency develops. 

*A note about heat: you want the risotto to be ever so slightly bubbling, but definitely not boiling. Barely simmering. Otherwise a gooey burnt-on fate awaits!

Step 4: Continue stirring until the liquid is mostly absorbed. Add another cup of hot stock. Continue stirring until almost absorbed. 

Here is the judgement call. It is traditional to cook the risotto for 17 minutes total since the wine was absorbed. This results in a grain that still has "bite" to it, and is al dente. In Italy, a finished risotto is supposed to be "looser," that is, the grains are surrounded by more liquid, than is typically served in the US. Some advocate for the risotto to be removed from the heat a few minutes before it is done and covered so that it can finish by residual heat. Depending on your palate, you may want the grains softer, or what have you.

If you don't have a lot of experience, I recommend finishing it yourself, so being involved with it until you think it's ready, instead of covering it up early and hoping for the best. You might have to taste it a lot, but sometimes we have to make delicious sacrifices. Buck up.

Step 5: Once you've decided it's ready, remove from heat and add a few pats of cold butter and some finely grated parmesan (or other similar cheese), and stir it all in. Yum! I like to add some more cheese on top when I'm about to dig in.

Variations exist as far as the eyes can see. Meat, no meat, veggies, herbs. Another "kitchen sink" medium. I usually sauté some finely chopped onion or mushrooms in the bottom of the pot before I add the uncooked rice. You can add things along the way, or wait to stir it all in at the end. In pictured rendition above, I roasted some cauliflower (drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper, 350 degree oven until lightly browned), chopped it up, and added it to the risotto towards the end. I also added some sage, because I'm going through a slight obsession with this herb at the moment. Also, check the salt! Depending on the stock you've used, the risotto can use a lot of extra salt.

The one hairy thing about risotto is that it should be eaten as soon as possible after you've deemed it done! You definitely don't want it sitting around because it will continue to cook and dry out. This is why risotto at large-scale catered events are usually so gluey-horrible! 

Hope this guide helps! Here's a final rundown of the recipe components in case you don't like the stream-of-consciousness:

Roasted Cauliflower and Sage Risotto:

1 cup arborio rice

1 cup white wine

2 cups vegetable stock

1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped

1 medium head cauliflower, coarsely chopped, and roasted in 350 degree oven

1 tsp dry rubbed sage

butter

parmesan cheese, finely grated

fancy-lookin chicken

While I'm home visiting my folks, I usually like to cook them a few nice meals. For one, my dad pays me back for groceries, so I can go all out and get the fancy stuff. Also, they have a lovely kitchen (though I may be biased... it is the kitchen I learned to cook in). In any event, I wanted to whip something up for them tonight, but lacking access to a car (and this being a lovely suburban area where the nearest store is a 45 minute walk away), I decided to fridge forage and figure something out.

After a brief search, I found some chicken breasts, feta cheese, jarred (marinated) artichoke hearts, and other assorted goods. It's just begging to turn into stuffed chicken breasts, one of my favorite renditions of this often bland and belittled cut of meat. Not only does it come out completely juicy, but it is a stunning presentation that makes you look like a total kitchen stud, when very little skill is actually required. Let me show you!

First, lay a chicken breast flat on a cutting board. Take the knife parallel to the board, and make a shallow slit almost down the length of the breast, making it about an inch short on both ends so that you have a pocket. Work your thumbs into the slit (don't be afraid) and peel the meat apart so you enlarge the pocket to almost the other side:

So now we need to make a stuffing. This can be almost anything you like. Most people make cheesy based pastes including some aromatic herbs or spices. I like to think of this as "kitchen sink" time, where you can mix up pantry stragglers, small portions of leftovers, whatever flavor combination moves you. Tonight I wanted a mediterranean flavored meal. I was using some chopped onion in a side dish, so I just scooped out some extra I had been softening and added it to the stuffing. It could be just as good with some raw onion. Strong flavors are great because that will infuse the chicken with yummy aromas during the cooking. 

Here is a rough recipe:

Mediterranean Chicken Stuffing:

Mix the following in a bowl:

1 cup feta cheese (crumbled)

5-6 fresh basil leaves, chopped

1 small jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped

1 Tbsp sun dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup onion, diced and sauteed to translucent 

salt, pepper to taste

Take about 1/4 cup of the stuffing, and gently but firmly stuff into the pocket cavity. Make sure it gets all the way in to the back of the space. You don't want to pack it tightly, it should be loose as we'll want to close things up for cooking. Add more or less depending on the space available.

The next step is to close up the pocket so all the cheesy goodness stays inside. To seal things up, some people use some cotton string or toothpicks. I had some long skewers on hand, so I coated them in olive oil (otherwise burning ensues, ick) and weaved them back and forth to create a seam:

OK, almost done. That was all the fussy set up work, and really it wasn't so bad, was it? We're on to the last two steps: browning and baking. Simple!  Heat up a skillet (bonus if it's oven safe) with little olive oil. Lay the breasts in the pan and cook about two minutes per side, until lightly browned.

After it is nice and seared, either transfer the meat to an oven-safe container, or if using an oven-proof skillet, simply pick up the whole thing and cook it uncovered in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 12-15 minutes until the meat is cooked through. If I had leftover stuffing, I sprinkle it over the top before I put it in the oven.

Once the meat is cooked and the topping is looking melty, remove from oven and let it rest for about 5 minutes. This helps the juices redistribute so it doesn't all come rushing out as soon as you poke it with something sharp.

Fabulous!! Seriously, this is a definite crowd-pleaser. I served it with steamed asparagus and a roasted-cauliflower risotto (which I will post about tomorrow).