The Secret To Make Restaurant Style Risotto | Tips From an Italian Chef

Here’s a guest post from one of our guest bloggers on the ‘trials and tribulations’ of making the dish infamously known as risotto:
Guest Blogger: Madigan Naylor
I always hear that Risotto is a difficult, time- consuming dish to make, and that most people don’t have the patience to make it because it’s a tricky recipe to cook. The thing is, it’s really not that difficult to make, and although it does require your full attention for about 20-25 minutes, it’s totally worth it in the end! Risotto recipes differ greatly from adding saffron to butternut squash to peas. What makes it so special? Most risottos use a certain kind of rice in order to achieve the right flavor and creamy texture of the dish. Arborio rice is most commonly used, but you can also use Canaroli rice. Arborio rice is an Italian short- grain rice that is named after the place where it is grown, the town of Arborio in Italy. Canaroli, on the other hand, is medium- grain and firmer than Arborio rice because it has a higher starch content.
Learning how to make a good risotto is like learning how to ride a bike. It takes a little practice, but once you’ve got it, you’re a pro. The first time I tried to make risotto, I found out that no matter what, you have got to keep stirring constantly. I did not stir it continuously and the starch in the rice did not break down correctly. Risotto is sensitive to timing. The unique texture of the dish has to be just right or it is not the same. The second time I tried, it turned out much better, because I kept stirring, stirring, stirring! I got so many compliments from my family, that they insisted I make it again when we ate all of the leftovers! I highly recommend you to try making a risotto, even if you already have. Practice makes perfect! The tasty minced onion and the rich olive oil flavors that risotto recipes usually call for make the dish an overall wonderful Italian dish that people at every age will love.
 
Glad to hear she mastered The Basic Art of a fine risotto dish!  Here’s another creamy risotto recipe to try now that you have it all figured out…
From the Gourmand World Cookbook Award Winning Book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions
(978-1928911-19-7)
copyright 2010 art of living,PrimaMedia,Inc/Maria Liberati
Risotto with Porcini Mushrooms & Truffles


4 cups (1 liter) vegetable broth
3 tablespoons (60 gr) olive oil
2 leeks chopped finely
1 cup (238 gr) arborio or carnaroli rice
1 tablespoon (15 gr) butter (unsalted)
pinch of salt
1 cup Santa Margherita Prosecco
1 oz. (30 gr) of dried porcini mushrooms
1-2 teaspoons (5gr -10 gr) of grated truffles or 2 (10 gr) teaspoons of truffle infused oil
2 tablespoons (30 gr) grated Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese
Place dried porcini mushrooms in bowl of warm water for 30 minutes, soak.Heat vegetable broth till boiling, then simmer. Place olive oil in large saute pan. Place in thinly sliced leeks and saute till leeks are just about golden. Place in soaked porcini mushrooms and their liquid. Place in rice and toast till rice is coated with oil and all liquid is evaporated. Add in Santa Margherita Prosecco. Stir till all liquid is evaporated. Place in ½ cup of vegetable broth and stir till all liquid is evaporated and repeat this placing in ½ cup liquid till evaporated till rice is al dente (approximately 15-18 minutes) or till desired tenderness.
Place 1 tablespoon (15 gr) of butter on top and stir till melted. Plate and serve ,top with grated parmigiana-reggiano cheese. Decorate with grated truffles or drizzle of truffle oil on top.

 
June 18th-See you at Davios Northern Italian Steakhouse in Philadelphia on June 18th..for info email: events@marialiberati.com