How to cook The Perfect Risotto - Recipe | Donald Russell

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The Perfect Risotto

Recipe
Matthias Schmitt

The Perfect Risotto

How to cook the perfect risotto
So many people wonder how to cook the perfect risotto. Well this gives a base that you can customise your way to make the perfect risotto recipe to enjoy.
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Ingredients
- 80g Riso Baldo Risotto Rice per person
- Shallots or onions to taste
- White wine and/or stock
- Customised ingredients such as mushrooms, cured meats, vegetables
- Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 knob of cold butter
Method
1. The secret to a perfect risotto is the initial toasting of the rice with sautéed shallots (or onions) over high heat.
2. Once the rice grains reach a high temperature they will take on a transparent appearance but shouldn’t be allowed to burn.
3. Add a liberal amount of white wine, and stir until evaporated.
4. Add boiling stock (chicken, veal, vegetable, beef etc) one ladleful at a time, waiting for the rice to completely absorb each ladle and stirring constantly.
5. Keep adding stock and stirring like this for about 12-14 minutes. At this stage, you can customise the risotto by adding different feature ingredients such as cured meats, mushrooms, sautéed or preserved vegetables, or herbs.
6. Turn off the heat. To cream the risotto, add some grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and stir well with a wooden spoon. Add a knob of cold butter and leave the risotto covered until the butter has melted.
7. Stir again, adding more stock if necessary to achieve the desired density – not too thin, and not too thick and sticky.
8. Serve immediately, as the texture will firm up and the rice will continue cooking if it is left to stand.