Pork and Saffron Risotto

This recipe comes from Valentia Harris’s excellent book on risotto, which I use frequently. This is the only recipe for risotto that I have found that uses pork. I used a piece of a hand of pork, and some dripping that Malcolm had clarified.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 75g pork dripping, lard or pork belly fat
  • 1 finely chopped onion
  • 300g finely cubed pork, eg from shoulder or hand of pork
  • 1/2 glass dry white wine
  • 1 tin organic chopped tomatoes
  • pinch of safron strands soaked in a little warm water
  • 500g organic risotto rice
  • 1.5 litres hot stock
  • 50g freshly grated pecorino/parmesan cheese
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD:

  • Fry the onion in the pork dripping slowly so that it softens, then add the cubes of pork
  • Cook together and add the dry white wine, until the pork is browned.
  • Add the tomatoes and mix well, then add the saffron and the water in which it soaked, and bring to the simmer.
  • Continue to simmer gently for about an hour, adding water if required to keep the mixture moist. At the end of the cooking, the pork should be almost falling apart.
  • Add all the rice, and stir until it is heated through and well coated.
  • Start adding the hot stock a little at a time, stiring it in as you go. Make sure that all the liquid is absorbed before adding the next bit of stock.
  • When the rice is cooked, firm, yet velvety and the sauce is creamy, take the risotto off the heat and add the cheese, salt and pepper. Let it sit for a few minutes and stir before serving from a warmed platter.

Truffle Risotto

Mm. A recipe to start early, it doesn’t take 20 minutes, more like 3 to 4 hours. It involves making a mega rich stock, and then adding the rice. This is from one of my favourite recipe books, ‘Risotto Risotto’ by Valentia Harris.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 40g pork fat or lard
  • 40g prosciutto crudo
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, finely sliced
  • 1 celery stick chopped well
  • 400g beef offcuts or skirt
  • 1.5 litres boiling water
  • salt and peppper
  • 400g risotto rice
  • 75g butter (
  • 75g grated parmesan
  • white truffles, preferably fresh, but can be bought as a paste or in oil

METHOD:

  • Put the pork fat, onion and prosciutto in a blender and whiz to make a thick paste.
  • Put the paste in a large and heavy pan, and fry until soft and golden, at least five minutes, then add the carrot and celery and fry for another five minutes.
  • Add the beef and brown on all sides. Cover with the boiling water, season with salt and pepper and put a lid over the pot. Simmer for three hours.
  • Remove the meat and set aside. If you have used a very rough cut like the skirt, then discard this. We used left-overs, which we shredded and added back later.
  • Put the remaining stock through the food processer so that it is really smooth, and add boiling water to make up to 1.2 litres.
  • Bring the smooth stock to the boil, add all the rice and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until there is no free fluid
  • Add the butter and cheese and any reserved beef that is tender enough to eat. Stir and leave to relax for five minutes.
  • Cover the risotto with shaved truffles, or stir in the white truffle paste, and serve.

Courgette risotto

This is a delicious vegetarian risotto, although it can also be made with a chicken stock. It is adapted from a basic recipe with a few ideas stolen from elsewhere. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 small onion, or shallots, finely chopped (about 2 tbsp)
  • 1 stick of celery, stringed and finely chopped
  • 40g unsalted butter, plus an extra 20g butter for the end
  • 200ml dry white wine
  • 1 litre of vegetable stock, simmering and hot (or chicken stock for a non-vegetarian version)
  • 300g risotto rice
  • salt and pepper
  • 3 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 large or 3 medium courgettes, grated
  • 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • A splash of olive oi
  • 1-2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint

METHOD:

  • Start frying the courgettes in a pan with a little olive oil and the garlic. Keep the heat quite high and stir frequently. You are looking to see bits of the courgette starting to brown. When they are cooked, season with a little salt and pepper.
  • In a small pan, cook the onion and celery very slowly in melted butter, until soft and translucent. 
  •  Put the fried onion into the risotto pan, and continue to cook over a low heat. Add the rice and stir it all together, until the rice starts to get a bit shiny and translucent around the edges. 
  • Add a glass of wine, and once it is simmering, add the courgettes, and stir together, along with the chopped mint. 
  • When the mixture is simmering and looking a little dry, start adding the hot stock. Add this a ladleful at a time, and simmering and stirring until it is all hot and incorporated, before adding the next bit. Towards the end of cooking, check the flavour, and add salt and pepper to taste. Remember that the cheese will be salty. 
  • Once the rice is cooked, tender but still firm, take the risotto off the heat, and stir in the parmesan. When that has all melted, stir in the butter, cover and let the risotto sit for a few minutes before stirring and serving. 

Red pepper risotto

On Boxing day, I make risotto with left-over turkey. This year, the number of vegetarians has increased quite a bit, so I split the offering. I made a roasted red pepper risotto. I’m not that good at roasting the peppers, I lose my nerve a little. Also, it didn’t help that I was cooking on a Rayburn, which I was unfamiliar with. I would suggest a practice round. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 large red bell peppers (don’t try this with the long pointy ones)
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 500g risotto rice
  • 1.5 litres of stock (vegetable or chicken)
  • salt and black pepper
  • 75g parmesan

METHOD:

  • First, roast the peppers. Heat the oven to 240C. Wash the peppers and put them on a roasting sheet, and roast them until the skins are charred. You’ll need to check on them from time to time, and turn them over to make sure the skin blackens all over. This will take 30 to 40 minutes. When they are done, put them in a bowl and cover it as the peppers cool. After about 10 to 15 minutes, you’ll be able to remove the peppers from the bowl, pull out the stems and pips, and peel off the blackened outer skin. The roasted pepper will be dark and juicy. Slice the peppers. 
  • In a large pan, melt the butter, and then gently fry the onion and the garlic until the onion is soft, around 5 to 10 minutes.
  • Add the peppers and continue to fry for another five minutes
  • Add all of the rice and stir it in until the rice grains are hot and toasted, and the mixture is dry. 
  • Bring the stock to a simmer. Add the stock, one ladleful at a time, stirring each one in and cooking until it is absorbed. Continue this way until all the stock is used up, and the risotto rice is plump and tender. 
  • Season to taste and stir in the parmesan. Leave in a warm place for three minutes before serving. 

 

Sausage risotto

This is a favourite. It is probably not that authentic, but it is very tasty. As usual, the technique is to make a delicious stew, and then add the rice and stock to make the risotto. I allow around 60g rice per person, and 3x as much water as rice. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 50g butter
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 4 sausages, chopped into chunks – around 200g
  • 250g risotto rice
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • salt and pepper
  • 20g porcini mushrooms
  • approx 750ml hot chicken or beef stock
  • salt and pepper
  • around 50g grated parmesan

METHOD:

  • Melt half of the butter in a pan, and gently fry the onion and sausage until the sausage is cooked. 
  • Meanwhile, soak the porcini mushrooms in half a cup of hot water.
  • When the sausage is cooked, remove the soaked mushrooms from the water, chop them finely and add them to the pan, with the tomato puree and the mushroom water, to make a simple stew. Simmer for around 15 minutes. Keep an eye and add a little stock if the mixture is beginning to stick. 
  • Add all of the rice, stir to coat in the stew, and then cook gently. Add the stock one ladleful at the time, adding more stock only when the last bit has been absorbed. After 20 minutes, all the stock will be in and the rice will be cooked. 
  • Take the pan off the heat, and stir in the rest of the butter and half the parmesan cheese. Adjust the seasoning; I like a lot of pepper
  • Serve with more parmesan cheese on the side. 

I think the real version uses proper Italian sausages, but these are hard to come by locally. 

Rabbit risotto with olives

More rabbit recipes. This one is from Risotto Risotto by Valentina Harris. There are some risotto basics that crop up. Adding the ingredients one by one, and letting them cook together allows the flavours to build. Many of the meat risottos involve making a rich stew, and then adding the risotto rice and the stock, bit by bit. 

I allow around 60g risotto rice per serving, and multiply by 3 to get the volume of stock in ml. For example, for 100g rice, use 300ml stock. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 rabbit, jointed and rinsed
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 celery stick, finely chopped
  • 1 large handful of fresh parsley, chopped
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 200g chopped pancetta or streaky bacon
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 glass red wine
  • around 20 small black olives, chopped. 
  • a pinch of dried oregano
  • salt and pepper
  • 400g risotto rice
  • 1.2 litres of chicken or vegetable stock, simmering 

METHOD:

  • Fry the onion, celery, pancetta and parsley in the olive oil over a low heat, until the onion is soft
  • Add the rabbit and brown it all over. 
  • Mix the tomato puree and wine together, and stir it in, with the olives, oregano, salt and pepper. Simmer over a low heat or cook in a low oven for an hour and a half, until the rabbit is really tender. Add stock to ensure that the stew does not stick or dry out. 
  • Let the stew cool, and strip the rabbit meat from the bones. Cut larger sections of meat into pieces the size of a walnut. Return to the stew and bring it back to a simmer
  • Add all of the rice, and stir to coat all the grains. Cook over a gentle heat, and add the stock a ladleful at a time, Make sure the rice absorbs the stock before adding the next ladleful.
  • After about 20 minutes the rice will be cooked. Remove the risotto from the heat, and let it stand for a couple of minutes before serving. 

Spiced pumpkin risotto

This recipe is from the Naked Chef, by Jamie Oliver. It has rather a lot of ingredients, but the flavour is amazing, so it is really worth it. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 butternut squash or onion squash
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp dried thyme leaves (or add fresh thyme while you are cooking the risotto)
  • 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1/2 tsp hot chilli flakes, or two small dried chillies
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 litre hot vegetable or chicken stock
  • another tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 1/2 head of celery, finely chopped
  • 2 more cloves of garlic
  • 400g good risotto rice
  • 100ml dry white vermouth or dry white wine
  • 70g butter
  • 100g parmesan
  • 2 heaped spoonfuls of mascarpone

METHOD:

  • Turn the oven up to 200C and start to prepare the spices. Put the dry herbs and spices and the salt and pepper into a spice grinder, or grind with a pestle and mortar. Once it is all in a fine powder, crush the garlic, and pound it in, and mix to a paste with the olive oil. 
  • Next, prepare the squash. Peel it if you are using a butternut squash and you don’t like the skin. Cut length wise into eights (half, half and half again) and scoop out the seeds. Rub the squash all over with the spice mixture, and lay it out in a small roasting dish. Roast for thirty minutes in the middle of the oven. 
  • The roasted squash is just lovely as it is, and if you wish, you could add chickpeas to the recipe. For the risotto, set it aside to cool, and then chop finely. Chop one half more finely. 
  • Make sure your stock is good and hot to make a good risotto.
  • In the risotto pan, head olive oil, and then gently cook the onion and celery for 3 to four minutes, before adding the garlic. Once the vegetables look soft, add the rice and turn up the heat a little. Continue to cook until the rice is turning translucent. Keep stirring so the rice doesn’t scorch or stick. 
  • When the rice is ready add the wine or vermouth and the thyme leaves, and keep stirring. Once the alcohol has boiled off, start adding the stock and the roughly chopped half of the chopped squash. Add the stock slowly, a ladleful at a time,  and keep checking the flavour and texture of the rice. I found the squash quite salty, so you don’t need to add masses more. Wait until each addition of stock has been absorbed by the rice before pouring more in. The rice will be ready when it is tender but still with a hint of a bite to it. 
  • When you think it is just about ready, turn off the heat, and stir in the rest of the pumpkin, the butter, mascarpone and parmesan. 

This makes four very large or six modest portions. 

Crab and pea risotto

We had a big tub of crab meat, almost 500g, much more than I could eat in one roll, so I made this delicious risotto. The crab meat came from Kallin – Namara seafoods 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 800ml of hot stock (vegetable or fish)
  • 200ml white wine
  • 25g butter
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
  • 175g risotto rice
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • juice of half a lemon
  • A tiny pinch of saffron (optional)
  • 140g frozen peas
  • 400g crab meat
  • 1-2 tbsp chive flowers, or chopped chives. 

METHOD:

  • Make sure the stock is hot, bring to a simmer.
  • Melt the butter in a large pan, and gently fry the onion and garlic until soft – around 5 minutes. 
  • Add the rice, and cook for another couple of minutes. 
  • Add the lemon zest and then the white wine, and then the pinch of saffron.
  • Add the hot stock, one ladleful at a time, stirring to mix and waiting for the liquid to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful. 
  • When the rice is nearly cooked (about 18 minutes into the cooking process) add the peas, lemon juice and crab meat, season and cook for around 3 monutes. 
  • Once the rice is cooked, add a knob of butter, another tbsp of stock, stir and leave to sit. 
  • Serve with wedges of lemon, and garnished with chive flowers. 

Prawn risotto

Eating locally caught prawns, delicious. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 200g prawns, cooked and peeled
  • 1/2 onion, finely chopped
  • 40g butter
  • 200g risotto rice
  • 200 ml dry white wine
  • 500 ml stock, simmering
  • 50g parmesan cheese
  • 1 tbsp chopped parsley
  • salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

  • Fry the onion very slowly in half of the butter, until it is soft and translucent. 
  • Stir in the rice and continue to cook until the rice is glossy and hot. 
  • Pour in the wine and heat until the alcohol has evaporated. 
  • Add the stock slowly, allowing the rice to absorb each ladleful before adding the next one. 
  • When the rice is almost cooked, about 15 minutes in, add the prawns, and continue to cook, adding the stock as before. 
  • When the rice is cooked, but still a little firm to the bite, remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the remaining butter, parsley, parmesan and adjust the seasoning. 
  • Serve after a couple of minutes, in warmed bowls. 

Scallop Risotto

More food for the wet cyclists. They said they liked fish, so I made Scallop Risotto using locally sourced scallops. I served a side dish of carrots and asparagus. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 600g prepared scallops
  • 100g butter
  • 4 tbsp brandy
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 500g risotto rice
  • 1.2 litres of fish stock
  • 2 tbsp fresh parsley
  • 1 handful of chive flowers
  • 4 tbsp double cream

METHOD:

  • Separate the scallops from the corals, and chop the scallop meat into chunks the size of the end of your thumb
  • Heat half the butter, and fry the scallops for 3 minutes or so. 
  • Pour over the brandy, and when it is hot, light it to flambe the scallops. When the flames die down, season with salt and pepper
  • Next, heat the rest of the butter in another pan, and gently fry the finely chopped onion until soft. 
  • Add the rice and fry until the rice is really hot. 
  • Pour on the stock, one ladleful at a time, waiting for each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next. 
  • When the rice is mostly cooked, add the cooked scallops with all the juices, along with the corals and the parsley. Stir together, and keep adding the stock as before. 
  • When the risotto is creamy, and the grains still have a little bite to them, take off the heat and stir in the cream. 
  • After a couple of minutes, transfer to a warmed platter and garnish with chive flowers before serving.