Ever been to an Italian restaurant? Then you've probably heard about the famous Italian dish - risotto!
Risotto is the golden mean between liquid porridge and soup, most likely it is rice, from which all the water has boiled away. This is not a dish, but an exquisite way to cook rice, which, by the way, is not given and obtained by many.
To prepare risotto according to the classic recipe, you will need two containers or pans, rice, onions and broth. Further, the dish depends entirely on your imagination, you can add tomatoes, pumpkin, asparagus, artichokes, meat, fish and much more to it.
A few golden rules for making the right risotto:
Use only the right rice. The most delicious risotto comes from ARBORIO, CARNAROLI, VIALONE NANO varieties. These varieties do not stick together during cooking and release a creamy, starchy liquid that forms the basis of the risotto. Risotto is prepared by adding liquid to it. Remember that the liquid must be hot. Risotto needs patience and constant attention, so be sure to finish all the incidentals before cooking the rice. The risotto has a cooking time of 17 minutes, so watch the timer carefully. It is worth starting the calculation of time from the moment the rice got into the pan.
To prepare a classic Milanese risotto, you need broth, cheese, white wine, butter, onions, natural saffron and, of course, rice. The best broth for risotto is chicken broth. To prepare it, you will need meat - ideally chicken, onions, black pepper, parsley, wine, fresh peas, lemon zest. Before starting cooking, the chicken must be washed well, divided into parts and placed in a saucepan. Add a pinch of salt to it, and then pour in water (preferably drinking water). Add pepper, lightly crushed with a knife, onion, cut in half and celery, etc. to the pan - do this after boiling.
Place the saucepan over high heat and wait for the broth to boil, then reduce the heat as low as possible. Remove limescale. Cook the chicken for 2 hours. Add dry wine half an hour before the end of cooking. The finished broth must be filtered and cooled, and then the frozen fat must be removed from the surface.
Now let's get down to the rice itself. First you need to fry the onions with carrots over low heat until the onions lose their color. If you are using other vegetables, sauté them with the onions and carrots as well. Pour the rice into the skillet and stir quickly. Stir it without stopping for 30 seconds, until the rice reaches a golden color on the outside and white on the inside. Then pour the wine into the rice, and stir continuously until the smell of alcohol disappears and the liquid is absorbed.
The wine is absorbed - proceed to add the broth. In a quick circular motion, pour the broth into the rice and stir with a wooden spoon. Stir the rice once every 30 seconds until the liquid is absorbed. Add a ladle of broth and stir again.
When the rice is half cooked, add mushrooms, seafood, or any other ingredients you choose, then add the stock again and continue stirring. Instead of seafood, you can add a glass of saffron broth. When ready, remove the rice from the stove and leave it alone for a minute.
Then add butter and finely grated cheese to the rice and mix quickly until smooth. Now you can put the rice on the plates, but don't tell anyone that making risotto is so easy!
