Risotto is one of those dishes that seems incredibly fancy and labor intensive when served but is secretly a safe bet at any dinner. You can throw in all kinds of ingredients, from meats to vegetables and as long as you add a decent amount of good white wine and give the risotto the love and attention it deserves by constantly stirring it will turn out a crowd-pleaser.
Last weekend I decided to go for shrimp risotto. The 500g bag of shrimp was on sale at the grocery store and I really can’t say no to a good deal. Being ever the great planner I had all the ingredients at home, except for the parmesan, which is only the second most important ingredient after the rice. Luckily Arborio rice is quite forgiving and so I used sharp cheddar instead. Not quite as authentically Italian as planned but still molto delizioso {hope the grammar is right!}
I can’t even begin to describe how delicious this is. It always baffles me how so few simple ingredients create such a wonderful composition to the eye and taste buds. Of course instead of shrimp you could add whatever your heart desires. Just make sure to always have the rice covered with liquid and to keep stirring throughout the process. Personally for me, those are the keys to a successful risotto.
Shrimp Risotto
serves 3-4
Ingredients:
- 1 medium sized white onion, finely chopped
- 1 spring onion, finely chopped
- 3-4 tbsp. olive oil or a knob of butter
- 300g Arborio rice
- 250ml white wine
- ~1 litre vegetable broth
- 500g shrimps, partly defrosted
- 100g frozen peas
- ~1 handful baby spinach, washed and chopped
- salt + pepper
- 45g cheddar cheese {alternatively parmesan can be used}, grated
Instructions:
- Heat up the olive oil or butter in a large pot and add the chopped white onion and spring onion. Let it soften and then add the Arborio rice. Stir for a few moments until hot, then add the wine. Stir until the wine has completely evaporated. Then immediately add enough vegetable broth to cover the rice. Turn down the heat to medium-high and continue stirring. The rice should always be covered with liquid and stirred frequently.
- When the rice is approximately half-way cooked add the partly defrosted shrimps. Continue to add vegetable broth whenever necessary and keep stirring.
- When the rice is al dente add the grated cheese. You should now have a creamy texture.
- Add the peas and baby spinach and stir to combine. Turn down the heat for ~5 minutes, just enough to let the peas defrost in the risotto.
- Serve with a sprinkle of freshly grated cheese and a glass of white wine.
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