Classic risotto recipe - cooking features and reviews

There is one famous Italian dish - risotto, recipes and the preparation of which is a whole art.

It is important that you get elastic rice with a light creamy sauce. Cooking according to any risotto recipe is impossible without special varieties of rice, which should contain a large amount of starch. In the finished dish, the solid texture of the rice should be felt.

There is a wide variety of risotto recipes. It all depends on the region where the rice grows, from which the dish is prepared. For example, along the river Po it is customary to prepare a liquid dish, in other areas they prepare a thick dish.

At home, risotto is considered the main dish and served as an independent. But the Milanese risotto, prepared with bone marrow and saffron, is usually served as a side dish.

In the article, we will consider how to cook risotto - a classic recipe, with seafood, chicken and others. We will also figure out how to prepare the sauce for them at home.

The story of the appearance of a classic Italian dish

The dish appeared as a result of the mistake of the Italian cook in the 16th century, who forgot about it during the preparation of the soup. As a result, all the water boiled away, as a result of which the rice turned into porridge, prepared on the basis of chicken broth with vegetables.

Product set

Before preparing risotto according to the Italian recipe, it is necessary to prepare a mandatory set of products, without which its preparation will be impossible.

Mandatory product set:

1. Rice of certain varieties with a high starch content. Usually vialone, arborio or carnaroli. It is rice of these varieties that are coated with a double layer of starch. The first layer during cooking makes the rice soft on the outside, and the second keeps the hardness inside, which prevents the grain from digesting. In order for the risotto not to turn into porridge, rice should not be washed before cooking. Enough to sort out.
2. Wine use only dry and white.
3. Oddly enough, for a classic Italian dish such as risotto, you only need to use butter. If you come across a recipe with the addition of olive oil, then it is rather a variation on the theme of risotto.
4. Only two types of cheese are used - parmesan or grana padano. If this is not, then you can replace any salty. It is better not to use cream cheese for making risotto.

Risotto at home. The recipe is "Classic"

Ingredients:

• A few glasses of chicken stock.
• Packing rice in any of the three varieties mentioned above.
• 200 milliliters of white wine.
• Head of yellow or white onion.
• Half a tablespoon of butter.
• 120 grams of parmesan cheese.
• A quarter teaspoon of saffron.
• 200 grams of mushrooms. It is advisable to use champignons.
• Fine salt. You can use iodized.
• Ground black or white pepper.

Cooking process

At the first stage, dissolve saffron in wine. To do this, you need to heat the saffron wine over a fire under a closed lid.

Peel and chop the onion as little as possible.

Peel and cut the mushrooms in half rings. Both ingredients send to wine. Add creamy little here.

It is important that the onion is not burnt and retains its transparency. Otherwise, the dish can be considered spoiled.

After five minutes, send rice to the stewpan and mix with a wooden spatula.

Stew rice so that it absorbs all the moisture. This will take no more than five minutes. After that, add the broth. Pour it gradually, as it is absorbed into the rice.

At the end of cooking, after about half an hour cooking rice, add spices and grated parmesan. It is necessary that the cheese has completely melted, which will give the dish its unique flavor.

This is the classic recipe for risotto. Reviews about the dish are very different. Mostly positive.

Italian risotto with chicken

The dish is most popular in the north of Italy.

Ingredients:

• One glass of rice.
• A pair of chicken fillets.
• Onions - one head.
• 2 carrots.
• Fine salt.
• Half a liter of chicken stock.
• Spices.
• A tablespoon of butter.
• One clove of garlic.

Cooking method

Consider a step-by-step recipe for chicken risotto. To prepare it, you will need no more than half an hour:

• Step one. Prepare the meat and cut into small pieces.
• Step Two We wash the onion and finely chop.
• Step Three Rub the carrots on a medium grater.
• Step Four Fry the chicken in butter.

• Step Five Add vegetables to the chicken.
• Step Six After the vegetables are cooked until golden brown, pour the broth.
• Seventh step. After the broth boils, we send rice to the pan. All mix with a spatula.
• Step Eight. Sliced ​​garlic, salt and spices are sent to the pan.
• Tomim under a closed lid for forty minutes.

Serve the dish best in a pan on a wooden board.

Vegetables are the best ingredients

The classic recipe for risotto with vegetables is prepared, always using tomatoes and eggplant. If desired, you can add any others.

Ingredients:

• A glass of rice.
• One eggplant.
• Liter of chicken stock.
• Butter - one tablespoon.
• 200 milliliters of dry white wine.
• One head of sweet onion.
• 30 grams of olive oil.
• 300 grams of canned tomatoes in a tomato.
• 250 grams of shrimp. Can be replaced with mussels.
• 100 grams of cheese.
• 20 grams of capers.

Cooking

Consider a step-by-step recipe for risotto with vegetables.

• Step one. Peel the eggplant and cut into small cubes. Rinse in a colander and slightly salt. Leave for a quarter of an hour. Then rinse with salt and leave to drain from excess fluid.
• Step Two We put a frying pan or stewpan with a double bottom on the fire. Heat the olive oil.
• Step Three Peel and chop the onion. We send together with the eggplants to the pan to fry. Cook over medium heat for up to ten minutes. It is important to remember that eggplants absorb a large amount of oil. To prevent this from happening, send them to a hot pan.

• Step Four Thaw shrimp and rinse. We free tomatoes and capers from excess fluid. All components are sent to the pan to vegetables and tomim no more than one minute. Remove from the stove.
• Step Five Take a deeper pan and melt the butter. We send rice to it and simmer for seven minutes, stirring constantly. Rice should acquire a transparent color.
• Step Six Pour wine over rice, followed by chicken stock. Add the broth in stages, after the rice has absorbed the previous portion.

• Seventh step. After the rice has a dense texture that will not creak on the teeth, add vegetables with tomato dressing. Mix the entire contents of the pan. Turn off and serve.

Chicken and Vegetable Risotto Recipe

Ingredients:

• One glass of rice.
• Two glasses of chicken stock.
• Fine salt.
• Medium size chicken fillet.
• One head of onion.
• One carrot.
• Spice.
• A few cloves of garlic.
• One eggplant.
• Two small tomatoes.
• Olive oil for frying vegetables.

Cooking process

Cooking a risotto in a slow cooker according to the recipe will take you a lot of time. You will need at least one hour, but it's worth it.

First you need to prepare the vegetables. Peel the carrots and grate on a medium grater. Peel and finely chop the onion. Peel and cut the eggplant. Salt and leave for fifteen minutes.

In the meantime, blanch the tomato. Boil water on the stove and lower the cut tomato for half a minute. Then get out and dip in cold water. The peel is easily removable. Dice the tomato.

Rinse the eggplant under running water and leave the glass to water.

Next, in a bowl of the multicooker, heat the olive oil and send the prepared vegetables. Set the slow cooker on the "Frying" mode for ten minutes.

We wash the chicken fillet, dry it with a paper towel and cut into small pieces. We send to the bowl to the vegetables and fry for about twelve minutes.

At the next stage, we send rice and pour in the broth, salt and spices. We turn on the "Cooking" or "Soup" mode and leave for half an hour.

Creamy risotto

Ingredients:

• 20 percent cream.
• A tablespoon of butter.
• So much cheese.
• Fine iodized salt.
• Ground white pepper.
• Olive oil for frying.
• A few leaves of mint.
• A glass of rice.
• The same amount of green peas.
• One liter of chicken stock.
• Half the onion.

Cooking method

The creamy risotto recipe is quite simple, requires a minimum of time:

1. Finely chop the half of the onion and fry in olive oil in a frying pan or double-bottom stewpan until golden brown.
2. After we add the rice and fry for up to three minutes. The contents of the pan must be constantly stirred so that the rice does not burn.
3. After add half the hot broth. Stew until rice absorbs all the liquid. After add the remaining half of the broth.
4. We cook until the liquid is completely absorbed by the rice.
5. Five minutes before readiness, we send peas and cream, as well as butter. To mix everything. Turn off the fire and leave it under a closed lid for about ten minutes.
6. Rinse the mint and put it on a dry towel so that it dries a little. Grate the cheese on a fine grater. Put the risotto on a plate, sprinkle with cheese and garnish with mint leaves.

Risotto with minced meat

We will need:

• 250 grams of minced meat. It is best to use beef.
• One medium sized onion.
• One glass of rice.
• One zucchini.
• One eggplant.
• A fresh bunch of green onions.
• Four glasses of water.
• Olive oil for frying vegetables.

Cooking method

Risotto with minced meat is not a classic dish, but rather, one of its variations, but very tasty.

First you need to prepare the vegetables. Peel the eggplant and cut into cubes. Salt and leave for a quarter of an hour, then rinse under running water and leave in a colander. We clean and rinse the zucchini. Also cut into cubes. We clean the onion and chop it as small as possible.

Heat the oil and send the onions to the pan. Fry until golden and add zucchini with eggplant. Add a glass of water to the pan and simmer under a closed lid for about fifteen minutes.

In the next step add the stuffing. Salt and pepper the contents of the pan. Rinse the green onion feathers and chop finely. Send to the pan after the minced meat. Stew for another ten minutes.

After adding rice and pour half a glass of water. When all the water has boiled, add another glass and simmer until it evaporates under a closed lid.

Seafood risotto

Required Product List:

• One liter of vegetable stock.
• 300 grams of rice.
• 200 grams of dry wine.
• 250 grams of shrimp and mussels.
• 100 grams of parmesan.
• One head of onion.
• A few cloves of garlic.
• A tablespoon of butter and olive oil.
• Fine salt pepper to taste.

Cooking

Passion and fry the onion in olive oil. After add a piece of butter. When it melts, pour rice. Add wine after all the oil has evaporated. Evaporate for several minutes. Stir the rice with a wooden spatula.

Next, gradually add the vegetable broth as it evaporates. In the event that the broth is over and the rice is not yet ready, you can add a little boiling water.

Defrost seafood. It is better to do this naturally without warm water. Rinse well and clean up all excess. Add shrimps and mussels five minutes before cooking. Then salt and pepper.

At the very end of the preparation, add butter and finely grated cheese. Remove from heat, cover and let it brew for several minutes. Before serving, you can add finely chopped greens.

Secrets of making classic risotto

We have already figured out the choice of rice. But to get a tasty, close to the original dish, this is not enough.

The basis for the dish may be a vegetable broth, water or chicken broth. But it is better to use the latter.

It is not recommended to add chicken cubes, which can interrupt the taste.

Add liquid in portions. Do this after one portion has evaporated, then add the next. This should be done at the rate of one to four. That is, all the liquid is divided into four portions. The ideal ratio is two liters of liquid per 400 grams of cereal.

As already mentioned above, if you are preparing risotto with the addition of alcohol, then this should be only white dry wine. Red fortified or pink is not allowed.

Cheese add only one of two types. This is not necessary, but if you want to cook the most similar dish to the original, it is better to add. This must be done at the end. Grated cheese can be mixed with butter.

Vegetable risotto is prepared using various vegetables. They can be not only fresh, but also frozen. The same goes for seafood. No restrictions. The main thing is that the products are fresh.

Utensils for cooking classic Italian dishes should be with a double bottom. It can be a stewpan or a frying pan (it is better to use a cast-iron).

During cooking, rice must be constantly stirred so that it does not burn and does not stick together.

A properly cooked dish should have a delicate creamy texture. By consistency - the average between porridge and pilaf.

Another secret of a delicious dish is hidden in the right recipe for risotto sauce. It can be creamy or tomato based.

Rice is preferably fried in butter. Passivated vegetables only in olive. If this is not at hand, then use sunflower, but only the highest degree of purification.

Make sure that the rice does not boil. Cook over low heat with the lid closed. Otherwise, rice may boil, and the dish will resemble rice porridge.

In order for the risotto to be perfect in consistency, rice must rise “waves” during stewing. When serving, you can sprinkle the dish with any greens, garnish with lemon slices. Original considered serving in a pan on a wooden shelf.