thebigfatnoodle

Veg-tastic dinner: Risotto verde

Posted by thebigfatnoodle on October 4, 2011 · 11 Comments 

Veg-tastic dinner: Risotto verde

Shiny grains of arborio rice - yum yum yum - and they're not even cooked yet!

I love vegetables and can never get enough of them!

There’s a cheap and cheerful Italian restaurant chain near my work and every time I’m there, I order the same dish time and time again, and it’s not pizza or pasta! Instead, it’s their light, creamy and packed with lots of vegetables risotto verde.

I used a red onion but stick to shallots or a white onion if you want to keep your risotto pearly white

Last weekend, I decided to try and make my own version, which is simply a basic risotto to which I add my sautéed vegetables to in the last 2 minutes before the risotto is ready. And the green vegetables I’ve chosen are some of my favourite greens – baby courgettes, asparagus tips, tender stem broccoli and edamame beans – yummy!!!

Unfortunately, I forgot to buy shallots the day I made this and I ended up using a red onion so during the cooking process, the rice in my risotto verde took on a darker shade of yellow instead of staying the beautiful creamy white if I’d used shallots or a white onion. It’s really only a visual thing because it hasn’t altered the taste at all, which is creamy, slightly lemony deliciousness!

Fresh edamame beans - I'm so happy they finally sell these in the supermarket!

Maybe one day I’ll actually break the habit and try ordering a stone-baked pizza when I’m at this restaurant but in the meantime, I can at least make my own version at home when I can’t make it there – equally yummy but nowhere near as expensive. Buon Appetito!

Risotto verde - buon apetito!

Creamy, smooth, silky and lemony

Risotto verde

1½ cups arborio rice

Juice of ½ lemon

1 cup tender stem broccoli

10-12 fresh asparagus tips

1 red onion/2 shallots, finely chopped

½ cup white wine

8-10 fresh baby courgettes, cut in half lengthways

½ cup fresh edamame beans (fresh peas work too)

1 litre of good chicken/vegetable stock (make sure your stock is well seasoned and one that tastes nice)

Fresh parmesan

Salt and pepper to taste

4 knobs of butter

3 tablespoons of olive oil

Meat-free goodness

In a large saucepan or pot, melt 2 knobs of butter and a pinch of salt in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and gently your onions/shallots on a gentle/medium heat for 6-8 minutes so that they become translucent without taking on any colour. Once cooked, pour in your risotto rice and give the grains a good stir so that each granule is coated in the oil. Turn up the heat to medium high and your white wine. Keep stirring the rice until the white wine has been completely absorbed and add one small ladle of chicken stock. For the next 25-30 minutes, keep stirring your risotto continually while adding one small ladle of stock every few minutes or whenever the grains have absorbed all the stock.

Five minutes before your risotto’s cooked, heat the remaining butter and olive oil in another pan and toss in all your vegetables. Stir fry these for 2 minutes and add the lemon juice.

Pour all the vegetables (and the saucepan’s butter/olive oil that your vegetables cooked in) into your risotto and give it a final stir.

To serve your risotto verde, grate or shave some parmesan over the top, along with a generous grind of black pepper. If you like, squeeze a little bit more lemon juice over the top before grabbing a fork and digging in.

Risotto verde

Lots of love

thebigfatnoodle