Recipe time. Cassy started this a few days ago, maybe we can institute some regular recipe posting 
.
Today's pick: risotto
Unlike the fancy schmancy stuff they call risotto in (often upscale) restaurants nowadays, the original risotto is a rustic peasant dish. The starchy rice is very filling, and quite nutritional. It's also a quite versatile dish in which you can use a lot of different ingredients. Perfect for using up leftovers.
Ingredients:
- arborio rice, a cup per person is quite generous
- a splash of olive oil
- some garlic if you have it
- chicken stock (or use vegetable stock if you're going vegetarian/vegan)
- any veg that happens to be laying around
- some meat or seafood or something if you have it
- some butter
- cheese if you have it
You can go pretty much every direction here. Veg that work great are celery, peas, green beans (broken into smaller pieces), spinach, scallions, carrot, cherry tomatoes, brocolli rosets, asparagus, bell pepper, etc.
Seafood like shrimp, salmon flakes, crab and crayfish would work well, as would some diced chicken breast.
Just use any combination that sounds tasty.
How to prepare:
Get your stock ready, either from a cube or freshly made. It needs to be warm when you put it in.
Heat up some oil in a deep pan, and add some chopped garlic. If you're using harder vegetables like carrot, celery or onions, now would be the time to add them to the pan.
Let them soften up a bit, and add the rice. Give it a minute to soak up the oil and juices from the veg, while stirring. Add some of the stock, and keep adding some more as the rice absorbs it all. It's getting time to start adding the other ingredients.
From the time you start adding stock, it takes about 20 minutes to finish the dish. Add the other ingredients accordingly. Spinach and (frozen or fresh) peas only take 5 minutes or so to cook, brocolli may need up to 10. Crab meat (prepared earlier) only needs to warm through, so add it when the dish is done.
It should take about 20 minutes to cook the rice. It's done when it's soft and creamy on the outside, but still holds a little bite in the center. The stock should be all absorbed by now, leaving an oozy, tasty meal. It should have the consistency of a thick porridge, it still needs to slowly ooze on your plate. If it's too dry, add some more stock (use water if you've ran out), if it's too wet, gently turn up the heat and let some more liquid evaporate.
Too finish, add a spoonfull of butter, and perhaps some cheese (I wouldn't do cheese with seafood). I would suggest some parmesan cheese, or a really matured gouda like Old Amsterdam.
Serve. Enjoy.
.
Today's pick: risotto
Unlike the fancy schmancy stuff they call risotto in (often upscale) restaurants nowadays, the original risotto is a rustic peasant dish. The starchy rice is very filling, and quite nutritional. It's also a quite versatile dish in which you can use a lot of different ingredients. Perfect for using up leftovers.
Ingredients:
- arborio rice, a cup per person is quite generous
- a splash of olive oil
- some garlic if you have it
- chicken stock (or use vegetable stock if you're going vegetarian/vegan)
- any veg that happens to be laying around
- some meat or seafood or something if you have it
- some butter
- cheese if you have it
You can go pretty much every direction here. Veg that work great are celery, peas, green beans (broken into smaller pieces), spinach, scallions, carrot, cherry tomatoes, brocolli rosets, asparagus, bell pepper, etc.
Seafood like shrimp, salmon flakes, crab and crayfish would work well, as would some diced chicken breast.
Just use any combination that sounds tasty.
How to prepare:
Get your stock ready, either from a cube or freshly made. It needs to be warm when you put it in.
Heat up some oil in a deep pan, and add some chopped garlic. If you're using harder vegetables like carrot, celery or onions, now would be the time to add them to the pan.
Let them soften up a bit, and add the rice. Give it a minute to soak up the oil and juices from the veg, while stirring. Add some of the stock, and keep adding some more as the rice absorbs it all. It's getting time to start adding the other ingredients.
From the time you start adding stock, it takes about 20 minutes to finish the dish. Add the other ingredients accordingly. Spinach and (frozen or fresh) peas only take 5 minutes or so to cook, brocolli may need up to 10. Crab meat (prepared earlier) only needs to warm through, so add it when the dish is done.
It should take about 20 minutes to cook the rice. It's done when it's soft and creamy on the outside, but still holds a little bite in the center. The stock should be all absorbed by now, leaving an oozy, tasty meal. It should have the consistency of a thick porridge, it still needs to slowly ooze on your plate. If it's too dry, add some more stock (use water if you've ran out), if it's too wet, gently turn up the heat and let some more liquid evaporate.
Too finish, add a spoonfull of butter, and perhaps some cheese (I wouldn't do cheese with seafood). I would suggest some parmesan cheese, or a really matured gouda like Old Amsterdam.
Serve. Enjoy.
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
avidity:
yeah you are so going to have to prepare this. i'll clean the kitchen though, and i won't complain, i promise!! 
avidity:
