By Susan Russo of Foodblogga

Risotto. Just seeing the word on a restaurant menu can elicit feelings of joy and anticipation. In contrast, “making risotto,” can elicit panic and dread. That’s because risotto is risky. It requires constant, slow stirring and attention to detail. No shortcuts are allowed. Or are they?

Risotto is an Italian rice dish that uses a specific type of rice and cooking technique. Rice is first toasted, then cooked in hot liquid that is slowly added until fully absorbed, creating a lusciously creamy risotto.

A perfect risotto starts with the perfect rice: arborio, vialone nano or carnaroli. All three are high in amylopectin, a starch that dissolves in the cooking process, giving risotto its characteristic creaminess and slightly clingy texture.

Arborio is the most popular rice for risotto in the U.S. and is widely available at specialty markets and online. Vialone nano and carnaroli are more popular in Italy than in America; some specialty markets carry them, and they’re available online. Risotto cannot be made from long-grain rice or minute rice; neither will produce the appropriate texture or flavor.

The reassuring thing about risotto is that there are no secrets. It’s all about technique. Follow the steps below, and you will end up with a luxuriously rich and creamy risotto (and you won’t get carpel tunnel syndrome from all of the stirring).

7 Steps to Make Great Homemade Risotto
1. You’ll need a wide, shallow, heavy-bottomed pan and a wooden spoon. In a separate saucepan, start by heating plenty of stock - generally 3 1/2 cups of stock to 1 cup of rice. (Heat a little extra in case you run out.) Store bought stock is fine, just make sure it’s hot, as cold stock will result in hard, undercooked grains.

2. Most risottos start with sauteed onions for flavor. Heat butter and/or olive oil and cook the onions until tender and translucent, but not brown, about 3 minutes.

3. Toast the rice for one to two minutes in the fat-and-onion mixture until it is slightly translucent. Coating the rice with fat prevents it from absorbing the liquid too quickly and creates a more tender risotto.

4. Add wine, which will be quickly absorbed by the rice, infusing it with the wine’s essence.

5. Stir, stir, stir. Some risotto purists insist on continuous stirring. Rest assured, however, that occasional stirring still results in creamy risotto. The key is to gently simmer the rice while stirring and to gradually add hot stock to the rice, making sure the liquid is completely absorbed before adding more. This allows the rice to slowly absorb the liquid and to slowly release its starch, which creates a creamy, not gummy texture. Risotto generally takes 18 minutes to cook, but may vary slightly depending on your stove and pan. When stirring, be sure to incorporate all of the risotto, even along the edges of the pan, to prevent it from sticking.

6. Taste the risotto since it’s the only reliable way to know when it is finished. It should be al dente - that is, fully cooked, yet still somewhat firm to the bite. If you prefer a softer, soupier risotto, then add an extra one-half to one cup of liquid.

7. Mantecare, which means “to stir together” in Italian, is the last step that finishes the risotto. The cooked risotto is removed from the heat, and a knob of butter and some freshly grated Parmesan cheese are quickly stirred in. This adds silkiness and flavor, and helps bind the ingredients together. (For seafood risotto, though, skip the cheese.) Serve risotto immediately, preferably on warm plates.

Once you master the technique of making risotto, you will be free to experiment with countless seasonal flavors. As you will see below, fall and winter offer some of the best risottos.

Normally unpopular winter vegetables get transformed into something special when cooked with risotto. Ordinary cauliflower is beautiful in Mark’s sunny yet savory Cauliflower Risotto. Alanna takes the healthiest part of beets, the greens, and incorporates them into her delicious Beet Green Risotto. Patricia features tender, sweet broccolini in her flavorful Mediterranean Tomato, Broccolini, and Basil Risotto.

When it comes to comforting cold weather risottos, nothing beats butternut squash risotto. Julie roasts her butternut squash to release its natural sugars before adding it to her savory Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto with Mushrooms and Spinach. My Butternut Squash Risotto with Rosemary, Walnuts, and Blue Cheese is a pleasing medley of textures and warm winter flavors.

If you’ve always wondered about licorice flavored fennel bulb, then try this creamy, rich Fennel and Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto. Or, try Wendy’s sophisticated Hazelnut and Fennel Risotto. It’s bound to impress your dinner guests.

Many risottos are enhanced with cured meats such as prosciutto and braesola (an Italian cured meat made from beef instead of pork). Meeta appreciates braesola’s unique flavor and pairs it with peppery arugula in her Italian Rucola and Bresaola Risotto, while Michelle uses crisp bacon and wonderfully aromatic leeks in her Leek and Bacon Risotto. When it comes to perfect meat and vegetables pairings, it doesn’t get much better than sausage and broccoli, as Christine shows in her recipe for Andouille Sausage and Broccoli Risotto.

Looking for something different? No one would complain if served this heavenly Creamy Lobster Risotto, and they’d be sure to ask for seconds of Katie’s rich Ricotta Risotto, made with creamy, salty ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, and spinach.

When you’ve got leftover risotto, you can form them into patties and make Ann’s Risotto Cakes for a scrumptious and satisfying dinner. You can even make them for breakfast as Joey did with her fabulous Risotto Patties with Prosciutto, Egg, and Pesto.

Best of all, risotto makes sublime desserts. Take advantage of autumn’s harvest with my Dessert Risotto with Wine Poached Figs, or this lucious Pumkin Pie Risotto, or Gattina’s Sweet Risotto with Azuki, an Asian inspired sweet risotto made with azuki beans and mascarpone cheese.

I hope from now on that when you hear people fretting over how to make risotto, you say, “Don’t worry. It’s easy.”

You can find more delicious risotto recipes on the FoodieView Recipe Search Engine.

Susan Russo lives in Southern California where she is addicted to local farmers’ markets. She publishes stories, recipes and photos on her cooking blog, Foodblogga, and is a regular contributor to NPR’s Kitchen Window.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 3rd, 2008 at 9:48 am and is filed under Recipe Roundup. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.