Italian cuisine has long been the main attraction of the republic, attracting the interest of millions of gourmets from all over the world. However, in order to learn how to cook risotto, which has become a symbol of the northern part of the country, it is not at all necessary to cross foreign borders.

The first official mention of this most popular Italian dish was recorded in the "Treatise on Culinary" in the middle of the 19th century. Who exactly invented risotto is not known for certain.

They tell about a young glassblower who decided to use saffron not only in his craft, but also to add it to rice boiled for a wedding celebration. The effect exceeded all expectations - the grain became the main dish of the table, an ingredient that the best Italian masters "conjure" even today.

Varieties of dishes depend on the regions of the state.

• So, they distinguish the Piedmontese version with the addition of meat and wine.
• In Milan, they prepare a dish on the bone marrow, seasoning the products with cheese and saffron.
• The inhabitants of Mantua supplemented the meal with Parmesan and Mortadella (boiled sausage).

There is also a risotto with vegetables and mushrooms, and for lovers of liquid food, the cooks serve a thick aromatic soup seasoned with pinchetta and green peas.

The once invented dish is so universal that every master who “imposed” his culinary touch on the canvas of culinary food becomes the author of the created masterpiece.

Classic white wine risotto recipe

Despite the many variations in the preparation of the dish, the Milanese version of the dish is recognized as traditional.

Composition of products:

• bone marrow (beef) - 60 g;
• hot broth - 2 l;
• rice (preferably varieties "Carnaroli", "Arborio", "Vialone Nano") - 600 g;
• white wine - 200 ml;
• onion - ½ head;
• oil (olive or butter) - 120 g;
• shavings of grated cheese ("Grana Padano", "Parmesan") - 100 g;
• saffron stigmas (a bag of ground composition) - 30 pcs.

Cooking method:

1. Melt the butter in a frying pan with high sides, fry the chopped onion and bone marrow in it. The vegetable should be soft and translucent.
2. Further add Italian rice, which in no case is washed in order to preserve the starch and get the dish of the desired consistency.
3. Fry the grains to a brilliant state, pour wine, continue heating over high heat until the liquid evaporates. Alcohol will not only open the pores of each grain, but also complement them with pleasant wine notes.
4. Pour in part of the hot broth, covering the entire amount of rice, add crushed saffron. We do not interfere with the composition for two minutes, allowing the gluten to be completely released, then we actively work with a wooden spatula.
5. The subsequent addition of portions of the broth is done after the next part is completely absorbed by the rice.
6. We beat the butter, combine with grated Parmesan (Pecorino), we introduce the composition into an almost ready dish.

In this way, the Italians create a delicate creamy texture in risotto. We always remember the classics of cooking!

Cooking with chicken

Poultry meat is most often used in the creation of "little rice", which is the Italian word for risotto.

Dish Ingredients:

• black olives - 80 g;
• chicken breasts - 800 g;
• shavings of grated cheese - 100 g;
• rice - 600 g;
• bulb;
• broth (vegetable or meat) - 2 l;
• olive oil - 120 g;
• paprika - 2 g.

Cooking:

1. We heat natural oil and fry the rice in it until a smooth film appears on it. Season the grains with paprika and the desired amount of salt. Add portions of broth according to the original Italian technology until the grain is soft.
2. Pass the finely chopped onion in olive oil, add the diced breast (2 cm) and process the product for up to 2 minutes over high heat.
3. We spread the fried poultry meat in almost ready-made rice and gently mix the composition. Add cheese chips and send food for 6 minutes to the oven (200°C).

Oven-aged risotto has acquired the magical taste of a truly Italian dish.

With seafood at home

We improve our knowledge with information about preparing a healthy meal with the presence of your favorite seafood.

Required components:

• oysters and mussels - 400 g each;
• peeled squid - 200 g each;
• rice - 350 g;
• wine (dry varieties) - 100 ml;
• onion, clove of garlic, chili;
• olive oil - 40 g;
• fish broth - 250 ml;
• carrots and celery - 1 pc.;
• salt, parsley, pepper.

Cooking technology:

1. Peeled and washed squid cut into rings. Put the mussels in a pan and add 2 tablespoons of wine to them. We heat the mollusks until the shells open and remove them from the shells.
2. Cut vegetables, fry in oil, add rice and wine. When the alcohol evaporates, spread the squid, chopped parsley, pour in the broth in portions, adding it as it is absorbed by the grain.
3. We place shrimp, mussels, squid and oysters in a dish. Season everything with salt and pepper, then remove from heat.

Risotto with seafood will warm you in the cold season and cheer you up on the most cloudy, rainy days.

Risotto with mushrooms

List of ingredients:

• white mushrooms - 300 g;
• bulb;
• rice - 300 g;
• clove of garlic;
• vegetable broth - 1 l;
• oil (olive and butter) - 30 g each;
• cheese - 60 g;
• salt, pepper, parsley.

Step by step preparation:

1. Pour 2 liters of purified water into the pan. We place coarsely chopped onions, celery and carrots in it. Salt and boil the vegetables until cooked, filter the fragrant broth.
2. Fry chopped garlic in oil. We spread the mushrooms divided into plates to it, salt and pepper them. Cook for another 10 minutes until golden brown.
3. In another pan, sauté the chopped onion in oil. When it becomes soft, pour in the rice, fry the grains for three minutes and pour in portions of the cooked broth.
4. Put the mushrooms into the almost ready rice and after 7 minutes. we set the container off the fire. Season the dish with grated cheese and the remaining butter, carefully mix the fragrant mass.

The presented dish will be a wonderful decoration for any holiday table.

Delicate dish with minced meat

Very satisfying and appetizing food, vaguely reminiscent of our naval pasta. It is just as tasty, simple and economical food from affordable products.

List of components:

• a can of canned peas and tomatoes;
• carrot and pickled cucumber;
• homemade minced meat - 400 g;
• rice - 200 g;
• Parmesan cheese - 100 g;
• butter - 50 g;
• wine (Vermouth, Sherry) - 120 ml.

Cooking method:

1. We remove the peel from the pickled tomatoes and grind them with a blender along with fragrant brine. Pour the resulting composition into the pan, after dropping a little oil into it. Add 500 ml of purified water, heat the tomato mass to a boil, reduce the heat to a minimum.
2. Pour oil into a large frying pan and heat. We put minced meat, chopped cucumber, carrots, pepper and salt in it. Cooking 10 minutes.
3. We add wine to the products, and after 2 minutes. Pour the rice and level its layer. Add 2 cups hot tomato mixture. We continue the process by languishing, adding new portions of the tomato composition until the grains become soft.

Season the finished risotto with chopped herbs, grated cheese and bright green peas. Mix all ingredients and serve hot.

How to cook in a slow cooker

To get the perfect dish in an electrical appliance, we use Arborio rice, which has a high starch content.

Required products:

• favorite mushrooms - 300 g;
• rice - 360 g;
• Parmesan cheese - 120 g;
• garlic cloves - 2 pcs.;
• olive oil - 100 ml;
• turnip onion;
• Sherry (other wine) - 100 ml;
• cream - 100 ml;
• bouillon cube.

Cooking process:

1. Pour oil into the multicooker bowl, put the onion chopped into cubes and fry it for 10 minutes, setting the "Baking" mode.
2. Add chopped mushrooms and continue cooking for the same amount of time.
3. Then pour in the rice, heat the cereal for 2 minutes and pour in the wine.
4. We dissolve the broth cube in 800 ml of water and send the composition to the capacity of the unit after the alcohol has completely evaporated from there. Add cream, salt and pepper, chopped garlic. We simmer everything together for a quarter of an hour using the Rice program.

Season the prepared risotto with grated cheese and leave for 30 minutes.

The food turned out to be luxurious - tender, creamy, pleasantly fluid. Like real Italians!

Vegetarian, with vegetables

Prudent masters of risotto cooking did not ignore the interests of people who prefer vegetarian food.

Composition of ingredients:

• sweet yellow pepper;
• carrot;
• rice - 300 g;
• cheese chips - 20 g;
• eggplant and zucchini - 100 g each;
• green peas - 60 g;
• cherry tomatoes - 150 g;
• vegetable broth - 1 l;
• celery and turnip;
• wine - 50 ml;
• regular sugar - 30 g;
• olive oil - 200 ml;
• salt pepper.

Preparing the risotto:

1. Divide the cherry tomatoes in half. The remaining vegetables (except onions) are chopped into small pieces of approximately the same size.
2. Simmer half of the chopped onion in oil (butter and olive) until soft. After that, we spread zucchini, blue ones, half of the composition of carrots, sweet peppers, green peas and salt to it.
3. Fry the rest of the sweet root crop, the second half of the onion and celery separately for 10 minutes. Add the rice, heat it up slightly and pour in the wine. After the alcohol has evaporated, we add portions of the broth.
4. When the cereal absorbs the required amount of liquid, put the halves of miniature tomatoes into it and mix the food, sprinkling with cheese chips and chopped parsley.

Risotto with vegetables turned out unusually tasty and nutritious. The nutritional and energy value of the dish is at the highest level!

Cooking method:

1. Finely chopped onions are fried until soft in a mixture of oils along with whole cloves of garlic.
2. We remove burning pieces from the pan, put rice in their place and heat the grains for 7 minutes. After that, pour a glass of water or broth, season with salt, saffron, pepper. Then we act in the usual way, adjusting the amount of liquid by the degree of evaporation and the readiness of the cereal.
3. The recipe with shrimp allows the use of an alcoholic component. We already know how to do this from the classic way of making risotto with white wine.
4. We continue cooking, constantly stirring the dish. When the rice reaches the desired condition, add to it the salmon, shrimps and greens cut into medium pieces.

We heat all the components together for another 5 minutes, after which we serve a hot dish, enjoying its spicy taste.

Risotto with corn and peas

Ingredients:

• rice - 150 g;
• peas and corn (canned) - 150 g each;
• chilli;
• onion head;
• broth - 300 ml;
• 2 cm ginger root;
• vegetable oil.

Cooking process:

1. Finely chop the turnip and heat it in oil along with a piece of chopped ginger.
2. After 3 minutes, send rice for risotto to the pan, pour in a third of the broth (chicken or vegetable) and mix the composition. Very quickly, small grains, as if alive, will begin to increase in size, actively absorbing aromatic moisture.
3. After 7 minutes, we attach the rest of the liquid. We supplement the dish with corn, peas and chopped chili. Season everything with salt and pepper, Provence herbs and spices. We simmer the food until the rice is fully cooked.

The contrast of multi-colored products that make up risotto is reminiscent of a bright spring lawn. Just like in the Italian Dolomites.

Unusual recipe with cuttlefish ink

Despite the fact that we are already accustomed to exotic dishes, the name of this dish alone can lead a person, figuratively speaking, into a short-term stupor. The exit from this state will come very quickly and will be extremely pleasant!

Ingredients:

• fish broth - 500 ml;
• onion and clove of garlic;
• shrimp (large) and scallops - 5 pcs.;
• olive oil - 300 ml;
• rice "Viola" - 250 g;
• cuttlefish ink - 1 tbsp. l.;
• lemon juice - 1 tsp;
• salt pepper.

Cooking an unusual risotto:

1. Saute chopped garlic and chopped onion in oil.
2. When the vegetables become soft, add seafood and heat everything together for another 5 minutes. Set aside a few scallops and shrimp in a bowl for garnish.
3. Next, we put rice and cuttlefish ink to the semi-finished ingredients, pour in part of the broth and prepare our unusual dish in the traditional way. Grains should reach the state of al dente (“by the tooth”), as the Italians say.
4. We serve food in a deep plate, decorate it with shrimp and scallops.

Italian chefs, the true keepers of national traditions, know best how to cook risotto according to ancient motives. However, they also allow themselves to “correct” the ancient recipe. Why don't we show a little intelligent initiative and imagination to make our modest contribution to the never-stopping culinary process.

Risotto, a classic warming and hearty rice dish from northern Italy, has long taken the world by storm. Almost everyone already knows that rice should be “al dente” (to the tooth), that risotto needs broth, not water, and that grated cheese is often added at the end. But not everyone knows how to make creamy risotto and how to add other ingredients to the dish.

Basically, risotto is served as a first course, with the exception of (risotto with saffron) served with a meat dish . Risotto can be very simple and also incredibly complex. Depends on your preferences and what you cook with.

Making a good risotto requires attention and knowledge of some cooking techniques, but the effort is worth it. When you know the basic cooking technique, you can try to cook millet, bulgur or even barley in the same way. These grains are starchy enough to give a creamy texture.

So:

1) Rice selection: risotto requires round-grain rice, which is rich in starch, which helps to achieve the right creamy consistency. The best varieties of rice are arborio, carnaroli or vialone nano. I do not advise buying rice with the inscription "for risotto", the grains of such rice are often not the same size, which will not allow all the rice to be cooked evenly.

Varieties of carnaroli and vialone nano, longer than Arborio keep the middle of the rice grain in a state of "al dente". Also, when cooking risotto, they absorb more liquid.

This must be taken into account when preparing a dish.

IT IS FORBIDDEN wash rice before cooking risotto! Wash the starch!

2) The taste of the risotto depends on the taste of the broth. Best or veal broth. They are the most neutral in taste. For seafood risotto, you can use fish.

The broth, before adding to the risotto, should always be hot. It must be brought to a boil and kept on low heat or just in a warm place.

The hot liquid aids in the extraction of starch from the grain of rice. And the cold liquid shocks the already heated rice, and the starch coagulates, which prevents the correct creamy consistency.

3) Passerovka: Onions are part of almost every risotto. It must first be fried, extracting aroma and sweetness from it. Sometimes garlic is also added.

4) Additives:meat, fish and seafood, mushrooms are mainly added at the first stage of preparing risotto. It must be taken into account that the additional product must have a relatively short cooking time in order to be cooked along with the rice. On average, the dish is prepared in 20-25 minutes. Delicate additions such as small shrimp, green peas, asparagus tops should be added when the rice is half cooked.

5) Cheese: in Italy, Grana Padano cheese is traditionally added to risotto, and Parmesan is served grated to the table for sprinkling.

For the simplest classic risotto:

For 2 persons:

200 grams of rice
1 l. broth
1 small onion
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
100 ml dry white wine

For mantecature:

40 grams of cold butter, cut into cubes
50 grams of hard grated cheese (preferably Parmesan or Grana Padana)

Steps for making risotto:

1) Soffrito or sauté: on olive, cream or a mixture of both, over low heat, finely chopped onion is fried. Add garlic if you like. The onion should soften and not brown. At the same stage, additions are added: meat cut into pieces, mushrooms, some vegetables and seafood.

2) Tostatura or roasting: at this stage, increase the heat to medium, add rice and stir vigorously. Each lynx should be wrapped in oil and fried. Thanks to this procedure, the rice absorbs the aroma of frying, warms up and keeps its shape throughout the cooking. The stage ends with the pouring of wine. The acidity of the wine balances the taste of the starchy dish. Stir the rice vigorously until the wine has completely evaporated.

3) The stage of direct preparation of risotto: When the wine has evaporated, add ladle after ladle of broth. You interfere. You need to interfere, if not all the time, then at least often. Stirring accompanies the release of starch, uniform cooking and absorption of liquid by rice. So the rice should reach the stage of al dente (by the tooth). The rice should be firm and the consistency should be thick enough, but not too thick. Remove rice from heat, set aside for 1-2 minutes.

In our country, risotto is still not particularly favored, considering it either rice porridge, or something complicated and incomprehensible. And very in vain - after all, risotto is one of the main pillars of Italian cuisine, which has long been beloved both here and all over the world.

There is: cooking in water or steam. Risotto, contrary to popular belief, is not rice porridge and not a kind of pilaf, but the third method of heat treatment of rice. In this case, rice is stewed in a frying pan or saucepan, constantly adding broth. The result is an incomparable dish, only in appearance similar to porridge.

In fact, in the right risotto, the rice should be slightly glued together, but inside it should remain “al dente” - slightly harsh. Real risotto should be neither runny nor crumbly. Italians check its quality by lightly slapping the bottom of the plate with their palm. If a wave has passed over the surface of the risotto, then the consistency is correct.

Risotto-style rice is prepared quickly and easily if you follow a few simple rules: use only medium-grain varieties of rice, only fresh and high-quality products and constantly monitor the process, stirring the rice without leaving it to chance.

rice history

Rice appeared in Italy during the time of the Doge, when the spice trade flourished - in the 15th century, Venetian merchants brought it from the Middle East. It is officially documented that rice appeared on Ferrara soil in 1475, when the ruler of Milan, Galeazzo Sforza, sent twelve bags of strange grains to the Duke of Ferrara. More nutritious than wheat, rice became the salvation for Northern Italy of that time, exhausted by wars and plague. Since the 15th century, it has been cultivated in marshy lands in the vicinity of Ferrara, and since then it has firmly entered the diet of northerners. Now in this region it is more popular than the pasta typical of the sunny south.

Hero of the day

The most important component of risotto is, of course, rice. The main requirement for him is that he be medium-grained.

It is in this type of rice that two types of starch are contained: amylopectin and amylose.

Amylopectin is the starch found on the surface of the rice grain, it is soft, mixes quickly with water, and is what gives risotto its creamy texture by sticking the grains together. Amylose, on the other hand, is hard and located inside the grain, and it is this that allows the grain of rice to remain “al dente” when it is fully cooked.

Three types of rice are mainly used for risotto: Arborio, Carnaroli and Vialone nano. The most common is Arborio, and if you buy a bag that simply says "Rice for Risotto", 90% of the time it will be Arborio. Finding Carnaroli in Russia is more difficult, but possible, but Vialone nano, unfortunately, is extremely rare. "Unfortunately" because these two varieties have a more refined and delicate taste and even a more presentable appearance in the finished state.

Component Selection

For the preparation of risotto - their quality and freshness. , carrots and celery should not be soft and withered. Wine should be what you would like to drink, and not put into cooking. And even cheese you should be sorry to send in a pan with rice!

The Italians themselves are very scrupulous about the choice of ingredients used, believing that wine should only be dry, and cheese should only be from the Grana family, which contains peculiar crispy granules: Parmigiano Riggiano, Grana Padano or Trentingrana.

But Italian cuisine is regional. Each Italian village has its own unique recipe, so you can safely experiment: replace dry wine with champagne or even vermouth (as they do in the very north of Italy), and add sheep, goat or even cheeses with white or blue mold instead of canonical cheeses. The same applies to butter, which is used at the end of cooking to glue the dish. Departing from the canons, it can be replaced with heavy cream, mascarpone cheese, and some apostates generally pour olive oil over sacred risotto.

old recipe

In the culinary book "Opera" by the famous Italian chef Bartolomeo Scappi, published in 1570, there are about 1000 recipes, among which is the following recipe for risotto: "Mix chicken meat, black pudding, yolks. Boil rice in a decoction of capon, duck, sausages. Cook until soft. Place in a pot made of clay, or silver, or tin and cover with cheese, sugar, cinnamon, put fresh butter on top and the flesh of the capon breast, and duck meat, and cut into pieces blood sausages, then again cover with cheese, sugar, cinnamon and so on. form three layers. Pour the last layer on top of liquid melted butter. Put in the oven, heated not too much, keep there for about half an hour. Sprinkle with rose water and serve hot. You can cook risotto in another way: put fresh cheese, unsalted in a bowl, sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon and grated dry cheese. Lay rice on top, and fresh raw egg yolks on top of rice, sugar and cinnamon on top of yolks. Make two layers, you can make more layers. Drizzle with cow's butter, put in the oven.

The secret of the broth

When preparing risotto, rice absorbs all the flavors from liquids, so the preparation of the broth must be approached very responsibly and slowly. Risotto is made on vegetable broth, and on beef, and on fish, but the best choice is chicken. It absorbs perfectly into the rice grains without overpowering the rice with its flavor.

To prepare good chicken broth, you will need a large four-liter pot, gutted chicken, two onions, two carrots, a teaspoon of black peppercorns and a variety of herbs to taste. Herbs can be different: this is oregano, and thyme, and parsley with celery, and tarragon. The celery root and the green part of the leek complement the broth very well.

After 8 parts (2 legs, 2 wings, body lengthwise in half and then across), put it in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Cut the peeled onion into 4 parts, cut the carrots into large pieces and fry everything together in a dry frying pan until scorched.

When the water in the pot boils, reduce the heat to low, and as soon as foam begins to form, collect it with a spoon. When the release of foam stops, add vegetables and peppers to the pan and cook for 2 hours. Half an hour before the end of cooking, you can pour a glass of dry white wine into the pan, add aromatic herbs and salt. Then the broth must be filtered and, when it has cooled, remove all fat from its surface.

Make white risotto - This is a basic dish, on the basis of which you can make an infinite number of variations. Saute onion and garlic until translucent. In one circular motion, pour 400 g of rice into the pan and, stirring constantly, fry for 2-3 minutes until it is saturated with oil and becomes almost transparent. Then pour in a glass of wine and simmer the rice until the liquid is completely absorbed. Pour two ladles of hot broth into the pan, mix. This ritual (pour in - stir) you must repeat for the next 17 minutes. The basic principle is to constantly add the broth (one ladle at a time), preventing the rice from remaining dry, and constantly stir. Remove the pan from the heat and add the grated parmesan cheese and diced butter to the rice. Cover with a lid and let stand 2 minutes. And you can submit!

Make mushroom risotto. Boil 2 liters of chicken broth. Put 60 g of dry porcini mushrooms in a small saucepan, pour a glass of ready-made chicken broth, bring to a boil. Remove from heat and leave for 30 minutes. Take out and chop the mushrooms, pour the decoction from the mushrooms (without sediment) into a saucepan with broth and put it on fire. Fry the onion in olive oil until translucent, add 300 g of rice and fry it for 3 minutes. Pour in a glass of dry white wine and simmer for another 3 minutes. Put the mushrooms, pour in two ladles of broth, stir and cook until the broth is absorbed. Without ceasing to stir the dish, continue to add a ladleful of broth for 17-20 minutes. Remove from heat, add grated parmesan and butter, stir in quickly. Cover with a lid and leave for 2 minutes. After that, serve immediately.

Variations on a theme

If you have mastered white risotto, you can safely start experimenting with additional ingredients. They can be added directly to the pan with rice or sautéed separately and then mixed into the finished risotto.

Seafood can be added directly to the pan - the time of their preparation coincides with the time of cooking rice. But then you don’t need to add cheese: Italians consider these things incompatible.

If you add green peas, you get a Venetian risotto. And the famous - a couple of pinches of spices are dissolved in a glass of hot broth and added at the final stage of cooking.

Also, Milanese risotto is often cooked on bone marrow, on which onions and garlic are fried. This tradition dates back to the Renaissance, when this gourmet dish was served on a pillow of bovine brain. And if you want a lighter and more refreshing recipe, make a risotto with chopped zucchini or asparagus sprouts, and finish with the juice of half a lemon.

Risotto can be served not only on a plate - it is great for stuffing peppers or eggplants with it, making a pie filling out of it or baking risotto in the oven. Here you can only be limited by your imagination.

Make a risotto pie with fresh herbs. Cut the leek stalk into half rings, fry in olive oil for 3 minutes, then add 300 g of rice and fry it for 3 minutes. Add 200 ml of vermouth and carcass, stirring constantly until the rice has absorbed all the wine. Pour in two ladles of broth, cook, stirring constantly, until the broth is absorbed. Without ceasing to stir the dish, continue to add a ladleful of broth for 17-20 minutes. Remove from heat, add lemon and orange zest, fresh thyme, 80 g mozzarella. Stir, put in a baking dish, cover with foil and bake for half an hour.

Berries and chocolate

But also dessert. It is made with cherries, cranberries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, using both fresh and dried berries, raisins, chestnuts, pumpkins and even chocolate.

At the same time, risotto can be prepared both in chicken or vegetable broth, and in milk, berry broth, or simply pure water with the addition of white wine. Such risotto is served both hot - on plates, and cold - in cocktail glasses.

Make cherry risotto. In melted butter, fry the onion until translucent, add 300 g of rice and fry it for 3 minutes. Add 300 g of halved cherries and 30 g of raisins, a glass of dry red wine and mascara until the wine has evaporated. Pour in two ladles of broth, stir and cook until the broth is absorbed. Without ceasing to stir the dish, continue to add a ladleful of broth for 17-20 minutes. Pour 50 ml of cream into the risotto, stir, boil for another 3 minutes. Sprinkle with toasted almonds before serving.

The classic risotto recipe is one of the most popular dishes in Italy, which is widely known all over the world. Despite the clear sequence of steps and the invariance of key components, there are a lot of variations of risotto. Therefore, everyone can choose a recipe to their taste.

The first written mention of this dish dates back to the 16th century, when about a thousand risotto recipes were found in the book of the famous culinary specialist Bartolomeo Scappi. And the appearance of such an unusual way of cooking rice, the world owes to a forgetful cook. He was preparing the usual rice soup in meat broth and was away for a while. When he returned, the broth boiled away, and the rice acquired a pleasant taste. In the future, the dish was improved by adding wine, cheese and spices to it.

Classic white wine recipe

For risotto, it is customary to take one of three starchy varieties of rice: arborio, carnaroli or vialone nano. It is this component - starch - that gives the dish a creamy texture.

Oil for frying should be creamy, but vegetable oil is also acceptable: olive, pumpkin, sunflower. Wine is optional, but Pinot Grigio is usually recommended.

Particular attention should be paid to the broth. It should be very hot, almost boiling. Traditionally, beef is used, but depending on the filling, broth is used on chicken, vegetables, fish, or just warm water is added. As for cheese, Parmesan is traditionally used. Then the rice does not need to be salted.

So, the ingredients for the classic risotto: 1 onion, a cube of butter - 30 g; rice of the above varieties - 350 g; wine - 400 ml; ready-made broth - 1 liter.

1. In a thick-walled dish, dissolve a piece of oil, then fry the finely chopped onion until light in color.
2. Put the rice in and wait until it absorbs the oil and loses its whitish color.
3. Pour off the alcohol and cook the rice until the moisture has almost completely evaporated.
4. Add 300-350 ml of hot broth and continue to simmer, remembering to stir.
5. When the moisture has evaporated, start adding a tablespoon of broth so that the rice absorbs the liquid little by little. This step will take 20 to 30 minutes.
6. Check the readiness of the cereal and throw a piece of butter into it.

Before serving, put the dish on a plate and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Cooking option with chicken

Two servings of this dish can be prepared in just an hour, but the pleasure of taste will remain for a long time.

Ingredients: a glass of rice, chicken fillet - 160 g, medium carrot, celery root - 90 g, large onion - 1 pc., garlic - 1 large clove, wine - up to half a glass, Parmesan - 50–60 g, olive oil - 30 -50 ml, spices (mix of peppers, salt, herbs) - at the discretion of the hostess.

1. Pour about a liter of water into the pan, add a little salt. Add chicken and diced carrots and celery. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
2. After that, remove the meat and cool, and put the broth on a very small fire.
3. Pour oil into a deep saucepan. When it is hot, throw in the garlic crushed with a knife, lightly fry until golden brown and remove.
4. Free the onion from the husk, finely chop and throw into boiling oil. Cook until golden brown. To crush with spices.
5. Put the rice and stirring, fry it until a transparent pearl color.
6. Add wine while continuing to stir.
7. As soon as the liquid is almost completely absorbed, you need to add 2 ladles of broth along with vegetables.
8. Pour the broth into the saucepan little by little and stir until the cereal is cooked through (about 20-23 minutes).
9. In the meantime, cut the chicken into cubes and grate the cheese.

A couple of minutes before the end of cooking, it remains to add chicken, add Parmesan, stir and turn off the heat. After a minute, the chicken risotto can be put on the table.

Italian risotto with seafood

For this option you will need: a mixture of seafood "sea cocktail", turnip onion - 1 pc.; 160-190 ml of broth or clean filtered water, 70-80 ml of good dry wine, 80 g of rice, a little parsley, at the request of the hostess - a mix of peppers, salt and cayenne pepper.

1. Heat the oil and distribute the finely chopped onion. Saute for about a couple of minutes over high heat.
2. Add rice and fry until translucent.
3. Add the chopped parsley, followed by the wine.
4. When the liquid is absorbed, add seafood and part of the water (broth).
5. Simmer rice over low heat, stirring constantly.
6. Add broth as needed.
7. After 20 minutes, add freshly ground white pepper, a little salt and cayenne pepper.
8. Add shredded cheese and mix well with risotto.

Serve this dish on a warm plate so that the seafood risotto does not lose its flavor.

Cooking with cheese and mushrooms

Risotto with mushrooms and cheese has a special flavor of cream, because a lot of butter is added to the dish.

Components: 350 g of rice, chicken broth - 900 ml, mushrooms - 320 g, fatty oil - 170 g, half a glass of good dry wine, hard cheese - 100 g, medium-sized onion head.

1. Cut the mushrooms into neat slices and fry until tender.
2. Melt a stick of butter in a deep container, add onion slices and fry until transparent for 5-8 minutes.
3. Put the rest of the oil and cereals, mix. Continue cooking for 3-4 minutes, stirring vigorously.
4. Pour in the alcohol and wait until it evaporates. After that, add 300 ml of hot broth.
5. When this portion is absorbed by the rice, gradually add the remaining liquid, remembering to stir the dish.
6. As soon as the cereal becomes soft, put the mushrooms and sprinkle with grated cheese. Mix well, distributing all the products evenly, and serve immediately.

Vegetarian - with vegetables

For a classic recipe for risotto with vegetables, you need to take: a glass of rice, a small onion, carrots, 2 bell peppers, 100 g of green beans, 100 g of canned corn, olive oil - 3-4 tbsp. l., salt, hot water - 500-600 ml, wine - 50 ml, greens.

1. Pour oil into a saucepan, add chopped onion and diced carrots. Fry lightly.
2. Pour in the rice and pour over the wine. Lightly simmer so that the grains absorb moisture.
3. Pour 200-350 ml of water into the pan and add the beans. Stirring constantly, steam until all the moisture is absorbed.
4. Then add water little by little and stir.
5. At this time, the pepper should be peeled, cut into squares and added to the rest of the ingredients.
6. When the rice is cooked, you need to lay out the corn and salt.

Before serving, the dish can be sprinkled with chopped herbs.

Delicate dish with minced meat

Ingredients: canned tomatoes - 800 g, oil - 50 g, minced meat - 350 g, a glass of rice, wine - 100 ml, grated Parmesan - 90 g, spinach - a bunch, onion, salt and pepper to taste.

1. Peel the tomatoes from the skin and grind in a blender along with the brine. Transfer to a small container, pour 3 tbsp. water, bring to a boil and reduce heat to low.
2. In a saucepan with a thick base, dissolve the oil, put finely chopped onion and minced meat, add spices. Stir and fry for 5-7 minutes.
3. Add rice and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
4. Pour in the wine and wait until it is absorbed.
5. Alternately add 2-2.5 cups of tomato mixture and stir. Pour each new portion when the previous one has completely evaporated. If the rice is damp, add more liquid.

It remains only to add grated Parmesan, butter and chopped spinach. Mix well and serve.

In a slow cooker

Ingredients: 400 g chopped chicken, 150 g chopped mushrooms, 2 multi-glasses of rice, 50-60 ml of wine, 35 g of butter, 25 ml of vegetable oil, 1 small onion (chopped), a pinch of salt, a little turmeric, 4.5 multi-glasses of water , 100 g Parmesan.

1. Set the mode "Frying". Pour vegetable oil into a bowl and put 1/3 teaspoon of butter. Do not close the lid.
2. When the mixture is hot, add the onion. At this and subsequent stages, the products must be stirred so that they do not stick and burn.
3. After 3 minutes put the mushrooms.
4. After another 7 minutes, add the chicken.
5. Another 7 minutes will pass - it's time to add rice. Wait 3-4 minutes.
6. Then you can pour in the wine and wait until it is completely absorbed.
7. After that, it remains only to put salt, turmeric and pour water. Close the lid and set the "rice / cereal" mode.

After 25 minutes, it's time to turn off the slow cooker, add the cheese and the rest of the butter, mix everything and let the dish brew for 5 minutes with the lid closed. During this time, you can have time to set the table and warm the plates.

Recipe with pumpkin

Ingredients: rice - 200 g, pumpkin - 200 g, broth - 1 l, 50 ml of wine, onion - 1 pc., Parmesan - 100-150 g, butter - 50 g, rapeseed oil - 3 tbsp. l., a mixture of peppers, salt, fried bacon.

1. Peel the pumpkin and cut into squares. Finely chop the onion, grate the Parmesan, grind the pepper. Cook the broth in advance and heat up to 80–90 ° С.
2. Pour vegetable oil into a frying pan with a thick base or a deep saucepan and put the pumpkin. Fry until golden brown.
3. Add onion, stir and fry until soft.
4. Add rice and mix again. Wait until the oil is absorbed, pour in the wine and steam the ingredients well until the moisture is absorbed.
5. Then pour in the broth in 50–100 ml increments and stir the risotto constantly. Add the next portion of the liquid when the previous one has evaporated.

As soon as the rice is cooked, remove from the stove, add Parmesan, pepper and salt. Mix well and leave for 2-3 minutes with the lid closed. This original version of risotto is best served hot, garnished with slices of ruddy bacon.

With corn and peas

Ingredients: rice, canned corn and peas - 150 g each, celery root - 1 pc., Onion - 1 pc., Refined sunflower oil - 2 tbsp. l., salt - ½ tsp., spices (oregano, basil, marjoram) - 1 tsp., ready-made broth or water - 300 ml, garlic - 1 clove, grated Parmesan - 20 g.

1. Heat oil in a frying pan, then add finely chopped onion, garlic and celery.
2. Saute vegetables for 3-4 minutes.
3. Add rice and cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Add 100 ml of broth and simmer the rice until the liquid is absorbed.
5. Gradually add the rest of the broth, not forgetting to stir.
6. Pour corn and peas, add salt and spices.
7. Simmer until rice is fully cooked. Sprinkle with Parmesan before serving.

With shrimp and salmon

Ingredients: salmon (fillet) - 150 g, peeled shrimps - 20-25 pcs., rice - 1 tbsp., garlic - 2-3 cloves, butter - 10 g, olive oil - 50 ml, onion - 1 pc., salt and pepper - to taste, parsley - a bunch, saffron - a pinch, wine - 50 ml, water or broth - 2 tbsp.

1. Cut the fish into small pieces, chop the onion.
2. Put oil and garlic in a frying pan, lightly fry. After that, remove the garlic. Add onion and fry until golden.
3. Add rice and wine, stir.
4. After 1-2 minutes, add 1.5 cups of hot water or broth.
5. When the liquid has evaporated, pour in the remaining 0.5 cups. Add fish, shrimp, salt and pepper.

Once the rice is fully cooked, it can be crushed with chopped parsley and add saffron. It remains only to mix the dish well and let it simmer under the lid for 1 minute.

With cuttlefish ink

Ingredients: shallots, rice - 180 g, cuttlefish - 1 pc., cuttlefish ink - 5 g, olive oil - 50 ml, cherry tomatoes - 50 g, squid rings - 50–60 g, sea salt - to taste, fish broth - 400 ml, wine - 50 ml.

1. Saute finely chopped onion in oil for 2 minutes.
2. Add rice and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Pour in the wine and wait for it to evaporate.
4. Add a glass of hot broth and cuttlefish ink. Cook rice for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Separately fry cuttlefish pieces and combine with rice.
6. Pour the remaining broth into the pan, salt, pepper and evaporate the moisture.
7. At this time, halves of tomatoes and squid rings should be fried.

Serve: put rice on a warm plate, and decorate it with tomatoes and squid on top.

How beautiful to serve a dish to the table

Usually properly prepared risotto and in itself looks very appetizing. Therefore, it can be served simply in a deep or flat plate, preheated in the oven. If desired, rice can be laid out in a special form so that the edges of the portion are even. If there are no molds, then the dish is rammed into a small bowl, and then turned over onto a plate.

On top of the risotto, you can decorate with fresh sprigs of greens, pieces of vegetables, meat, seafood or grated cheese.

Probably, all products that come to Italy turn into special dishes in the hands of experienced Italian chefs. Italian espresso coffee, tomatoes and numerous sauces based on them, corn and Asian rice began a completely different life on the shores of Italy. Risotto is perhaps one of the clearest examples of this. This simple dish, which takes about 30 minutes to prepare, resembles pilaf and has just as many cooking options.

Risotto cannot be called an old dish, but it has organically entered Italian cuisine. First of all, the Italian origin of the dish gives out the method of preparation and the presence of your favorite olive oil. Risotto seems like a difficult and inaccessible dish to make at home, but we will show you that this is not the case and tell you how to cook risotto. In Italy, risotto is prepared at home, and moreover, in each house it is prepared in its own way. There are dozens of options - with seafood, with meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, in various broths, with varying degrees of rice readiness, but it is always tasty and with minimal loss of useful properties of the products.

The opinion that cooking risotto requires constant attention is not entirely true. The only condition for successful cooking is constant stirring, the rest is easy, and if you have helpers, then cooking risotto will be fast. In order to cook everything correctly, you will need to learn the basic principles of cooking, but in any case, everyone gets a unique risotto.

So, how to cook risotto, you will need: two pots (for rice and liquid), a plastic or wooden spatula.

Ingredients: rice, garlic, oil, onion, stuffing (meat, fish, seafood, mushrooms). Cooking time: about 30 minutes.

There are two main types of rice - long grain fluffy and round sticky. Risotto needs sticky. Such rice is not very popular due to the fact that when cooked, the rice grains stick together into porridge, with which it is difficult to make something decent later. As a last resort, it is used in soups and, of course, round rice is the basis of Japanese rolls and sushi. Round varieties of rice contain a lot of arnilopectin starch, which binds the grains together during cooking. Rice for risotto is not washed because it will wash out the starch. Starch is best released at a low boiling point (when the liquid does not gurgle, but rather trembles) and with stirring. So, for successful cooking, you need a burner with good flame control. Good means minimal heating with the possibility of easy adjustment.

Italians use different fats to cook risotto. So, in the north of Italy they use butter, and in the south - olive oil. Ideally, the broth for cooking should be chicken, but this rule is conditional, and the broth can be vegetable or a mixture of vegetable and juices after frying meat or tomato juice. You can create your own broth. You can enhance the flavor of the future dish by adding pieces (trimmings) of the main filling to the broth.

Here is a basic recipe for how to make risotto with step by step explanations:

Ingredients (for 4 servings):
400 g rice
1 liter broth or water
1 garlic clove
2 bulbs
100 ml vermouth
150 ml white wine
50 g butter (unsalted)
75 ml olive oil
75 g parmesan,
1 tbsp whipped cream or mascarpone cheese
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
Bring the broth to a boil over low heat, but do not let it boil. In another saucepan, heat the olive oil and, stirring constantly, pour the rice into it. Rice will crackle as it cooks. Continue stirring, and when a nutty flavor develops, add the onion, garlic, and half the butter to the rice. Reduce the heat and, continuing to stir, fry the rice for another 5 minutes. Pour white wine into the rice and, again, without ceasing to stir, boil down by half. Add vermouth and boil again. Throughout the cooking, do not stop stirring - the quality of the dish depends on it.

Add the broth from the first pot to the rice in small portions (large spoon or ladle). Make sure the rice doesn't stick to the sides or bottom of the pot! Add broth until you feel you have enough (the risotto should feel like a thick soup). If there is not enough broth, immediately boil water and add it (it is better to have boiled water at the ready, for example, in a thermos).

The cooking time of rice depends on whether you like rice with hard kernels (al dente) or well-cooked. When cooking rice, do not forget that it must retain its structure and not turn into gruel - this will be wrong. Keeping the rice at the boiling point, not letting it boil, stir constantly as you add the broth. Don't go to the other extreme where too little temperature interferes with the extraction of starch from the rice. Take the risotto off the heat a little thinner than expected. Pour the butter into the risotto and let it sit on the stove for a few minutes. During this time, the rice will absorb excess liquid. The last stage of preparation is the introduction of parmesan and butter, which are driven into the risotto with a whisk, everything is intensively mixed until a viscous state is reached. At this stage, you can add additional cream or mascarpone cheese, olive oil, pepper, salt and lemon juice to the risotto.

Cauliflower goes great with risotto. Try to cook

Puree velout from cabbage.

Ingredients:
600 g cauliflower flowers,
a pinch of curry
90 ml heavy cream
90 ml 2.5% milk,
90 ml chicken stock
2 tbsp. tablespoons chopped chives (chives)
cocoa.

Cooking:
Boil 500 g cabbage with curry in broth, transfer to a food processor or blender. Let cool and puree until smooth, adding cream and milk. Pass the puree through a sieve, transfer to another saucepan and simmer for about 5 minutes until the taste of raw cream disappears. Prepare the risotto according to the basic recipe and a few minutes before it is ready, whisk in the cabbage puree, parmesan and butter. Add chopped chives, salt and black pepper. When serving, sprinkle with fresh cauliflower florets and cocoa powder.

There are proven combinations of how to cook risotto with vegetables, which are very good for their simplicity for the first preparations, for example:

Risotto with green peas

Pea filler is prepared in a similar way to cauliflower and is combined with risotto prepared according to the basic recipe.

Ingredients:
400 g peas
75 g butter,
salt and pepper to taste.

Cooking:
If you have the opportunity to get fresh peas, then this is very good - use it, if not - it does not matter, you can safely use frozen ones. Defrost peas at room temperature (do not use ovens or special heating). Grind the peas in a food processor or blender until pureed. Pass the resulting mass through a sieve or a special press for vegetables. Heat the puree in butter in a small saucepan. Salt, pepper. Do not overheat the puree - it should be hot enough, but not lose its fresh green color. The finished puree can be added to the risotto or allowed to cool, cover with cling film and store in the refrigerator. Can be used within 2-3 days by gently rewarming a serving.

Remember the basic rules for making risotto: stir continuously and make sure that the broth is at the boiling point, but not boiling.

Buon appetito!