Ask Mario: Risotto is pasta’s distant cousin
ast week we discussed the basics of cooking great pasta. This week I thought we would progress our discussion in a direction that makes rational sense. I would like to discuss a food that everyone seems to really enjoy but very few people know how to make correctly. I am talking, of course, about pastas distant cousin – risotto!
Risotto is classically made with the medium-grain Arborio rice and involves the slow addition of liquid and frequent stirring to release the starch from the rice during cooking. Generally speaking though, any grain that contains lots of easily released starch (like barley, steel-cut oats, quinoa, and bulgur wheat just to name a few) will provide the same characteristic creaminess.
Before you begin the first step of risotto cooking, you want to be sure that you have your stock at least warm. You don’t want to add cold stock to your rice because it will take twice as long to heat back up for the rice to properly absorb it and cold liquid also slows the release of starch from the rice.
The first step to properly making risotto is to saut茅 your aromatics. Aromatic vegetables such as onion, garlic, and shallots will provide a taste foundation on which to build your dish. I usually use butter and saut茅 shallots until they are translucent for this step.
The next step is to toast your Arborio rice or whatever grain you are using. To do this, you simply add the rice to the pan with your aromatics and continue stirring until it begins to give off a nutty aroma. Toasting the rice infuses it with flavors from the vegetables, gives it a deeper somewhat nutty flavor, and helps the risotto reach a boil faster when the liquid is added.
After toasting the rice, you’ll want to deglaze the pan with a splash of dry white wine. Obviously you can use different wines to achieve different flavor profiles in different dishes, but when I am making a basic risotto a good dry white is my go to wine.
When the rice absorbs most of the wine, you can start adding your warm (or preferably simmering) stock. I like to add my stock in three different and equal additions. You want to stir constantly after each addition of liquid and not add the next addition of liquid until the last one is mostly absorbed.
Stirring constantly with either a wooden spoon or rubber spatula is essential as stirring helps to coax the starch from the rice and using any utensil harder than a wooden spoon to stir can break the grains of rice causing your risotto to be mealy instead of smooth and creamy.
If you are going to add any extra accents to your risotto, then this would be the time to add them. Any meat, fish, vegetables or cheese should be added at this point towards the end of cooking to keep them intact when serving.
I like to finish my risotto with a splash of heavy cream, a dollop of softened butter, and few heaping spoons of grated Parmesan cheese. I fold it all together so that it is extra creamy (but not runny), rich and flavorful. Always make sure you taste your risotto and adjust the seasoning (salt and pepper) and serve steaming hot straight from the stove.
Risotto is one of my favorite foods to cook and eat, and I am confident it will be yours as well if you simply follow the simple steps and techniques listed above.
Of course none of that will even be possible if you don’t — Just Cook It!
Send me all of your food/cooking related questions by e-mail to hsfeatures@heraldstandard.com!
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Mario J. Porreca of Belle Vernon is a food personality, author, and the host of Just Cook It on WMBS Radio 590 AM. His website is www.JustCookIt.net.