Risotto

When my husband comes home from his official trip to Italy, he brings home loads of "gifts".

Mozzarella (fresh, packed in thermocol container and carried as hand luggage!!), parmigiano reggiano (from THE factory in Parma), arborio rice and varieties of pasta unavailable in India....Not to forget the biscotti and chocolates!

Risotto is Italian rice cooked very differently from the way we Indians cook rice. We boil water and add the washed rice to it or add the right amount of measured water to the given quantity of rice and cook in pressure cooker till it becomes mashable by hand.
Italians make a stock and add ladles of stock to "unwashed" rice and wait for it to get evaporated before adding the next ladle. This rice is cooked 'al dente' or 'having bite'. That is when it is mashed between 2 fingers, the inside seems 'just cooked'. So eating risotto is clearly an acquired taste.
At home we love anything Italian and this is my version of risotto.

100gms of Arborio rice is said to be 1 serving.

This is the vacuum packed cheese from Parma.

I have served my risotto with grilled mushroom and colored bell peppers.
You can serve it with bell pepper salad.

First, we have to make a stock.

Risotto

Serves : 3 adults

Onion - 1 big chopped fine

Garlic - 4 cloves minced

Celery - 3 sticks

Olive oil - 5 tbsp

Arborio rice - 300gms

Salt

Vegetable Stock - 3 lts

Saffron - 1 pinch soaked in 2 tbsp hot water

Parmesan cheese - 1 1/2 + 1/2 cups grated

Before you start cooking, warm the stock and keep on low flame.

Heat a heavy bottomed large pan.
Add the olive oil and saute the onion, garlic and celery on a very low flame till transparent (about 10 minutes).

Now add the unwashed rice and saute on high flame.
Keep stirring the rice nonstop from here onwards.("massage" not stir!)

Once it starts to change colour/ pop a bit add the saffron liquid and salt.

This will get evaporated fast.

Now start adding ladles of the stock.One ladle at a time.

When that gets evaporated add the next ladle.

Continue doing this till the rice gets just cooked. There should be no more bite in the rice. 

Turn off flame immediately. If you cook more it will not cool to al dente.

Grate the cheese and keep aside some for garnish.

Now add the cheese and mix thoroughly.

I served this with sauteed mushrooms and capsicum

Cut mushrooms into half and different colored capsicum into thick long strips (remove seeds).

Mix well with some olive oil, salt and hand ground pepper.

 Leave for 2 minutes and stir fry / grill the capsicum.

The mushroom needs to be cooked covered in a vessel. The juices in it will cook it. Then when the mushroom wilts, cook uncovered. The water will get evaporated and the mushroom will get a nice golden color.

If you have left over Risotto, make arancini.