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Last year in Bologna, @peldi, mensch that he is, got us a cooking class with Stefano, a delightful, chain-smoking, ex-restauranteur & chef (pic w/ @everywhereist).
He taught me how to make risotto. I will share his technique, but be warned... It& #39;s a journey!
He taught me how to make risotto. I will share his technique, but be warned... It& #39;s a journey!
Risotto is an infuriating dish. Every time I thought I& #39;d figured it out, I found another secretive missing element of why mine didn& #39;t match up to the Italian masterpieces.
At its best, the rice has a perfect, indescribable bite, chew, & flavor, with rich, silky liquid around it.
At its best, the rice has a perfect, indescribable bite, chew, & flavor, with rich, silky liquid around it.
You& #39;re probably thinking risotto starts with rice... So did I, friends, so did I.
It does not.
It starts with water, beef bones, a whole chicken, carrots, onion, & celery. Because homemade, collagen-and-flavor-rich stock is essential.
It does not.
It starts with water, beef bones, a whole chicken, carrots, onion, & celery. Because homemade, collagen-and-flavor-rich stock is essential.
I see that my replies already contain the most misleading phrase in risotto-world:
"The secret."
That& #39;s the maddening bit. There& #39;s not ONE " secret... There& #39;s 50. I bet I only know ~30 of them right now. Year by year I pick them up with "Eureka!" moments each time.
"The secret."
That& #39;s the maddening bit. There& #39;s not ONE " secret... There& #39;s 50. I bet I only know ~30 of them right now. Year by year I pick them up with "Eureka!" moments each time.
For example, I initially thought unadulterated beef bone stock was good enough. Nope!
There& #39;s like 10 secrets in the stock alone, e.g.
- Using beef bones, but a whole chicken
- Roasting the bones first, 1hr+, until they look like this (or darker)
- 6 hrs simmering (minimum)
There& #39;s like 10 secrets in the stock alone, e.g.
- Using beef bones, but a whole chicken
- Roasting the bones first, 1hr+, until they look like this (or darker)
- 6 hrs simmering (minimum)
- peel the carrots, but leave in chunks, not diced
- celery hearts & leaves are great, but carefully wash the dirt that sticks to the inside
- whole chicken+giblets
- no salt (yet)
- you& #39;ll need a f&#$ing giant stockpot. I bought a commercial kitchen one for ~$50
- celery hearts & leaves are great, but carefully wash the dirt that sticks to the inside
- whole chicken+giblets
- no salt (yet)
- you& #39;ll need a f&#$ing giant stockpot. I bought a commercial kitchen one for ~$50
Couple hours later, if you want, you can remove the chicken meat for some future purpose (I like nacho-ing it, G prefers chicken soup).
We both usually salt & nibble on it to stave off evening hunger.
We both usually salt & nibble on it to stave off evening hunger.
Even more hotly debated than Rudy Giuliani& #39;s hand down his pants in the Borat movie: whether to add Bay Leaves halfway through the stock-making process. I vote yes, but understand if you& #39;re stubbornly against it. No judgement... For this. Yes, judgement for Rudy.
8 hours later, you& #39;ll have a lot of stock. Which is good, because it goes fast. Also, your whole house will smell like a Michelin-starred kitchen just before service time.
P.S. If you want extra-clear liquid, cheesecloth is the way to go, but I& #39;m happy with a fine mesh sieve.
P.S. If you want extra-clear liquid, cheesecloth is the way to go, but I& #39;m happy with a fine mesh sieve.
Today was my grandmother& #39;s memorial. Due to the pandemic, it had to be done over video.
Can& #39;t think of a better day for comfort food. Our stock& #39;s all ready. So let& #39;s make this risotto.
Can& #39;t think of a better day for comfort food. Our stock& #39;s all ready. So let& #39;s make this risotto.
Let& #39;s talk about rice. In ascending order of generally-agreed-upon quality, you& #39;ve got 3) Arborio 2) Vialone Nano 1) Carnaroli, but...
You can age carnaroli, and quality control it. That& #39;s how they make @RisoAcquerello, the finest, commercially available risotto rice.
You can age carnaroli, and quality control it. That& #39;s how they make @RisoAcquerello, the finest, commercially available risotto rice.
It& #39;s pricey, but worth it. Much like the butter we& #39;ll be using, @KerrygoldUSA. There are even fancier butters, but in most US grocery stores, that& #39;s the best you& #39;re gonna do.
Of course, we& #39;ll also need microplane-grated parmigiana (aged at least 18months, preferably 24).
And a good deglazing liquid. Today, we& #39;ll use a dolcetto from Alba (because I love the red wine risotto they make in the north). It& #39;ll boil to reduce volume by ~2/3rds & concetrate.
And a good deglazing liquid. Today, we& #39;ll use a dolcetto from Alba (because I love the red wine risotto they make in the north). It& #39;ll boil to reduce volume by ~2/3rds & concetrate.
Time for another controversy.
Do you salt the stock before using it?
Pro: fancy chefs say the rice grains will "soak up" the salt all the way through vs. just on the exterior.
Con: You could oversalt if you& #39;re not careful.
What the heck, let& #39;s try it the chef& #39;s way.
Do you salt the stock before using it?
Pro: fancy chefs say the rice grains will "soak up" the salt all the way through vs. just on the exterior.
Con: You could oversalt if you& #39;re not careful.
What the heck, let& #39;s try it the chef& #39;s way.
Boil the stock. Then reduce to low. We just need it warm.
Boil the wine until it& #39;s reduced by 2/3rds.
Melt the butter and add the rice.
Boil the wine until it& #39;s reduced by 2/3rds.
Melt the butter and add the rice.
Another of risotto& #39;s frustrating secrets... How long to simmer the rice in butter?
You don& #39;t want it to brown or crisp up, but you do want it to soften and go translucent. This photo is just before I added the deglazing liquid, and not one grain has browned. Phew!
You don& #39;t want it to brown or crisp up, but you do want it to soften and go translucent. This photo is just before I added the deglazing liquid, and not one grain has browned. Phew!
I love the color. And the smell. I wish I could have shared it with my grandma. Her sense of smell was sharp right to the end!
