Cook and Drink

And on the 8^th day he remembered he had forgotten to create food. So he quickly created something so simple, so tasty, so fulfilling that he knew people would still enjoy it, many, many years later. He called it Risotto.

Five Challenges When Making Risotto

1. We’re always too busy! We are tempted to buy risotto rice that cooks quickly and can be served in under 10 minutes. Never rush a risotto!
   And by the way, what is so important that you don’t have 34 minutes to cook your own lovely, genuine, risotto? Why would quick be more important than tasty?
2. And since we are too busy: why look for fresh cèpes if you can buy a pack of risotto rice with cèpes. Second mistake. You will not taste cèpes but a series of nasty E numbers and salt. Just look at the package! It will probably contain 0,01% of cèpes.
3. We think risotto is too basic, so we’ve decided to prepare a luxurious version. Let’s add tomatoes, or salmon, or spinach and pumpkin, or chicken, or saffron, shrimps and peas. Please don’t. It will only ruin the lovely combination of rice, butter, stock and Parmesan cheese.
4. Risotto is too heavy, too rich. Let’s use crème fraîche or Mozzarella and not Parmesan and not butter, let’s simply skip the butter. Fourth mistake: butter and Parmesan cheese are essential, for the taste, the mouthfeel and the consistency.
5. Buy risotto-rice without checking if it’s the right rice. We use beautiful Carnaroli rice, superfine quality, produced by Acquerello. It doesn’t come cheap (we pay € 11,95 per kilo) but why would you not treat yourself to the best risotto rice? It has all the right qualities and the taste is outstanding.

Wine Pairing

We enjoyed our Risotto with a glass of Soave. Some acidity, touch of bitterness, nicely balanced with the butter and the cheese. It’s light and fruity; it elevates the risotto.

What You Need

• 70 grams of Acquerello rice
• 1 Shallot
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• 100 gram of Shiitake
• 200 gram of mushrooms, for instance Chestnut Mushrooms
• optional: 100 gram of Cèpes
• Chicken Stock
• Parmesan Cheese

What You Do

1. Peel and chop the shallot
2. Add butter and olive oil to the pan and glaze the shallot
3. In parallel clean and slice the various mushrooms. Feel free to use other mushrooms as well. We think the Shiitake is an important one because it adds depth to the taste
4. Bring the stock to a boil
5. After 5 minutes add the mushrooms to the pan and fry gently for 5 minutes
6. Add the rice to the pan and coat the rice for 2 minutes
7. Start adding the stock, spoon by spoon and stir the rice frequently
8. When using Acquerello rice it takes 18 minutes
9. Check the rice
10. When okay, transfer the pan to the kitchen counter top and leave to rest for 2 minutes.
11. Add chunks of butter, stir, add a bit more butter and the grated Parmesan cheese
12. Stir, a bit of black pepper, add more butter or Parmesan cheese if so required
13. Serve immediately.