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Risotto is a classic preparation, it can be adapted in countless ways, and it’s 100% doable in the home kitchen. If you haven’t mastered risotto yet, this is a perfect time to start! Give it a try. No homemade stock? Use store-bought. One you get the hang of it, you’ll have a dish you can cook almost anywhere in almost any kitchen with only a few ingredients. It will become your cooking secret weapon!

Risotto Advice

• Risotto is a simple dish, so one of the keys to success is to use the highest quality ingredients possible.  The stock is key, if you don’t make your own, use the highest quality stock you can purchase.
• Use Vialone Nano, Carnaroli or Arborio rice, hopefully from the Po Valley (in the Piedmont)
• Ratio: 1 ounce (weight) of raw rice to 1/2 cup of liquid. This translates to 8 oz. rice to about 1 quart of stock.

Ingredients (4 servings plus leftovers for Risotto Fritto!)

• 8 oz. Arborio rice
• 1 cup white wine
• 32 oz. chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped

at the finish

• 1/2 acorn squash: peeled, cut into bite size pieces, roasted at 425F for about 30 minutes
• 1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh sage
• 4 slices of bacon: fried, cooled and chopped into bite size bits
• 2 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano (use the real thing!) cheese, grated

Instructions

1. Start by bringing the stock up to a simmer, just under boiling.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pot large enough to hold your finished risotto, add the onions and cook until they are translucent, just a few minutes.
3. Add the rice and continue cooking until the rice becomes slightly glossy and translucent.  It will still be white in its center.  This will only take 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the white wine and stir.  Adjust the heat to keep the liquid at high simmer, with occasional bubbles. Wait until the liquid is absorbed.
5. After the liquid is absorbed, add a ladle of stock to the rice and stir.  You don’t need to stir constantly.  Some good advice: stir every time you take a sip of wine!
6. Continue to add stock, 1 ladle at a time, allowing the liquid to be absorbed before adding another ladle.  All the stock will be absorbed in about 20-30 minutes, but you’ll want to judge by tasting the nearly finished rice.
7. If necessary, you can add hot water a ladle at a time if more liquid is needed. Remember the rice should retain just a bit of chewiness.
8. Note that this is the point you choose how dry your risotto will be. Let it remain a little more liquid if you’re serving it in a bowl and you like a more soupy style. Let it absorb all the liquid if you prefer a more firm style which holds its’ shape on the plate.
9. Gently fold in the grated cheese, stir gently to allow the cheese to melt.
10. Gently fold in the squash, bacon and half of the sage.  Sprinkle the remaining sage on top of the plated risotto.