Cook Like a Rock Star - Anne Burrell [46]
Risott-ooohhh!!!!
SERVES: 4 TO 6 • TIME: ABOUT 45 MINUTES
When you use my Risotto-Without-a-Recipe technique, you can flavor it with anything you like. Sweet little rock shrimp, bright lemon, and fresh herbs are one of my favorite combos.
MISE EN PLACE
Extra virgin olive oil
2 onions, cut into ¼-inch dice
Kosher salt
6 to 7 cups chicken stock
2 cups Arborio or Carnaroli rice
2 cups dry white wine
Juice and grated zest of 2 lemons
1½ pounds rock shrimp, rinsed and picked through for any shells
½ to ¾ cup freshly grated Parmigiano
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 bunch of fresh chives, finely chopped
1 bunch of fresh oregano, leaves finely chopped
1 Coat a large saucepan generously with olive oil and add the onions; season with salt and bring to medium-high heat. Cook the onions, stirring frequently, until soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes.
2 Heat the stock in a medium saucepan and keep warm.
3 Add the rice to the onions and stir; toast the rice for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently. The rice should stick a little bit (not a lot) to the bottom of the pan.
4 Add enough of the wine to cover the surface of the rice and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes or until the rice absorbs the wine.
5 When all the wine has been absorbed, add enough of the hot chicken stock to cover the rice. Season with salt and taste the liquid; it should taste good. Stir frequently until all the stock has been absorbed; repeat this process, adding more hot stock to cover the rice and stirring until absorbed.
6 Add the final batch of chicken stock (for a total of three additions) along with the lemon juice and zest; stir. When the stock has absorbed about halfway, add the shrimp and stir continuously.
7 When the last addition of the stock has been absorbed, taste a couple of grains; the rice should feel cooked but still have a little bite to it, and it should look loose and creamy (add another ladle or two of stock if the rice has tightened up). The shrimp should be pink and plump.
8 Remove the pan from the heat and add the Parm, butter, chives, and oregano, whipping the risotto vigorously until well combined—then serve.
Rockin’ risotto!
Farrotto with Lobster, Peas, Mint & Oregano
SERVES: 4 TO 6 • TIME: ABOUT 1½ HOURS
Farro is an ancient grain that’s used in traditional Tuscan and Umbrian cooking—kind of like a cross between barley and wheat berries. I love making farro in the style of risotto—a.k.a. farrotto. By using my Risotto-Without-a-Recipe technique and substituting farro for rice, you end up with something rich and chewy and nutty all at the same time. Like risotto, farrotto is a blank canvas for whatever you’re feeling passionate about. Whatever ingredients are in season, whatever flavors you’re in the mood for, whatever’s freshest. Whenever I cook for big events and have to feed a lot of people, I always make farrotto because it’s quick, it doesn’t cost a lot, and it’s a huge crowd pleaser. It’s a win-win-win.
MISE EN PLACE
FOR THE LOBSTERS
Extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, coarsely chopped
2 celery ribs, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 lemon, cut in half
1 thyme bundle, tied with butcher’s twine
Kosher salt
2 1¼- to 1½-pound lobsters
FOR THE FARRO
Extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, cut into ¼-inch dice
Kosher salt
2 cups semipearled farro
2 cups white wine
Lobster stock, as needed (reserved from cooking the lobsters)
2 cups shelled English peas
3 sprigs of fresh mint, leaves cut into a chiffonade
3 sprigs of fresh oregano, leaves chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano
FOR THE LOBSTERS
1 Coat a large tall pot with olive oil, toss in the onion, celery,