While harvesting broccoli raab for this season’s first share I realized that it might be good in risotto. It turns out that it is great in risotto and I strongly encourage you to try it! All you need is a few ingredients and the ability and desire to stir rice for awhile : )
Ingredients
- 1 cup Arborio Rice
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup white wine for cooking
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 8oz. or so of mushrooms, sliced
- 3/4 -1lb. broccoli raab, chopped
- 1 tbsp. butter
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. fresh lemon thyme, chopped
- 2 Bay leaves
- Salt & Pepper
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
Preparation
1. In a small saucepan begin simmering 4 cups of broth. I used the Better than Buillon chicken broth. The idea here is to have your broth on the stove top from the beginning so that you can continue to add it to the rice as you cook it.
2. Chop up your onion and mince the garlic.
3. In a large saucepan, heat the butter and olive oil. Notice how the chicken broth is next to the larger pot.
4. Once the oil and butter are hot, begin sauteeing the onions and garlic. You can toss in the bay leaves and chopped lemon thyme now. At this point you could also grind in some black pepper. All of these flavors will be infused into the dish.
5. After about 3 or 4 minutes, stir in the arborio rice. From this step onward it is important to stir the rice frequently so that it does not burn. And it is important to reduce the heat to medium or even a bit lower.
6. When the rice is fully coated in the butter oil mixture and looks glossy, add the white wine. Continue to stir until the wine has mostly cooked off. I used very cheap chardonnay from The Wine Hut and it worked.
7. Now you may begin the process of adding broth, about 1/2 cup at a time. Allow the rice to absorb the broth before each addition. The idea is to do most of the cooking with very little liquid. This will hopefully result in a rice that is tender but slightly crunchy or al dente. If you can achieve this texture then you’ve done a good job.
8. While the rice is cooking and you are stirring it, slice up the mushrooms and chop the broccoli raab.
9. When the broth is all used up and the rice has achieved its proper al dente texture (the rice shouldn’t be dry nor should it be soupy), stir in the mushrooms and the broccoli raab. Keep stirring it until the broccoli raab cooks down. And don’t worry, it’ll cook down.
10. Remove from heat. Add salt & pepper to your liking and grate some parmesan over it. Now enjoy!
Note: This recipe is loosely based on one by Mark Bittman.