Easy Risotto for Beginners
I’ve wanted to try and make risotto for a long time, but I’m afraid the stirring will take forever and it will turn into a big gummy mess. I assume you have some masterful trick that will help me get over my fear, right?
Don’t throw rotten tomatoes, but I find the slow stirring of risotto to be a really contemplative experience (those of you who love to knead dough will know what I’m talking about).
There’s something calming about the process, watching the grains of rice plump up imperceptibly but ever so inevitably, feeling the steam of the aromatic broth on your face as you lean in to take a sniff.
And while you can make quote-unquote “risotto” in an Instant Pot, it’s just not the same to me, texture-wise.
I find that the grains cook to too soft of a consistency in a multicooker, making the final dish more of a pilaf than the perfect alchemy of chewy Arborio rice and sauce that it should be.
So I prefer to make my risotto the old-fashioned way, on the stovetop.
This is the way I’ve made it for decades, so yes–I do have a few tips and tricks for pulling together an easy risotto that doesn’t congeal into a gloppy paste on the plate.
Even more amazingly, this risotto doesn’t take hours to cook. I’m not going to say it’s a 30-minute meal, but it’s close.
Contrary to what you’ve heard, risotto will not immediately become a failure if you don’t stir it continuously. You can stop for a few seconds to to get something out of the fridge, grab your phone, or shoo the cat away from that piece of plastic he shouldn’t be chomping.
And you don’t need to stir it maniacally either. Just a few slow, swooping movements round the pan with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon are all that’s needed to keep things moving.
Use a wide, high-sided pan to facilitate the even absorption of the broth. My favorite risotto pan is my 3-quart All-Clad saute pan, but you can use a large skillet or Dutch oven as well.
Keep the heat at medium-low so the broth bubbles slowly, watching it thicken and turn opaque as the rice releases its starch into the liquid.
The following recipe is a little bit like the Venetian dish risi e bici, or “rice and peas,” and a little bit like the traditional risotto Milanese.
I’ve made this easy risotto so many times and in so many friends’ kitchens that at this point, I don’t even need to glance at the recipe.
Just remember 1 cup rice to 4 cups broth and you’ll be fine. Add more or less butter, more or less cheese, other vegetables, fresh herbs if you’ve got them, and it will still turn out.
So even though it’s a risotto that you can make in your sleep, you can tell people it has an authentic pedigree. Serving it on fancy dishware helps.
Easy Risotto with Peas
Risotto seems like an intimidating dish, but we have a few tips for making this Italian classic without breaking a sweat. Easy risotto in minutes!
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken, beef, or vegetable broth
- 1 cup white wine
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow, sweet, or white onion, minced
- 1 cup Arborio or Carnaroli rice
- 1/3 cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, bring the broth and wine to a bare simmer. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm.
- In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat and add the olive oil.
- Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, or until softened but not browned.
- Add the rice and stir well to coat in the butter and oil. Cook for 1 minute to toast the rice grains, stirring once or twice.
- Add 1/2 cup of the broth to the rice and stir gently until most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Continue to add broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring gently as the rice continues to cook and absorb liquid.
- After 15-20 minutes, most of the broth should be absorbed and the rice should taste tender and chewy but slightly firm to the bite. There will still be a good amount of sauce in the pan with the rice; risotto isn't fluffy and dry like a pilaf, but retains a slightly soupy texture.
- Before you add your last ladleful of broth, stir in the peas—they'll thaw quickly and absorb some of the broth without becoming overcooked and wrinkly.
- Turn off the burner and stir in the remaining butter and Parmesan.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 524Total Fat: 30gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 139mgSodium: 463mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 33g
The nutritional information above is computer-generated and only an estimate.
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Casey Barber
Casey Barber is the owner and founder of Good Food Stories LLC and a visual storyteller whose work often focuses on the intersection of food and culture. She is also the author of the cookbooks Pierogi Love: New Takes on an Old-World Comfort Food and Classic Snacks Made from Scratch: 70 Homemade Versions of Your Favorite Brand-Name Treats, and she couldn’t get anything done without the help of her executive assistant cats, Bixby and Lenny. Her favorite color is obviously orange.
Here’s another trick to avoiding gloppiness. After adding the rice to the butter and olive oil, let it “toast” in the pan. (Italians call this step “tostatura.”) The stock you add next will deglaze any rice that may be sticking to the pan. The tostatura ensures uniform cooking of each grain of rice, and as the stock is added, allow for the slow release of starches, ensuring that the risotto is creamy, but not sticky.
I do a huge cheat, and make risotto in the slow cooker. Takes about 2 hours and it’s hardly authentic, but no stirring!
I love that this is a beginner’s guide. I’m so forwarding to my risotto-deficient friends.
Risotto is just unbelivable. In Italy, it is prefered over pasta. The best rice for risotto is Vialone Nano. Small and tasty.
Oh, how I love risotto. But I’ve been intimidated by the process. Thanks for this step-by-step easy recipe. Now I think I’ll go have no excuse to make up a big pot of the good stuff!
One of my favorite winter meals. I think I’ll make a pot this weekend, in fact. Do you have any thoughts about Arborio versus Vialone Nano rice?
Arborio rice makes a starchier risotto, and Vialone Nano (the choice of chefs) makes a soupier one because of their respective starch contents. It’s completely your choice, but I’ve used both and am happy with both.
I loved your post. I purchased some butternut squash that the market last week and I have been thinking this would go well in risotto. I had never thought of adding white wine to risotto. I have a pot luck tonight, so I think I am going to try a variant of your recipe!
Butternut squash is perfect in risotto – the lovely Sarah Olson has a recipe on A Beach Home Companion:
http://abeachhomecompanion.blogspot.com/2010/08/butternut-squash-savant.html
Let us know how the potluck crowd liked it!
I’m really glad you posted these tips. I tried once and my risotto was a failure. Then, this fall, I had risotto at PB Boulangerie Bistro. It was so light and creamy that I had to marvel and think, why can’t I make this successfully? I will try again. Thanks!
We do a lot of risottos, especially in winter. Some with pumpkin, some with peas, some with mushroom, some with blue cheese, some with whatever veg we have hanging around the fridge starting to look wilty. I love ’em.
We often make risotto and find that it’s actually very forgiving…
Theoretically, I’m not all that attracted to risotto. But your recipe sound interesting and the comments above make me think I might have been too hard on the dish and that I should give it a go!
I’ll have to give this a try. I cheat. Matk Bittman has a recipe for “orzo” using tiny pasta pieces (I can’t remember the name of the type at the moment).
My husband loves risotto, but good heavens, heads would roll if I added peas! Thanks for the recipe.
Risotto is another one of those go-to comfort foods. What not to like?