Chicken Risotto

In putting this recipe on my blog, I almost feel like I am giving away one of my trade secrets. This is a recipe that I reserve for special occasions and it has never let me down. My husband asked me to make it this weekend, so I will pass it on and hope that if you make it, that it might become one of the weapons in your cooking arsenal, too.

This is one of those recipes, that when you look at the ingredients, you think it can't possibly be that good, yet when they come together, it just blows your mind. This is definitely my favourite risotto recipe and I have many of them....risotto is one of my favourite foods. This one always surprises me in its simplicity and tastiness. I can't stress enough how flavourful this dish is. You'll just have to try it for yourself.

Unfortunately I can't take credit for inventing the recipe, it comes from a book I bought years ago called the practical encyclopedia of potato and rice. Enjoy!

Chicken Risotto (Serves 6)

2 tbs olive oil
8oz skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 1/3 cups risotto rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 tsp saffron threads
7 1/2 cups simmering chicken stock
2oz prosciutto, cut into thin strips
2tbs butter, cubed
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve
salt and freshly ground black pepper
flat leaf parsley to garnish

1. Heat oil in large pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring until it turns white.

2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring until the onion is soft. Stir in the rice and saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly until the rice is coated in oil.

3. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until the wine is absorbed. Stir saffron into simmering stock, then add ladlefuls of stock to the rice, allowing each to be absorbed before adding the next.

4. When the rice is three-quarters cooked, add the prosciutto and continue cooking until the rice is just tender and the risotto is creamy.

5. Add the butter and Parmesan and stir until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve risotto sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and garnish with parsley.

Ratatouille Risotto

I love risotto. I love to eat it and I love to cook it. I think it is very hard to make a bad risotto and I love that you can make it as simple or as complicated as you want and it never fails to please. Its my ultimate comfort food. I can even get my hubby to eat things he hates like salmon and mushrooms if I put them in a risotto. Its also great for cleaning out the fridge, which is why I came up with this recipe tonight.

I mentioned yesterday that I have an abundance of squash this week, but I failed to mention that I also have loads of eggplant. I think I got five this week!! These are not your regular purple type, I got white ones, green ones and mauve and white ones. All a lot less bitter than the regular, which makes them a bit easier to cook.

Obviously squash and eggplant are the basis of most ratatouille's, hence the name for this one. I won't put up an in depth recipe as I think most people know how to make a basic risotto and really, you could omit or add anything you wanted to, to this one. I have to say though, this tasted even better than I expected, it was really good.

So, in short, I cut up some onion and sauteed with some garlic in olive oil. I added the arborio rice and then some white wine and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Then I put in a small can of diced tomatoes. I could have used fresh, but I don't have that many this week and want to use them for something else. Once the liquid had been absorbed, I started to add my chicken stock. You could use vegetable if you wanted it truly vegetarian.

In the meantime, I sauteed the squash, eggplant and a large, fresh ancho pepper for a bit of kick. These veggies were added to the risotto just before the last of the stock had been absorbed. Then finally I tossed in some fresh herbs from the garden (oregano, thyme and basil). I served hot with some crumbled goat's cheese on top. Delicious!!!

Barley Risotto with Summer Vegetables

This recipe comes once again from the August edition of Cooking Light. It was very nice and pretty low calorie. I had never had barley like this before and wasn't sure I would like it, but it was great. I really liked the texture of the barley, as opposed to arborio rice in this different type of risotto. It also helped me use up a lot of my summer produce.

The only thing I will say about the recipe, is that it says it serves six, but I only got four serves out of it. But then again, perhaps we just eat a lot. But keep this in mind if you need six main serves.

Barley Risotto with Summer Vegetables
(Serves 6)

6 cups water
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs olive oil
1 cup finely chopped yellow squash
1 cup finely chopped orange bell pepper
1 cup cut green beans
1/2 cup minced shallots
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 cups pearl barley
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup crumbled goat's cheese

1. Combine water and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat.

2. Heat 2 tsp oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add squash, bell pepper and beans to pan. Saute 6 minutes or until tender, set aside.

3. Heat remaining oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic to pan. Cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add barley, cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly, then add wine. Cook for 2 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed. Add water mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of water is absorbed before adding the next (about 45 minutes). Add squash mixture and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in tomato and basil. Top with goat's cheese and serve.

Citrus Risotto with Garlic Chilli Prawns

This recipe comes from Bill Granger's Bills Open Kitchen. It was in the lunch section, but I found it was definitely big enough for a light summer dinner. I had to use some prawns I had in the freezer, so this was perfect, as I love risotto as well. Very tasty and pretty quick, easy and healthy. Even my visiting parents liked it :)

Citrus Risotto with Garlic Chilli Prawns
(Serves 4)

6 cups chicken stock
1 tbs olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely diced
1 tsp sea salt
1 3/4oz butter
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 tbs lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper
2 small red chillies
2 garlic cloves
2 tbs olive oil, extra
20 green prawns (shrimp), shelled with tails intact and deveined
1/4 cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley


1. Place a large saucepan over medium heat and add olive oil, onion, salt and half the butter. Stir until the onion is translucent, then add the rice and stir for 1-2 minutes, or until rice is well coated.

2. Gradually add the stock a cupful at a time, stirring constantly and making sure the stock is absorbed before adding more. This should take about 20 minutes and the rice will be creamy. Remove from heat, then stir in the remaining butter, lemon zest, lemon juice and pepper to taste. Cover the saucepan and leave to sit for 3 minutes for the flavors to develope.

3. Meanwhile, pound the chilli and garlic in a mortar and pestle. PLace the extra olive oil in a frying pan over high heat and heat until hot. Season the prawns with salt and pepper, then cook for 2 minutes, shaling the pan, until the prawns are just opaque, then add the chilli and garlic and cook for 1 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Stir the risotto and divide bewteen four bowls. Toss the prawns with the parsley then place on top of risotto.