We had leftover chicken from the grilled bird, so today's idea was a sudden craving for risotto. This recipe came out different because I had trouble getting the fresh wine open (I broke an opener on it *sighs*) so I didn't have it available for the deglaze. Honestly, I believe that's what made the recipe, in the end.
Garlicky Chicken & Broccoli Risotto
Shred remains of 1/2 roasted chicken (mix of white and dark meat). Set out 1/2 bag of frozen broccoli florets. Shred about 2 c parmesan cheese and set aside. Setup a pan with 3 cans of low sodium chicken broth, and let simmer, covered.
Heat saute pan and drizzle olive oil to coat the bottom. Scoop in 2 heaping tablespoons (I use soup spoons!) of minced garlic. Stir for about 30 seconds, then add 1 cup risotto and stir until translucent.
Deglaze the pan with about 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar. Add in two scoops of the heated broth, stir.
Add in the spices -- about 1/2 tsp each of dried thyme, dried rosemary, and about 1 tsp dried sage. Stir in.
Keep adding broth and letting simmer until it is absorbed, then repeat until all of the broth is gone. About halfway through add 1/4 cup white wine (like the Riesling reviewed earlier today). Before adding the last round of broth, stir in the broccoli and chicken -- it will heat through while the last round of broth is simmering to done.
When all broth is absorbed, stir in 1/4 cup butter until melted. Stir in parmesan cheese, and add freshly ground pepper to taste.
Makes four main servings.
When I travel to Ambercon in Detroit each year, I share cooking duties with Jenn and we cook in the hotel room for a couple of the nights of the convention. The room itself comes with a microwave and small fridge, and we usually bring in cooking implements and crockpot. Past years we've brought an electric wok, but due to my poor packing skills last year, it didn't come this year.
So the challenge is, come up with something healthy, nutritious, easy, and can be cooked with the available tools. My entry for this year was a crockpot risotto.
I looked through some crockpot risotto recipes I found online, and reviewed some thoughts I'd had one this once before inspired by a FoodTV episode which talked about doing risotto for a large crowd. And I determined that I could do it, but it would need to be a two phase process and came up with this recipe.
Shrimp & Arugula Risotto
1 T oil + 1 T butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 T chopped garlic
1 1/2 c arborio rice
1 c white wine (I used a riesling)
4 cans chicken stock (I used low-sodium)
4 T butter
1 1/2 to 2 c freshly grated parmesan
1 bunch arugula, washed and chopped
cooked shrimp to taste
Heat two cans chicken stock in a pan until simmering. Cover and set on a back burner. [NOTE: If cooking it straight through, use four cans at this point.]
Heat pan for risotto to medium and add oil & butter. Sweat onion and garlic together, then add rice and saute lightly until translucent. Add wine and stir until wine is absorbed by rice.
Add stock by the ladle, stir, and let simmer until absorbed until chicken broth is absorbed (all if parking it, enough for proper consistency if cooking completely).
At this point, if parking it to finish in the crockpot later, spread out on a sheet pan to cool and then package for the fridge.
To complete later, empty started risotto into crockpot. Add two cans of broth and set on high for three hours (turn to low if it looks like it needs it).
When the broth has been absorbed and the risotto is done, stir in butter, parmesan, arugula, and shrimp. Use an amount of shrimp that seems good for 5-6 servings (it all depends on how much people like shrimp *grins*).
Serve with salad or vegetables on the side.
NOTE: I made this exactly as above. Next time, I will use only one can of stock in the crockpot portion instead of two, and will likely heat it for a bit less time (maybe on low instead of high). The two cans resulted in a more porridgish consistency than I wanted. On the other hand, now that I know how to do it, I'll definitely be doing it again with other recipes until I've determined exactly how to do it right!!
I'd been wanting to make a good saffron risotto for a long time. And I just *adore* risotto. Love it, love it. It is one of my winter comfort foods. I planned to develop one and serve it for Christmas, since I'd served the green risotto for Thanksgiving and didn't want to repeat.
However, with the move and everything, I sort of skipped the "develop it" phase and went straight into Christmas eve with complete experimentation. Thankfully, it worked out!
Saffron Risotto
4 cans chicken stock
1 cup arborio rice
1/4 tsp plus 1/4 tsp crushed saffron threads
1 cup sweet white wine
2 Tbsp garlic
1 to 1 1/2 cups freshly grated hard cheese
butter
olive oil
Put the chicken stock in a covered pan and heat to simmering on the back of the stove. Add 1/4 tsp of saffron to the simmering broth.
Coat the bottom of the pan for your risotto with a couple teaspoons of olive oil plus 1 tablespoon butter. Add garlic and dry rice; stir until rice is translucent and toasted. Deglaze pan with white wine.
Add two ladlefulls of chicken stock to pan. Add rest of saffron to pan. Stir, let cook simmering until stock is absorbed. Keep repeating with rest of stock until it is all absorbed and risotto is creaming.
Constant stirring isn't necessary. Keep the temp on the pan low, and gently simmering, and keep an eye on it as you do other things. Trust me, it'll work out wonderfully.
At the end, remove from heat and stir in 2-4 tbsp butter (to taste) and the grated cheese. It will be a bright yellow color, and will have a nutty flavor with a hint of something in the afterbite that I think must have been the saffron.
I purred as I ate mine. Very rich. Very yummy.
The first time I ever made risotto it came out horrible. I hated the stirring stirring stirring. I got it all stuck to the bottom of the pan. It didn't come out creamy and wonderful and nice... it came out gluey.
I decided risotto was not going to be in my repertoire.
Then I was watching 30 Minute Meals one day, and Rachel Ray made risotto. I decided then and there that if she could do it, I could do it.
And since then, it has become one of my favorite foods. And because both Kevin and I adore spinach, this particular version is the one made most often (originally from Rachel's version, but slightly modified in my hands because I do it from memory now).
Green Risotto
3 cans chicken stock
1 can worth of water (roughly 2 c)
1 1/2 c rice (arborio preferred, but not necessary)
1 cup white wine (I prefer a slightly sweet wine)
1 onion or two shallots, chopped
2 Tbsp chopped garlic
1 bag frozen chopped spinach (partly defrosted)
1/4 c butter
1 - 1 1/2 c grated hard cheese (mix asiago, parmesan, romano...)
Put stock and water into a covered pan and set on back of stove. Heat until boiling, then turn down and keep at a very low covered simmer. Set out a ladle.
You'll need a large skillet. It does *not* need to be non-stick. Set it on the burner and turn heat to medium to warm it up. Once warm, add a Tbsp of olive oil. Put in onions and garlic and cook until translucent.
Add rice. Stir and cook until it becomes slightly translucent. Add wine; stir and let bubble until it is almost fully absorbed.
Now comes the repetitive part. Ladle in two scoops of broth (recover the broth), and stir. Let it bubble away until the liquid it almost absorbed. Repeat process until all the liquid is gone.
That's it. No stirring constantly. Just keep the heat high enough that the liquid is bubbling, but low enough that it's not bubbling away and is getting to be absorbed by the rice.
Once the last ladle is in, add the spinach and stir it all around. Let heat through while the last of the liquid is absorbed.
Remove from heat. Add butter and stir until melted and the risotto is creamy. Add grated cheese and stir thoroughly. Taste to see if more salt is needed (not usually because of the broth and cheeses).
I've had a suggestion of adding tomatoes -- I'm still not sure, but that's me -- I'm just not fond of tomatoes in my risotto. If tomatoes were added, it would be a very pretty Christmassy food.