Chicken and Artichoke Red Wine Risotto

I don’t really have a special story about risotto, today’s recipe. I just like it. Come on, what’s not to like about creamy creamy rice, any meat or vegetable you desire, and cheese? 

Risotto is made from short grain high starch white rice, which absorbs liquid better then other rices, allowing risotto to achieve that famed creaminess. Arborio, Baldo, Carnaroli, Maratelli, Padano, Roma, and Vialone Nano are all rice varieties used for risotto. Arborio is most commonly seen in the United States and is likely available at your local grocery store. 

Remember that fundamental Italian technique, the Soffrito? You guessed it, that’s the base of your risotto. Most commonly onion and butter and/or olive oil are sautéed before adding anything else to the risotto pan. 

Cooking liquid is the next component of a risotto. A combination of broth and wine is commonly used. Meat, vegetable, and fish broths can all be used in risotto, the selection depends on what flavors you want to achieve. The broth is added to the risotto already heated. Some people say cold broth can “shock” your rice and affect the final texture, though I will admit I have tried this with cold broth without disastrous results. However the warm broth thing is technically the correct way to make risotto. Risotto is often made with white wine, which generally leaves the dish a lovely creamy color. Red wine risotto on the other hand usually turns out a rich gravy brown. Honestly you really can’t go wrong with either. I generally decide which I’m going to make depending on what type of wine I have around. The last piece are the additions, meats, vegetables and cheese all have their place in risotto. Parmesan cheese is actually the traditional cheese of risotto, but I haven’t yet met a cheese that doesn’t belong!

I know some people consider risotto fussy and time consuming to make. I am of the opinion that it isn’t really that difficult and well worth the results. It does require regular tending, but ideally a risotto should only take 20-30 minutes to cook, and then creamy goodness! I admit I’m not going to make risotto for dinner when my kids are going bonkers on me. But if the kids are in a good mood, risotto can be a great dinner that you can pull together half an hour before it’s time to eat even when you haven’t really planed for anything. I have seen an oven cooked version of risotto I do have to admit that I’m intrigued by. Clearly this will be necessary to try at some point. But at least for today the authentic technique.

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So here we go risotto step by step:

The first thing you need to do before you touch that pot is prepare your ingredients. Chop your onion and garlic, grab your butter, olive oil, rice and bottle of wine. Prepare a pot of broth by warming it and bringing it to a gentle simmer. You can plan for about three cups of broth to each one cup of rice. Make sure your add ins (meat, veggies, grated cheese) are ready to add in. 

The first step is your Soffrito. Heat your pot or pan to medium high heat. Add olive oil and onion. Add garlic after onion is about half way cooked. Sauté until the onion is translucent. 

Butter is generally added into the Soffrito at the same time as the olive oil, but I like to add it after the onion is at least partially cooked and allow the butter to brown a bit. When you add it to the onion it will melt in, start to bubble, and brown. Your are ready to move on when the butter is a nice golden brown. I love the additional flavor of the browned butter.

The next step is to add your rice to the pot to toast. Stir frequently so that the rice browns rather then burns.

The rice will actually turn a nice light golden brown. don’t skip this step, it adds flavor!

The next step is to add your wine, be it white or red. It;s going to sizzle! 

Add broth. Add one cup at a time, stir and allow all the liquid to be fully absorbed before adding more. Be sure to stir well so that the rice does not burn as the liquid absorbs. (If you are nervous about this reduce the heat slightly. This will add to your cook time, but will yield a perfectly good risotto, and allow you to protect from burning much easier.)

The rice will absorb the liquid. when the liquid is fully absorbed repeat the prior: step adding an additional cup of broth and allow the rice to absorb the liquid again. These two steps will be repeated several times. You will need aprox. 3 cups of broth to two cups of rice. Though this can vary, more or less broth may be needed. After the rice has been cooking for about 15 minutes you will want to start tasting the rice to determine if more broth will be actually be needed. Risotto should be al dente or “firm to the tooth” but not crunchy. If you like a softer rice it is acceptable to cook just a little bit longer, just don’t let it mush out.

About 2-5 minutes before the rice is cooked add in desired meats, vegetables, and cheese. Stir in well.

As soon as your cheese is melted in serve! Garnish with additional cheese on top if so desired.