Basic Risotto

The perfect risotto should not be a gloopy, stodgy mess. Meaning if you can mold it into a mound, you’ve gone too far.

A risotto should be all’onda — meaning that it’s like an ocean wave in the way it moves in the pan.

I like to drag my spoon through it and once it reaches the point where you can see the rice moving back together like a wave, you’re good.

What kind of rice should I use for risotto?

While there are a few different Italian short-grain rices you can use for risotto, Arborio rice is the one that’s the easiest to find in the states. You can typically find it where the other rices are in your supermarket, or in the Italian food section.

Do I have to use wine in risotto?

No, you don’t. While wine is commonly used in risotto, if you don’t drink wine or just don’t have any on hand, you can just use an extra laddle of simmering chicken stock in its place.

Also, I don’t always use wine when I don’t want the background notes. For example, when I’m making Arancini (Rice balls), I never use wine in my risotto because I want the other flavors to shine.

Basic Risotto

This creamy Italian classic is the perfect base for all kinds of risottos, like seafood risotto or mushroom risotto.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword easy recipes, italian recipes, risotto

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 17

Ingredients

1 cup Arborio rice
1 small white onion finely chopped
¼ cup celery finely chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
½ cup white wine
4-5 cups chicken stock simmering
3 tablespoon unsalted butter room temperature
Parmigiana-Reggiano

Instructions

Bring your chicken stock to a boil then down to a simmer.
Add olive oil to a wide, high-sided skillet.
Add celery, onions and garlic. Cook until soft then add the risotto and stir to coat in the oil. Let cook one minute.
Add the wine if using and let cook one minute.
Add one ladle of simmering chicken stock and stir. Keep adding one ladle at a time, making sure to not add the next one until the rice has absorbed the last ladle. Continue doing this for about 18 minutes, or until the risotto is about 5 minutes away from being done.
Drag your spoon down the risotto, noticing if the rice slowly comes back together (like a wave), but without a bunch of stock behind it. Once you've reached this, add one final ladle of stock, salt and pepper and turn off the heat.
Add the butter and a good, healthy grating of Parmigiana-Reggiano. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes.

If you try this recipe, don’t forget to leave a comment and/or a rating! My favorite part about sharing my recipes and kitchen tips is being able to chat with you. If you ever share a recipe to Instagram, don’t forget to tag me so that I can see it! Happy eating <3

Dee

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Dee says:

January 4, 2023 at 4:24 pm

I used this for my Christmas Eve arancini this year (minus the wine) and they were amazing. Let me know if you have any questions!