Risotto is a great
comfort food, especially when it is freezing cold like here in
Canada. With each spoonful you feel your body temperature
rise, which is perfect after a hike in the woods, or when your heater
breaks.
I grew up on a mound of
risotto, (being of northern Italian decent) and have always been amazed at how
versatile the dish can be. There are so many kinds of risotti and they
are vastly different. I lived in Asia for a few years and realized that
some Asian rice-cooking techniques are not that different than my Nonna's,
which was the inspiration for this recipe.
Thai ingredients do not
often end up in Italian recipes, but I thought I should give it a
try. Cooking can be about experimenting after all. The end
product of this Italian-Thai fusion will blow your mind! I have
never had a risotto so flavourful and delicious. This is something
that I could eat every day!
This is a two part
recipe, the first part is making a blended coconut pumpkin soup. This
should be done well in advance as soups should cooled to manageable temperature
before blending, which in some cases can be several hours. At this point the
soup can be enjoyed on its own!
The second part of the
recipe is adding this deliciously creamy soup to the rice which creates the
amazing risotto. The entire process takes several hours, not including
the cooling time, so make sure you plan ahead for this recipe.
Soup
- 3 cups of chopped pumpkin
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 inch knob of ginger, chopped
- 2 teaspoons of cumin seeds
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 lemongrass stocks
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 5 cups water
- salt to taste
Risotto
- 5 cups pumpkin coconut soup
- 2 cups Arborio rice
Method:
- In a large pot, boil all soup ingredients for 1 hour. Allow to cool for 2-3 hours, remove and discard the lemongrass.
- Transfer the soup to a blender and liquefy. This will take several blends so it is best to have a second soup pot on hand to transfer the blend soup. If not, a large bowl will do and then the blended soup can used as needed.
- In a large pan or wok, add the rice and soup. Heat gently over medium heat, constantly stirring so that the rice does not burn on the bottom. It is important to constantly stir this rice. If the soup begins to spatter, lower the heat adding more soup or water if needed.
Constantly test the rice
to make sure if it is soft enough, and if it is to your liking, you did an
excellent job!
Thanks for the great and useful material. videos
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