Lemon Risotto with Spring peas
An easy lemon risotto with fresh peas for a bright spring twist on a classic Italian dish.
Ingredients
- 5 cups (2 ½ pints) chicken broth/stock Vegetable stock can be used to make this dish vegetarian
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ cup (45 grams/ 1 large) shallot finely chopped
- 1 cup (200 grams) Arborio rice short grain rice
- ½ cup (118 ml) dry white wine one you would drink
- ½ cup (25 grams) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup (260 grams) fresh peas boiled for 3-4 minutes or defrosted frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons Lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons Lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- Ground black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil chopped
Instructions
- Add the chicken stock/broth to a saucepan and keep warm it over low heat.
- In a sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Once the butter is melted and bubbly (adjust heat so it doesn’t brown) add the shallot and cook for 3-4 minutes, until softened but not browned.
- Add the rice and stir for 1 minute, to toast it and coat well in the oil Until you see the edges of the rice become translucent. Don’t brown. Pour in the wine and cook until all the liquid is absorbed.
- Add 1 cup or 1 ladle of the warm stock and stir (this brings out the starches to make it creamy and thicken). Even out the rice so it is all in the liquid. Allow to lightly bubbly until nearly absorbed. You should see it start to look creamy and saucy.
- Add another cup or ladle of stock, stir and bubble. Repeat these steps until you have one more cup/ladle full left. Stir in 1 tablespoon lemon zest and all the lemon juice, then the last of the stock. Taste the rice after 15 minutes, the grains should be tender but still slightly firm (al dente).
- If needed, add a little more stock, stir until absorbed and taste again. When cooking risotto it’s not so much about the time and more about how much the rice is absorbing the liquid and how the rice consistency tastes to you. If the rice is still to hard, add more broth and continue to taste rice grains until it is ready. You don’t want it dry, you want it a little saucy.
- To finish the risotto, once it is to your liking, turn off the heat and stir in rest of the lemon zest, Parmesan and peas. Taste and add salt and pepper. The salt will depend on how salty your broth and cheese is. Add more lemon if you like.
- Spoon onto plates and top with chopped basil. Serve warm.
Video
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 365kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 823mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 13g