Leek Pancetta Risotto With Fine Herbes Recipes

LEEK RISOTTO WITH SUGAR SNAP PEAS AND PANCETTA

Steps:

• Add 1/2 tablespoon oil to a large, wide saucepan, and add the pancetta slices. (It's OK if they're not in one layer, as they will shrink quite a bit.) Turn heat to medium and cook, turning and rearranging the pancetta until lightly browned, crisp, and the fat has rendered, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer with tongs to a paper towel, leaving the fat in the pan.
• Add the stock and 1 cup water to a separate medium saucepan. Transfer the saucepan to a back burner and bring to a simmer over low. Keep warm on the lowest heat.
• Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan that you cooked the pancetta in, and add the leeks, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, over medium-high until wilted and soft, about 5 minutes.
• Add the rice and cook, stirring, until grains look slightly translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Add wine and cook until nearly absorbed, about 1 minute.
• Add a ladleful of stock to the rice - you want just enough to barely cover the surface of the rice. Cook at a lively simmer, stirring very frequently, until it's nearly absorbed, 2 to 3 minutes. Continue adding stock in this way until rice is very creamy, but still al dente, 15 to 20 minutes total. You may not need all of the liquid, but you will probably use most of it.
• Stir in the butter and cheese, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the snap peas. Add more of the remaining liquid if needed to loosen (it should be a bit soupy), and divide among four shallow bowls. Crumble the reserved pancetta over top, and sprinkle with chives, if desired.

PANCETTA AND LEEK RISOTTO FOR TWO

Steps:

• Warm the chicken broth in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cover and keep warm while you make the risotto.
• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 4 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the pancetta to a paper-towel lined plate.
• Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the rendered fat from the saucepan, then add the garlic, leek, a pinch of salt and several grinds of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the leek is tender and softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the rice, butter and bay leaf. Cook, stirring, until the rice is toasted, smells nutty and turns a light golden brown, about 4 minutes. Pour in the wine and simmer, stirring occasionally, until it is completely absorbed, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Ladle 1/2 cup of the warm stock into the rice and cook, stirring gently without stopping, until the rice has absorbed the liquid, 2 to 3 minutes (you will know it's time to add more stock when you move the rice aside and no liquid pools in the center). Repeat this process, adding more stock a ladleful at a time, until the rice is al dente, 15 to 17 minutes. Discard the bay leaf.
• Stir in the baby spinach, Parmesan, half of the reserved pancetta, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a couple grinds of pepper. Stir until the spinach is wilted and everything is evenly combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Spoon into 2 dinner bowls and top with the remaining pancetta and a sprinkle of Parmesan.

LEEK & BACON RISOTTO

Steps:

• Keep the stock hot in a saucepan. Heat the oil in another large pan and fry the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Stir in the leeks and soften for 5-7 mins. Add the rice and cook for 1 min. Pour in the wine and keep stirring until it is absorbed. Add the stock, one ladle at a time, stirring and waiting for the rice to absorb the liquid before adding more. Continue for about 20 mins until the rice is just cooked and the risotto has a creamy consistency. Season, then stir through the bacon along with most of the Parmesan and chives, saving a little of each to scatter over before serving.

LEEK RISOTTO

Steps:

• Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large, lidded frying pan or heavy-based saucepan set over a medium heat. Tip in the 80g leeks and fry for 5-8 mins until golden, to create a straw-like appearance. Remove from the pan, leaving the oil behind, and set aside. (You could skip this step and simply slice all the leeks to add in step 2, but the strips make a nice garnish to top the risotto.)
• Drizzle the remaining oil into the pan over a low-medium heat and add 25g of the butter, stirring until the butter has melted. Tip in the celery, carrots and sliced leek. Stir well, then reduce the heat to low and put the lid on. Fry for 15-20 mins, stirring occasionally until the celery, carrots and leeks have softened. Add the rice and stir to coat in the buttery veg, then turn the heat up to medium and cook for 2 mins until the rice turns translucent. Pour in the white wine, stir and cook for a few minutes until the alcohol has evaporated. Season well.
• Add in a ladleful of the hot stock and stir until it has been completely absorbed. Pour in another ladleful, stir again while the rice absorbs it, and repeat until all the stock has been used up and the rice is al dente - this should take about 20 mins. If you run out of stock, you can either make up a little more or use boiling water from the kettle. Remove from the heat and mix in the cheese and remaining butter. Ladle into bowls or onto plates, grate over some extra parmesan, and scatter over the fried leek strips. Serve straightaway.

LEEK & PANCETTA RISOTTO WITH FINE HERBES

Steps:

• Pat parsley, chervil, tarragon, 4 tablespoons oil, salt and pepper in bowl.
• Using immersion blender, blend until smooth. Set fine herbes puree aside.
• In pan over medium heat, saute pancetta 8 minutes.
• Using slotted spoon, transfer to small bowl.
• Reserve 1 tablespoon fat in pan; add 2 tablespoons oil.
• Cook onion 7 minutes.
• Add leeks, saute, 15-17 minutes.
• Add garlic; cook 30 seconds.
• Stir in rice and pancetta. Cook until rice is translucent, 2-3 minutes. Add wine; stir until absorbed, 1 minute.
• Add broth 1/2 cup at a time; stir constantly until almost completely absorbed before adding more.
• When rice is tender but firm to the bite, after 20-25 minutes, remove from ehat.
• Stir in butter, cheese and fine herbes puree.
• Season with salt and pepper.