Venetian Shellfish Risotto Recipes

PRAWN RISOTTO

Steps:

• Bring 1litre/13⁄4pints water to the boil in a large pan, add 1 tbsp salt, then tip in the prawns, garlic and bay and return to the boil for 3-5 minutes until cooked, depending on the size of the prawns. Cool then shell the prawns. If they are large, you may wish to slice them, but leave smaller ones whole. Return the heads and shells to the stock and continue to boil for 20 minutes.
• Put a medium size, heavy bottomed pan with a tight fitting lid on a low heat. Tip in the olive oil and 25g/1oz of the butter, and cook the shallots or onion for 5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add 1 tbsp of stock to stop them colouring, if necessary.
• Stir in the rice so it absorbs all the buttery oil. When it is opaque and rustling as you stir, pour in all the wine. Keep stirring while the rice absorbs the wine - it should not evaporate into the air, so keep the heat low.
• Meanwhile, strain the stock, return to the pan, top up with water and turn up the heat. Turn up the heat under the rice, too, as you need a moderate to lively heat. Stir the rice and add stock as needed to keep a veil of water above the level of rice for 10 minutes.
• Add the prawns and tomato purée. From this point on I start to add less and less stock every time, to avoid the risk of forcing the rice to absorb too much stock. Start to taste the odd grain of rice. You want to stop cooking when it still has a tiny crunchy uncooked bit in the centre.
• Season the risotto with salt and white pepper. Take the pan off the heat, add the remaining butter and enough stock to cover the risotto by about 2.5-5cm/1-2in, you have to judge how much it will absorb. Stir well, cover and leave it to rest for 10 minutes. Stir in the chopped parsley and serve at once.

TUNA RISOTTO FROM THE PANTRY

Steps:

• Drain the tuna over a bowl. Stir the tuna water into the chicken or vegetable stock. Taste and add more salt as needed for a well-seasoned stock. Break up the tuna in a bowl, and add to it 1 of the garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, and the parsley. Set aside.
• Bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan and turn the heat to low.
• Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a large nonstick frying pan or wide saucepan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes, and add the remaining garlic. Cook, stirring, for about a minute, until the garlic is fragrant, and stir in the anchovies and tomatoes. Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have cooked down and the mixture is fragrant, 5 to 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Add the rice and cook, stirring, until the grains of rice are separate and well coated with the tomato mixture, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Stir in the wine and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. The wine should bubble, but not too quickly. You want some of the flavor to cook into the rice before it evaporates. When the wine has just about evaporated, rub the saffron between your fingertips and stir in, along with a ladleful or two of the simmering stock, enough to just cover the rice. The stock should bubble slowly. Cook, stirring often and vigorously, until it is just about absorbed. Add another ladleful of the stock and continue to cook in this fashion, not too fast and not too slowly, adding more stock when the rice is almost dry, for 20 to 25 minutes. Taste a bit of the rice. It should taste chewy but not hard in the middle. Definitely not soft like steamed rice. If it is still hard in the middle, you need to keep adding stock and cook for another 5 minutes or so. Taste and adjust salt.
• When the rice is cooked al dente, stir in the tuna mixture and peas and add another ladleful or two of stock and several twists of the peppermill. Stir for a couple of minutes, taste and adjust seasonings. The mixture should be creamy. Add a little more stock if it is not. Spoon onto plates or wide soup bowls and serve.

VENETIAN SHELLFISH RISOTTO

Steps:

• Make a rich fish stock with the shells, fish bones and heads. Follow the recipe for risotto but add chopped garlic with the onion, and cook the rice in the strained fish broth.
• Heat the cooked shellfish in 4 tablespoons butter, season to taste and toss with the chopped parsley. Mix into the cooked risotto and add the remaining butter and grated Parmesan cheese.

RISOTTO VENETIAN-STYLE

Steps:

• Shell peas, wash pods and add the pods to the broth. Cook for about 30 minutes. When the pods are soft, puree them in a blender or food processor with a little of the broth. Add this mixture to the remaining broth; you will have a rather thick greenish soup.
• Melt half of the butter in a saucepan. When it is hot, add the chopped prosciutto, rendering the fat from the meat. Add the rice and stir until it is well coated. Start adding the broth one ladle at a time. Add salt and pepper to taste, and cook over medium heat until the rice is half done, stirring frequently. Add the peas and a little more broth.
• When rice is firm but tender, add the Parmesan cheese. Before removing the pot from the heat, add the rest of the butter. Stir and serve immediately.