Blogging can be hard work. It's one thing to actually write out the content of your entry; it's another to even think of a topic.
Not wanting to stagnate in terms of food blogging, I've decided to create a series called "Foodie Friday". This could consist of a restaurant or dish review, or a how-to of something I've made.
Today's post will be about risotto, which is one of my favorite dishes, and also one of the most time consuming to prepare. Take note that I didn't follow a recipe, and that I basically YOLO'd the entire dish. I don't have exact measurements, but this is because with risotto, you can continuously adjust and season as the cooking process continues.
So here we go!
I began by preparing a stock, which is essential to any risotto. You can use leftover stock from a previously prepared dish (sometimes we store the leftover stock from other dishes, like Hainanese Chicken), boil cubes (like Knorr Cubes), or use store-bought stock. Most people use chicken or beef stock, but you can also use vegetarian stock, if you prefer.
In another pan, I sautéed garlic and onions in olive oil. You can add white wine to it, at this point, if you like.
Here are the ingredients I initially worked with. Not included here is parmesan cheese, which I added eventually, because I wanted to make it a three-cheese risotto. The two kinds you see here are ricotta and truffle cheese.
I used half of the pack of Arborio rice for my recipe, given that I usually cook for my relatively large family. The most common rice grain for risotto is Arborio, because it absorbs the broth really well, and gradually enlarges and becomes fluffy as it absorbs the broth. However, you can use other varieties such as Baldo, Carnaroli, Maratelli, Padano, Roma, and Vialone Nano (according to Wikipedia). The most widely available here in the Philippines (and not even in all supermarkets, for that matter) is Arborio.
With constant stirring and infusion of the broth, the rice will become fluffy and it will take on a creamy consistency. Along the way, you can start to season the rice with salt and pepper.
Make sure to keep tasting the rice's doneness (it shouldn't be hard nor chewy) as you cook.
I found leftover black truffle paste, so I scooped whatever was left in the jar, and added it to the risotto.
Here was the final result: creamy rice, that initially could've been cooked a bit longer (actually, I re-cooked the rice eventually, to get the texture I wanted), which turned out to be cheesily delicious and earthy. I also added nutmeg to complement the truffle flavor.
And although this isn't the ideal way to eat it (piping hot is always best!), I was still able to bring the leftovers to work the following day, as my lunch.
If you decide to cook risotto, let me know how it goes! Or if you have other risotto recipe suggestions or ingredients that I could try out next time, let me know as well.
See you in my next Foodie Friday post! Happy weekend!
