Recipes

Risotto Rustico – Celeriac and Chestnut Risotto

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 50 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Categories: Main course

 

Ingredients 

280 g of Riso Gallo Risotto

30 g of grated Grana Padano cheese

40 g of onion (finely chopped)

30 g of unsalted butter

1 litre of vegetable or chicken stock

100 ml of dry white wine

1 small celeriac

2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

20 g of toasted hazelnuts, chopped

120 g of peeled chestnuts

1 tsp rosemary, chopped

Salt and pepper (to taste)

 

Preparation

Start with the celeriac puree. Peel the celeriac and slice it roughly. The thinner the slices the quicker they cook.  In a casserole pan “sweat” half of the onion in a tbsp. of oil and add the celeriac to it. Season with salt and pepper, cover with a lid and cook until soft on low heat. Add a ladle of water if the celeriac starts to dry out.  Once ready blend well until you have a smooth puree.

 

Gently fry the chopped onion left in a small casserole with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt for about 10-15 minutes on low heat, until well golden and caramelised. Keep to one side. 

In a large casserole, start to roast the rice on a low heat with a pinch of salt, without adding oil or fat. In this way, the heat reaches the core of each rice grain resulting in more uniform al dente rice. Keep stirring the rice, so the rice does not catch on the bottom of the pan or burn. When the rice is very hot, pour the white wine in. Let the alcohol evaporate, set the cooking time to 15 minutes and add the simmering stock a ladle at a time, little by little. Stir the rice occasionally, and keep cooking. 

 

Halfway through the cooking, add the caramelised onion to the rice and 8 spoons of celeriac puree.

 

While the risotto finishes to cook caramelize half of the butter in a small casserole until brown. Now quickly roast the chestnuts in the brown butter to give it a nice colour and a whole new level of flavour. Be careful not to burn the butter as it can be used for the risotto too.

 

Once the cooking time of the risotto is up, if you’re happy with the texture remove it from the heat.

 

The last step is called “mantecatura” – with the right movements you can make the risotto creamier and increase its natural ooziness. Add the grated Grana Padano cheese and butter to the rice (as well as the brown butter from the chestnuts). Stir with energy to incorporate extra air until the risotto is nice and creamy. Season to taste.

 

Plate the hot risotto and top with the roasted chestnuts and toasted hazelnuts. Now sprinkle with chopped rosemary and serve straight away.

  

 

Recipe by Danilo Cortellini

 

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