Southwestern Risotto

As I mentioned yesterday, earlier last week I picked up a few pints of roasted hatch chile peppers intent on making two creative recipes with them. The first was the Hatch Chile Chicken Salad, and the second was this Southwestern Risotto. I have never before thought to use peppers of any variety in a risotto, having previously associated the dish with subtler flavor profiles such as mushrooms, broccoli, asparagus, and the like. Thursday, however, as I was walking around the produce section at Central Market, Hatch peppers in hand I knew I wanted to see how it would taste in risotto.

So I picked up some corn and cherry tomatoes that I knew would complement the peppers well and picked up a chicken breast to bake and I was ready to give it a whirl. I decided to grill the corn to give a smokiness to the kernels and to go along with the roasted flavor of the peppers. Additionally, I roasted the tomatoes, largely because I much prefer the taste of tomatoes when they are cooked as opposed to raw. I baked a chicken breast half to add, but you could easily use meat from a rotisserie chicken or leftover baked chicken from the night before to simplify the process.

The result was absolutely delicious! The sweetness of the corn and tomatoes was the perfect contrast to the slight heat of the peppers. The chicken added a nice bit of protein, an essential component for any meal for my husband!

One quick note before the recipe. I recently purchased a jar of chicken bouillon for a recipe and it saved me from disaster on this meal! You see, I was well into the risotto process when I discovered I only had half of the chicken broth I needed for the recipe. When I remembered I had chicken bouillon on hand I mixed some up with water, heated it in the microwave and I was ready to go! Crisis averted! So all that to say, it's a good idea to keep some chicken bouillon on hand just in case you find yourself in need of chicken broth at the last minute!

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Southwestern Risotto


Ingredients
1 cup arborio rice
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 yellow onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup Chardonnay
4 cups chicken broth, heated
1/2 cup chopped Hatch peppers, roasted and peeled
2 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 cup shredded cooked chicken
Salt and Pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions
You will want to have the corn, chicken, tomatoes and peppers ready when you start the risotto process. Start with grilling the corn, I used my grill pan on the stove top to stay out of the heat. Heat the grill or grill pan over medium high heat and place the cobs directly on the grill.

Cook, turning every 2 minutes, for about 8-10 minutes until fully cooked.

Remove from the grill and cut the kernels from the cob. Place in a bowl and set aside.

While the corn is on the grill, cut the tomatoes in half and drizzle a little olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper.

Roast in the oven at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.

If you purchase your hatch chile peppers already roasted, simply remove the skin and stem, chop and set aside. If you need to roast them yourself here's some great instructions.

Now that all the star ingredients are prepped, it's on to the risotto!
Melt a tablespoon of butter in a heavy bottomed large pot over medium- high heat.

Add the onions and saute until softened and browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the minced garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 more minutes.

Season with a little salt and pepper then add the cup of arborio rice and stir to coat with the oil.

Pour in the cup of Chardonnay and stir until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid.

 Add a 1/2 cup of warmed chicken broth at a time, allowing the rice to absorb the liquid before adding the next 1/2 cup. Repeat until the rice has reached the desired texture, not mushy but with a little bite like al dente pasta.

Add in the corn,

 hatch peppers,

 chicken,

 and tomatoes,  Stir to combine.

Serve in a bowl and enjoy with a glass of Chardonnay.

Asparagus and Corn Risotto

Risotto is one of my most comforting dishes. The combination of the rich creaminess and dense flavor of the rice and the irresistible aroma that penetrates the entire house makes me feel very warm and comforted. There are endless possibilities with risotto. I know technically I am sure there are many rules, but I do not tend to cook by rules, I just cook by what tastes delicious to me at that moment. Right or wrong, it is how my mom cooks, and therefore how I cook. As a nod to our beautiful spring weather, this particular risotto features a crisp Napa Chardonnay (which we then paired with dinner), fresh asparagus, and sweet corn.  

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Ingredients:

1 Cup of Arborio rice

1 Tablespoon of Butter

1 Bunch of Asparagus, cut into 2 to 3 inch pieces

1/2 Can of Sweet Corn

 1/2 a Sweet Vidalia Onion, minced

2 Cloves of Garlic, minced

1 Cup of Chardonnay

4 to 5 Cups of Chicken Stock, heated

1 Lemon, juiced

1 Teaspoon of Rosemary (or really whatever herb you have fresh or whatever you prefer taste-wise)

Fresh Parmesan

Steps:

1. Prepare everything before you begin. This makes for a much more pleasant risotto making experience. Prepping includes mincing 1/2 of the Onion and 2 cloves of Garlic, cutting the Asparagus stalks into 2 to 3 inch pieces (your own preference on size and cooking method, I use the microwave), drain the corn and pour half into a small bowl, cut your lemon in half, heating the Chicken Stock over the stove to boiling and then reduce the heat to the lowest level, and measure our your cup of rice and your cup of Chardonnay.

2. Heat the Tablespoon of Butter over medium-high heat in a heavy and large pan. Saute the Onions until browned, about 5 minutes. Add some salt and pepper or other seasonings at this point.

3. Add the minced Garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.

4. Add the rice to the pan and coat with the butter, onion and garlic mixture. Lower the temperature to medium. I like to do this for about 4 to 5 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed, but not all.

5. Add the cup of Chardonnay and stir the rice until the liquid is almost fully absorbed.

6. Add the juice of one lemon.

7. Then begin adding the chicken stock one ladle at a time, making sure the liquid is almost fully absorbed by the rice before adding the next ladle. This process takes between 20 and 30 minutes, and you really must stir continuously. So, have a glass of wine in hand and a good partner to chat with in the kitchen so that you can stand at the stove. Or, I have also found risotto making to be therapeutic and I really work out life problems as I stir, add liquid, stir, taste, add liquid....

8. At this point, I really have to start tasting the rice to see the consistency, you do not want it to have a bite but you do not want it to be mushy either. You want each individual piece of rice to be identifiable within the overall creaminess of the dish. I also taste at this point to see if I need to add more salt and pepper or other seasonings, I usually do.  

9. Add in your asparagus (I just heat this in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes in a microwave safe bowl with a teaspoon of olive oil) and sweet corn.

10. Right before your risotto has reached the perfect level of creaminess, add in your fresh herbs and as much or as little freshly shaved Parmesan as you would like.

11. I usually top mine off with more freshly shaved Parmesan and enjoy it with crusty bread and the rest of the Chardonnay!