Basic Risotto

Ingredients:
olive oil
1 x large onion
2 x garlic cloves
2 x handfuls arborio rice (can use pudding or paella rice instead)
1 x handful mature cheddar
large clump of parmesan or pecorino cheese
1 x chicken stock cube
1 x vegetable stock cube
black pepper
dried basil
dried oregano
dried rosemary
2 x bay leaf
(optional/ preferable fresh basil)

Utensils:
2 x saucepans
wooden spoon
chopping board
knife
ladle

Time
preparation = 5 mins
cooking time = 20 minutes

Method
1. Boil kettle
2. Finely chop onion and garlic. Grate cheeses.
3. Heat saucepan 01 and add oil and dried herbs. Saute onions and garlic until soft and transparent.
4. Whilst onions are cooking, put saucepan 02 on high heat and fill with boiling water. Add two stock cubes and bay leaves. Keep on a rolling boil all the way through cooking. If the 'stockpot' boils too far down just add more boiling water from kettle.
5. Saucepan 01. When onions are cooked add two handfuls of rice (one per person). Stir vigorously, let rice toast a bit on the outside.
6. The trick to risotto is to keep both saucepans on a high heat and stirring saucepan 01 throughout cooking.
7. Add one ladleful of stock into saucepan 01. The first ladleful will be absorbed very quickly, so add the second ladleful quite quickly.
8. Keep stirring
9. Repeat adding ladlefuls of stock until rice is soft.
10. This should take 20 minutes.
11. When of a creamy consistency with soft rice, take off heat and stir in cheeses.
12. Put lid on risotto and rest for a few minutes.
13. Serve seasoned with black pepper and chopped fresh herbs.

Variations

• add cooked slices of chicken at the point you add the cheeses
• add cooked prawns at the point you add the cheeses
• add roasted butternut squash at the point you add the cheeses
• add frozen peas a couple of minutes before it is finished
• saute some small chunks of chorizo at the same time as the onions
• for some reason next day risotto is even yummier
• roll cold left over risotto into balls around a chunk of mozzarella, deep fry for a few minutes

Note

The rice must be arborio, pudding or paella. Pudding rice is often cheaper than arborio and is essentially the same thing.