[ess_post]
Salty sausage, bitter radicchio, and sweet peas make this risotto a must have. You want your risotto oozy not stodgy so keep an eye on it and always stir with a wooden spoon as it’s gentle on the rice helping to maximize the risottos creaminess.
Ingredients
1 onion, halved & finely diced
2 celery stalks, finely diced
6 good quality Italian sausages, (600g) remove meat from the casings
150ml white wine
1.2 litres hot chicken stock
400g Arborio risotto rice
150g frozen peas
2 small heads or radicchio (150g) very finely sliced
110g Parmesan cheese
80g butter
1 x large heavy bottom pot/saucepan
Recipe
Heat the olive oil and butter in a large heavy based frying pan on a high heat. When hot, add the sausage meat (casings removed) and fry. Use a wooden spoon to break up the meat into small pieces. Fry until crispy, crunchy and golden brown, remove and keep warm.
In the same pan, cook the onion and celery for 5-7 minutes, then add the Arborio rice and fry for 2-3 minutes on a medium heat, allowing the rice to toast into the hot oil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. Pour the wine over the rice and continue to cook for a further minute to allow the alcohol to evaporate.
Add a couple of ladles of stock and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook and stir until all the stock is absorbed. Never leave the risotto unattended and stir gently with a wooden spoon so you don’t break up the delicate grains of Arborio rice.
Continue to add the stock one ladle full at a time, cooking until each ladle is absorbed. It is ready when all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is cooked but still has a slight bite. This will take 16-19 minutes (you may not need all the stock).
When the rice is just cooked, add the peas and radicchio. Add a final ladle of stock, stir, then remove from the heat and stir in the butter and Parmesan. Once the butter has melted, add three-quarters of the cooked and crumbled sausage meat. Season to taste.
Serve in warm bowls topped with the rest of the cooked sausage, a drizzle of olive oil and a shower of Parmesan. Bon Appetito.
Nb; – If you can’t find radicchio very finely sliced red cabbage can be used.
