Simple Risotto.

Servings; It counts as one portion if you don’t take it out of the pan. Literally, if this was simpler, it would be plain rice. Prep time - 5 minutes, Cooking time, 35-45 minutesWhat you need.

• A pan.
• A knife and board.
• Something to make stock in, a jug or bowl.

Ingredients.

• 2 Medium onions, Or 1 big one.
• 2-4 cloves of garlic, depending on how much you like garlic.
• 350 Grams of brown rice, which is about two cups.
• 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil.
• A small knob of butter.
• 2 glasses of white wine, vermouth, or strong cider. (A glass for the dish, a Glass for you)
• 1 litre of vegetable stock (An Oxo Cube, and boiling water)
• 90 grams of Grated parmesan
• Salt & Pepper

 Extra things you can add.

• A few leaves of sage, finely chopped.
• A sprinkle of rosemary.
• A carrot, Grated. (It’s really good)
• Chopped and cooked bacon, chicken or chorizo. Or Roast Veg. Or Mushrooms. It’s versatile.

 How you make it.

1. Dice up the onions and garlic finely. You can add the carrot and sage here as well, if you’re using them. Add the butter and olive oil to a pan and heat gently, toss in your veg and slowly cook until it’s all softened, it should take about fifteen minutes at most. While doing this, prepare your stock, either by making your own, or using the magic of vegetable stock cubes and boiling water.
2. Add your rice to the dish, and mix around till it’s lightly coated in the oil. Turn up the heat until it goes a little translucent and starts frying lightly. Add all your booze, and cook it off. (This means let the liquid evaporate)
3. Once all of the booze has mostly cooked off, pour over some of the vegetable stock, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Don’t add it all at once, just keep pouring it in about a cup at a time and stir to make sure it doesn’t stick. Slowly cook the rice until it is al dente, you don’t want mush. If you run out of stock, add some boiling water instead. Different rice types will take different amounts of time, but no longer than a half hour. This is boring because you have to stir a lot (So it doesn’t burn), but it is very impressive looking if you have someone over. ‘Oh yes I just need to keep an eye on the Risotto’
4. Your Risotto is Almost done once your rice is cooked and when you draw your spatula or spoon through it, it takes a while for it to fill up the gap. At this stage, take the risotto off the heat and add your cheese, mixing it through. Now you can throw in all those extra things, like Fried Chorizo, Chicken or whatever.

 TipsAny hard cheese will do, Parmesan is just the traditional option, like strong cheddar is fine. You can also add shitloads more cheese, I’ve just put in the minimum, cheese is great.I top mine with some fresh parsley, or green pesto, because it makes it take fresh and looks hella Instagramable.