Scallop & Mushroom Risotto

January 22, 2021

Even rice is one of the most representative, common ingredients in Chinese, Japanese, Korean and other Asian cuisines, Asian countries are NOT the only ones that enjoy rice dishes. There are Indian biriyani (one of my favorite Indian cuisines), Italian risotto, Spanish paella, etc. “While there are many conflicting opinions on the historical intricacies, rice was first introduced to Italy and Spain by the Arabs during the Middle Ages.” Here we explore risotto for the first time!

	Risotto	Paella
Origin	north Italy	Valencia, Spain “the origins of Paella lie in the fields of Valencia where it was made for the peasants making use of whatever ingredients they could lay their hands upon”
Rice	starchy rice creating creamy sauce Arborio and Carnaroli (short grain rice)	not starchy Bahia, Calasparra, Senia, Balilla, and Bomba (short or medium grain rice)
Classical Ingredients	chicken/vegetable broth shallots butter grated parmesan white wine	chicken broth chorizo sausage paprika
Texture	sticky, no crust; uniform texture from top to bottom	soft from inside but dry at the top, has a crust at the bottom
Flavor	monotonous, creamy, buttery, cheesy smell together with aromatic vegetables and herbs	ambiguous, toasty, rich in flavor (seafood-like or meat-like) with dashes of spices
Process	1-toast rice in fat 2-cook rice in broth (stir!) add broth when previous cup is well absorbed 3-make cream with butter or cheese	1-stir fry veggies and meat (chorizo sausage) 2-mix in rice, ONLY TIME to stir 3-simmer in broth (DO NOT STIR!) add broth when level decreases

QUICK TAKEAWAYS

if chicken broth is already seasoned, do not need to season with salt!!
liquid from stir frying mushroom and from cooking seafood can both add to risotto for extra flavors
keep stirring the pot, especially when broth is almost soaked up, to achieve same texture from top to bottom and prevent risotto from burning

RECIPE

Portions: 2

1/2 cup Arborio rice
1-2 shallots
mushrooms of choice:
- baby oyster mushrooms
- shiitake mushrooms
scallops (optional)
1/4 cup white wine
2-3 cup chicken broth
Italian parsley (some use chives)
grated parmesan

Step 1: warm up 2-3 cups of chicken broth; season scallop with salt and pepper; chop shallots, parsley, mushrooms

Step 2: over medium-high heat, melt 1/2tsp butter in pan; add mushroom slices, sauté with salt and pepper, and cook till soft. Some recipes calls for removing mushroom from pan and stir back in after rice is cooked.

Step3: (if remove mushrooms from step 2, melt another 1/2tsp butter in pan) add finely chopped shallots and stir fry till transparent and golden.

Step 4: over medium heat, add 1/2 cup Arborio rice in pan with shallots, stir, mix well and cook till rice is semi-transparent; add 1/4 cup white wine, stir till all white wine is absorbed; add 1/2 cup chicken broth, stir till all broth is absorbed. Keep adding, stirring till rice is cooked, around 15-20mins. Taste and season with extra salt and pepper is needed. Remove from heat.

Step 5: in another pan, over medium-high heat, pan fry scallops on both sides; remove from pan till risotto is done.

if shrimps were too dry, add some chicken broth in pan, then pour extra broth into risotto

Step 6: (if remove mushrooms from step 2, add back in mushroom and its liquid) add grated parmesan, finely chopped parsley, some scallops and stir well. Add a few spoons of broth if too dry.