Risotto

[JAZ]

I really don't understand what you mean when you say that stirring breaks apart the rice. How vigorously do you stir? What rice do you use?

The reason I ask is that I've never had rice "break apart" from stirring start to finish. I wonder why you find that to be a problem.

[andiesenji]

I don't understand that effect either. I love risotto but I rarely prepared it because it does take a lot of stirring to get the desired result and the arthritis in my arms and hands made it very difficult. I doubt that I prepared it more than three or four times a year.

Last November I got a Thermomix and since then I have prepared risotto at least once a week.

As well as the Thermomix stirs the rice, it doesn't break it up unless I increase the speed and I certainly was never able to break it up when stirring by hand.

[Chris Amirault]

Risotto fans should check out this parametric recipe that we've excerpted from Modernist Cuisine. No mention of handedness, Coriolis effect, or anything remotely along those lines.

[Paul Bacino]

Make sure you rest the risotto 3-5 mins.. before serving it.

[technophile50]

In my not so humble opinion, the precooking of the dry rice in oil is essential to develop the proper risotto. The light toasting at higher than boiling modifies the flavor, and I suspect changes the way that the starches react with the water from the stock. The cooking down of the stock as its added in small aliquots, especially at the beginning, also affects the flavor profile. There's not much difference if the last half of the liquid is added in one shot(less a little bit to allow final adjustment) Starting with rice in water, or a pressure cooker ain't gonna be the same. I've successfully used Arborio, short grain brown rice, and Jasmine; I would generally use Arborio with chicken stock & mushrooms, brown rice with beef stock and diced meat or sausage, and jasmine with asparagus or spinach, but I'm not compulsive. Mix & match would give different, but not better/worse results.

I do a similar thing with yellow grits - precook them dry in a butter-oil mix, like making a roux. The ratio of grits to fat is much higher than a roux; a dollop of oil and a thumb sized lump of butter(~1/8 cup total?), per 3/4 cup of grits. The grits absorb all the fat and stay dry-ish, and I stir the grits continuously until they start to toast, then immediately add water from a jar standing by. If you try to run a cup of water after it starts to toast, or even pull it off the stove and carry it to the sink, it will burn before you get the water in. Err on the side of adding the water early - its amazing how fast grits go from tasty-toasty to burned.

[ermintrude]

I might not be able to tell in a blind taste test whether risotto's been stirred or not, but to me risotto's about technique and I think that the kind of attention that stirring requires is a part of what I call risotto.

Semi agree anything cooked by the absorbtion method I wouldn't consider to be a risotto, and I've never heard of rice pudding being called milk risotto, the two are different dishes although you can make a faux rissoto using this method, and if your in a hurry after work and can't stand there stiring then that's fine by me.

However you can make a risoto with very little attention using something that heats and stirs automatically, I use a thermomix ,and from the the first glass of wine/vermoth/stock adding all the stock in at once. This makes a decent risoto.

However when the rissoto needs to be perfect perhaps for a special meal or if you've been lucky enough to get hold of a white truffle etc, then by hand is the only way include preparing stocks from scratch. It gives more control but also just the act of doing so imbibes the food with part of you. Provided everythings under control stiring risoto can be wonderfully relaxing and if frends are around I'll chat to them while doing so rather than leave them on thier own.

[nakji]

I actually made "risotto" for dinner this evening, off of a bastardized Jamie Oliver recipe. I always stir, but don't use arborio rice. I used a mix of regular medium grain and mochi rice in a 2:1 ratio, and it came out very smooth. One thing I like about Oliver's array of risotto recipes is that he often includes some sort or textural contrast topping, like toasted breadcrumbs. In tonight's version of tomato risotto, I cooked in shiitake mushrooms, leftover chicken, and some finely chopped tomato. Then I garnished with some more tomatoes that had been chopped and marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar for the length of the risotto cooking time. No idea how authentic that is, never having been to Italy, but I do enjoy it.

[DanM]

You can always get a robostir automatic stirring devices, but it goes the wrong way and will mess up your Corrialis effect induced flavors.

It will also be thrown in the junk drawer and added to the thread of most useless kitchen gadgets. https://robostir.com/

Dan

[Chris Amirault]

Has anyone actually identified a legitimate scientific basis for the Coriolis effect influencing the results in a documented, meaningful fashion? I've been making risotto for a few decades and haven't seen it in the kitchen, nor can I find it in any reference.

[nickrey]

Oh no, does that mean the those of us in the Southern Hemisphere need to stir it in the opposite direction from those of you in the Northern hemisphere?

[antdad]

I do mean gummy. That is the intention, not pilaf.

And the rapid boiling in a large volume of water does exactly what stirring is attempting to do -- rub the rice against its neighbors -- but does it without me having to stand there, stirring, adding more water, stirring again, and does it without breaking apart the rice.

I'm afraid not, a point that hasn't been made about constantly stirring risotto besides breaking down the starch is that it also concentrates the stock by allowing it to evaporate more quickly, that just doesn't happen if you make a rice soup.

If you do find preparing risotto a chore prepare it in two stages. Partially cook it (10 - 15 mins) and allow to cool by spreading thinly on a flat tray. When ready get everything up to temp and finish the cooking at your leisure, Arborio rice is probably the most robust for this sort of treatment.

Edited July 3, 2011 by antdad (log)