Radicchio & Burnt Lemon Risotto
By Thom Eagle
This is a good recipe when you have tasty, juicy radicchio to use, and when it’s too cold for salad. You can use vegetable or chicken stock in place of the water but you don’t really need to – there’s lots of flavour from the radicchio and lemon, and richness from the butter and cheese.
Ingredients (serves 4 people generously)
2 good heads of radicchio, chopped (roughly 250g)
2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
100ml extra virgin olive oil
300g risotto rice
150ml dry white wine
75g Parmesan, grated
100g butter, cubed
1 lemon, halved
Method
Gently heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottomed pan. Add the sliced garlic and cook just until it becomes fragrant, then add the radicchio and season well. Turn up the heat and cook briskly until it wilts. Meanwhile, bring 1l of water to a boil in another pan or in the kettle.
Add the rice to the radicchio pan and sauté briefly until it becomes translucent at the edges, then add the wine and let it boil off, stirring constantly. Now you can turn the heat down and add the boiling water a little at a time, stirring gently but firmly to release the starch in the rice.
When most of the water has been added, start to taste the risotto – the rice should be cooked through with a little bite at the centre, but not chalky or raw. While the risotto is cooking, heat a heavy frying pan and add the lemon cut side down. Cook for around five minutes until well-blackened, then turn the heat down and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Scoop the flesh into a bowl and fish out any pips.
When you are happy with the state of your risotto, take off the heat and add the grated cheese and butter, then cover with a lid and leave for 3 minutes. Beat the melting cheese and butter into the rice – this will ensure a good creamy texture. Add the burnt lemon and salt and pepper to taste.
