My Chicken Risotto... Not classical but try it :-)

One of my favourite family meals because it is quick and simple to make is Risotto. Its shocking how simple it is to make but everyone I speak to thinks that it is some long winded difficult process. So here is how I make mine, it takes less than 30 minutes to make and is one of the meals I make which is guaranteed to satisfy the entire family.

Now... traditional risotto would have you cook the chicken last and add it in at the end, so that the chicken stays succulent. However a trick I learnt is if you use chicken thighs, then you can put them in at the start and the chicken stays really moist, but it also means you have all the chicken juices in the risotto which results in a really lovely flavour.

So the first thing to do is prepare all the ingredients. I buy chicken thighs on the bone as they are cheaper, but you can buy them with the bone removed. I chop them up into large bite sized pieces. I then take a large leek and slice that up thinly. I have fresh herbs growing on my windowsill, using 2 sprigs of thyme and a small bunch of chives I chop them up finely. I make 1 litre of chicken stock (I use organic stock cubes.

I then heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan, and cook the leeks until starting to soften, then add the chicken and cook until browned. It is important only to cook until  browned and not continue to cook through, as this is how you maintain the moisture.

Then add arborio rice. If you notice I am not stating quantities, oops! OK, for my family 2 adults and 2 children I use 5 thighs, and 300g of rice. OK... now back to it. Cook the rice for a minute with the chicken and leaks, stirring the whole time. Then add 1 glass (approx 200ml) of white wine, I use dry wine. Cook until the wine is absorbed. Then start to add the stock, ladle by ladle. Do not pour all in at once. Do a little at a time and stir. Once absorbed put in the next ladle. I do cheat here, I know you are supposed to stir continually, what I do is add 1-2 ladles at a time and then I can lay the table etc while it is cooking down.

Continue adding the stock until the rice is cooked, slightly al-dente is the way I prefer it. Then when absorbing the last bit of stock take a knob of butter and add to the risotto, stirring until absorbed. Taste and season to taste, I add a couple of spoonfuls of grated Parmesan at this point, but it depends on your taste. Your risotto is then ready to serve, and every time, I have clean plates.

I use the same process really for all risotto, prawn risotto similar but add the prawns when adding the last of the stock as it means the prawns are juicy. But I swap chicken stock for vegetable stock. And I swap the herbs to match the meat/fish I choose.

So try it, and let me know what you think.

#risotto
#familymeals