What kind of a title is that? I need help.

Sup guys, sup? I’m fierce sick and tired, so I’ve been gobbling risotto all week, as it is (like everything else), one of my favourite dinners. It’s very easy, adaptable and full of flavour.

So the main ingredient of this dish is Arborio rice, if you’ve never heard of it, it’s the rice that is also used for making rice pudding dessert type things. The reason why we use Arborio rice in risotto is that it has a higher starch content than other types of rice, and when it’s cooked, it becomes sort creamy, chewy and easily absorbs lots of flavour.

I have stressed in the video to cook on a medium heat, cooking on a higher heat won’t make things any quicker, the stock will evaporate quicker without cooking the rice and you’ll have to keep adding more and more stock, it’ll take aaaages and you’ll start to resent those tiny little rices. If ‘rices’ isn’t a word, it is now.

I was hoping that this dish would not only appeal to vegetarians, but those on a gluten-free diet too. Unfortunately, I realised that the stock cubes I use have gluten in them. But do not fret, gluten-haters, as far as my sources have told me (Google), Knorr Stock Pots are gluten-free, and according to the Tesco website Kallo Orangic Stock Cubes are gluten free and contain 6 stock cubes for €1.99. Some people aren’t fans of the vegetarian lifestyle, so if this pro-veggie dish isn’t for you, here’s a few alternatives, remember this dish is mainly to show you how to cook risotto rice and how easily it can be adapted.

– Chorizo, Chicken and Pea (make sure all meat is cooked, leftover chicken would be handy, and you can get sliced chorizo in Tesco for €1.11)

– Bacon & Parmesan

There are also plenty of other recipes which includes all different types of ingredients, from butternut squash to mushroom.

Speaking of adaptable, there’s no need to be strict with the spinach, pea and feta amounts, that’s just a guide, but I would always use 400ml per 100g of Arborio rice. I’m fully aware I haven’t cooked the risotto in the traditional way, but I have done that many times before, and like Sweet Brown proclaims:

I’m probably just being lazy.

Price List:

500g Arborio Risotto Rice – €1.99 Tesco

10-pack Vegetable Stock Cubes – €0.99 Tesco

Onion, chopped – €0.29 Tesco

4 pack Fresh Garlic – €1.14* Tesco

200g Spinach – €1.49 Tesco

2kg Frozen Peas – €1.99* Tesco

200g Feta – €1.49 Aldi

* some ingredients I have had for a while, so can’t quite remember the prices.

Ingredient List. (Serves 1)

100g Arborio rice

400ml vegetable stock

Onion, chopped

Clove of garlic, chopped

Good knob of butter

50g- 100g spinach chopped

100g- 150g frozen peas

50g feta, chopped/crumbled

So price per portion works out at approx €1.80, which is pretty damn cheap! And here is what it looks like:

This is all very informative, but where’s the video, I hear you ask? It’s here! Watch it! I want at least one million views, realistically. Cheers for watching 🙂

You’ve probably read that I was at my first WaveChange weekend recently, will be writing posts about the programme, and showcasing some of the brilliant people and ideas blossoming from it. I can’t write anymore, I need to bathe in Lemsip….