Parmesan Risotto – Spend With Pennies

Parmesan Risotto is a creamy and velvety Italian dish that tastes gourmet yet is easy to make! Short grain rice is cooked with broth until tender and creamy and flavored with parmesan.

Serve this as a side dish or add in some veggies (like broccoli or asparagus) or shrimp to make it a complete meal.

An Easy Favorite

This is one of my favorite dishes to order at an Italian restaurant, especially if it has a drizzle of truffle oil.

What is risotto? It’s a creamy and delicious Italian dish made with short-grain rice. Stirring the rice while adding little bits of warm broth breaks down the starches making a creamy dish (without any cream!).

• A restaurant worthy dish that can be made at home.
• Risotto is easy to make (although it takes a bit of time).
• You can flavor it with your favorite herbs or veggie additions.
• This can be served as a side dish or double the portions for an entree.

A classic entree like roasted split chicken breast or juicy garlic grilled shrimp are perfectly paired with this dish!

Ingredients for Risotto

Making true risotto is easy, but you definitely have to be able to give it some attention.

RICE: Risotto is made with starchy short-grain Italian rice (most often Arborio) and cooked on the stovetop. This rice is perfect for things like creamy rice pudding or cabbage roll casserole. While risotto can be made with other grains (like mushroom barley risotto) arborio is my favorite choice.

BROTH: The chicken stock or broth is used to add great flavor to the dish. Vegetable stock can be used in place.

While this rice is a creamy dish, it doesn’t contain dairy to give it this consistency (it does contain dairy in the cheese/butter of course).

How to Make Risotto

Heat stock in the microwave or a small saucepan that you can keep right near the rice while it cooks. It’s important to use hot or warm broth, never cold.

1. Sauté the onions, then stir in rice and garlic and lightly brown the rice (per the recipe below).
2. Add wine and let it cook down. Add hot stock or broth a bit at a time stirring and allowing it to be almost completely absorbed before adding more). Continue adding and stirring until the rice is tender and creamy.
3. Stir in parmesan and the other seasonings last.

More Tips for Making Risotto

This parmesan risotto recipe is easy to make.

• Keep stock or broth warm on low heat on the stove.
• Wine adds great flavor but can be substituted with additional broth if desired.
• Add hot stock, a ladle at a time. Stir with a wooden spoon until liquid is completely absorbed into the rice before adding more.
• When the broth is all added in, the rice should be creamy and cooked through. If not, more broth can be added.

Variations and Additions

Add any of the following or serve along with risotto.

• Veggies: sautéed mushrooms, steamed broccoli, roasted asparagus, peas, or roasted green beans.
• Meat: baked salmon, lemon pepper shrimp, or a classic baked chicken breast.
• Make it Fancy: I love the addition of truffle oil and while it’s expensive in restaurants, you can get it online for around $10. It’s very strong in flavor and you’ll need just a tiny bit so it’ll flavor lots of meals! Use it for risotto, rice, pasta, fries or potatoes to name a few!

Leftovers

In terms of food safety, it’s perfectly fine to freeze Risotto, but it’s not optimal for maintaining flavor and texture. Arborio Rice is so starchy, that freezing it can make it grainy.

• Store in an airtight container in the fridge. It should last for about 3-4 days.
• Reheat: Pop in the microwave, being careful not to overcook. (Check it at 10-second intervals, once it’s hot, it’s ready.) Or, use the stovetop, stirring constantly, and adding a little hot broth or water to liven it up.

Enjoy this fabulous Italian cuisine either for parties or when you feel like making something really special the whole family will be sure to enjoy.

More Rice & Risotto

Parmesan Risotto

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 28 minutes

Total Time 43 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Author Holly Nilsson

An easy, creamy, and velvety Italian treat that tastes like a gourmet dish!

Follow Spend with Pennies on Pinterest

• Warm the broth in the microwave or in a small saucepan.

• Add olive oil and onions to a medium saucepan and cook over medium-high heat until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in rice and garlic and cook until rice starts to lightly brown, about 5 minutes.

• Add wine and cook, while stirring, until evaporated. Add warmed broth ½ cup at a time stirring until evaporated after each addition. This will take about 20 minutes.

• Remove from heat, stir in parmesan cheese (reserve a couple of tablespoons for garnish), butter and parsley. Taste and season with salt & pepper as needed.

• Keep stock or broth warm on low heat on the stove.
• Wine adds great flavor but can be substituted with additional broth if desired.
• Add hot stock, a ladle at a time. Stir with a wooden spoon until liquid is completely absorbed into the rice before adding more.
• When the broth is all added in, the rice should be creamy and cooked through. If not, more broth can be added.
• Optional add in 1/2 cup defrosted peas or asparagus at the end.
• Risotto will thicken once cooled, add additional broth or water when reheating.

Calories: 367, Carbohydrates: 43g, Protein: 10g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 26mg, Sodium: 965mg, Potassium: 235mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 389IU, Vitamin C: 15mg, Calcium: 216mg, Iron: 3mg

(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

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