AN ELIZABETH DAVID RISOTTO

First you prepare a simple risotto cooked in broth and enriched with Parmesan and butter. When the risotto is served, a glass of dry, slightly sharp, white wine is poured into each soup plate and the risotto put on top. The wine, heated by the risotto, takes on a slightly effervescent quality, extremely pleasant to the palate. The wine must not be mixed with the risotto; each forkful is dipped in as one eats it.

David states two very important things in her description of this risotto that are just as valid today as they would have been in the 80s or in the 50s when the book was originally published (just think, more than sixty years on and so many still have not caught on!):

“In a good and conscientious restaurant, say in Milan or Venice or Turin, you must wait for your risotto just as in a French restaurant you would expect to wait for your soufflé.” A risotto takes about 17 minutes to cook. If you want a proper risotto, (that is, not a partially pre-cooked one), that’s how long you will need to wait for it.

Risotto in Cantina
Based on a description in Elizabeth David’s Italian Food

For 4 serves

1 medium brown onion

320 gr rice (such as Carnaroli, Arborio or Vialone Nano varieties)

600 ml of homemade vegetable or chicken stock, heated

70 gr Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated finely

40 gr cold butter

Olive oil

2 glasses of dry, white wine, such as a Soave or pinot grigio, preferably from the Veneto region

Chop the onion finely and sauté gently over low heat in a deep pot with some olive oil and a bit of the butter until translucent but not browned. Add the rice and toss to coat in the butter and oil, letting it ‘toast’ for a few minutes or until the rice kernels appear translucent around the edges.

The stock should be heated before adding it to the rice. Homemade is obviously the best in terms of flavour, as they are usually less salty than store bought or dreaded stock cubes. Chicken stock is not commonly used in Italy, but a good, mild homemade one would be very suitable.

Add a ladleful of hot stock and turn the heat up to low-medium. Stir gently with a wooden spoon, adding ladles of stock as the liquid gets absorbed by the rice and repeat until the liquid is used up and the rice is al dente, tender but firm. As the rice cooks and releases starch, you should notice the liquid becoming creamy. Keep in mind what was mentioned above, that the rice continues to cook so you want to make sure there is enough liquid in the pan when you take it off the heat that it won’t dry out completely.

Taking the pan off the heat, toss the rest of the cold butter and half of the grated Parmesan cheese through the risotto – a technique called mantecare in Italian, which derives from the Spanish word for butter, manteca, and specifically means to combine butter with the sauce in a risotto (or pasta) for a creamy consistency. Talk about Italians and their food language!

Serve immediately, with extra Parmesan on top or on the side. David’s quote from the original recipe says to first pour the white wine in the dish and then place the risotto on top; I’ve done the opposite but feel free to stick to the original.

Eat without stirring the rice into the wine.