TOMATO RISOTTO (RISOTTO AL POMODORO) – Recipe by Piero Benigni – This risotto is really tasty, although typical of the Italian popular cuisine. The flavour of tomato blends with those of Parmesan, carrot, onion and butter with a delicate and captivating final result.
Ingredients for 4 people
- 340 gcarnaroli rice (12 oz)
- 400 gtomato sauce (or pelati, 14 oz)
- 60 gonion (2 oz)
- 60 gcarrot (2 oz)
- 1500 mlvegetable broth (6 1/2 cups)
- 40 gcheese (Parmesan, 1 1/2 oz)
- 30 gbutter (1 oz)
- 1/2 glassdry white wine (4 fl oz)
- 1 pinchparsley
Tools for Tomato risotto
- Cooker
- Chopping Board
- 1 Pot for risotto, with lid
- 1 Pot for broth
- Knife
- Scale
- Wooden Spoon
- Ladle
Prepare 1.5 l of vegetable broth. Put it on the cooker near the risotto saucepan and have it quietly boiling when needed. So it must be for the entire time of cooking. Weight butter and Parmesan. Finely chop onion and carrots. Separately chop parsley.
Starting
Pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the pot. Add chopped onion and carrot and brown on a low flame for 15 minutes. Stir frequently. Add rice and start “toasting”: raise the heat and stir continuously for 3 minutes until it takes a translucent appearance and sticks to the bottom. Pour half a glass of dry white wine, stir and let it evaporate. Add tomato, stir and reduce until near dry.
Pour a ladle of boiling broth and begin stirring almost continuously on a mild heat with the broth just simmering. When the broth has been completely absorbed, pour another ladle, resume stirring and so on, adding a ladle at a time when the previously poured is absorbed, until the rice is still firmly al dente. Check and if necessary add salt. If you feel the acidity of the tomato, add a low teaspoon of sugar.
Rice cooking can be checked by chewing some grains with the incisors to feel the “core” that must always be noticeable. This is the meaning of “al dente”
End of cooking the Tomato risotto
Continue cooking and taste often. When rice is al dente turn off the heat and add butter and grated Parmesan. Stir to melt, cover with lid and let stay for 3 minutes. Uncover and check that risotto is wet and creamy, adding very little broth if necessary.
Serve with a little more Parmesan on top and some black pepper if you like. Spread dishes with a pinch of chopped parsley. You can keep it for 3 days in the fridge in a closed container. I don’t recommend freezing.