Tuna Risotto
This recipe is inspired by this one from the New York Times. It is kind of like a fancy tuna casserole, or a warm take on my Rice & Tuna Salad.
For the risotto:
A little more than 1 cup Arborio rice
1 6oz can tuna in water
4 or 5 sliced garlic cloves
½ cup minced onion
1 ½ to 2 inch squirt of anchovy paste
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup frozen peas
¼ to ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 medium-sized tomato, diced
2 tablespoons of olive oil, bacon fat, or combo of the 2
shake or 2 red pepper flake
salt and pepper
grated Locatelli cheese (optional)
For the cooking liquid:
Water from the can of tuna
3 cups water
1 – 2 inch squeeze anchovy paste
1 inch squeeze tomato paste
salt and pepper
Combine ingredients for cooking liquid in a sauce pan and bring to simmer
Heat the fat over medium in a sauté pan, and cook the onion it for a few minutes. Add the garlic. When both become tender, add rice. Sauté and stir rice with onion and garlic until rice looks pearly and smells nutty.
Add the wine. Cook until there is hardly any wine visible.
Add cooking liquid one or two ladles full at a time. Stir thoroughly after each addition. When the rice has absorbed most of the liquid in each addition, it is ready for more. If you think you are going to run out of liquid, add some water and more of the seasonings to the remaining liquid before you run out. Make sure the liquid you add to the rice is at hot, though, otherwise you really slow down the rice’s cooking. A few times throughout this process, taste the sauce forming in the risotto for salt and pepper.
Continue in this until the rice is tender on the outside, but still has a bit of a tough core. This takes less time than you think; maybe 20 minutes. Add the tuna and frozen peas, along with some more of the cooking liquid, and stir. You may need to go through the liquid addition and stirring process a few more times until the peas have thawed and the rice is cooked through. This will probably take 3 to 5 more minutes. Turn heat to low, add tomato, parsley and the red pepper flakes. Cover and let it all warm through for a few minutes. You may need to stir in more liquid before serving, if the risotto looks too dry for you.
You may have heard of the Italian culinary dictum that forbids cheese with fish or seafood. I ignored this, and topped my generous serving tuna risotto with some grated Locatelli cheese and black pepper. Delicious!
For the risotto:
A little more than 1 cup Arborio rice
1 6oz can tuna in water
4 or 5 sliced garlic cloves
½ cup minced onion
1 ½ to 2 inch squirt of anchovy paste
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup frozen peas
¼ to ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 medium-sized tomato, diced
2 tablespoons of olive oil, bacon fat, or combo of the 2
shake or 2 red pepper flake
salt and pepper
grated Locatelli cheese (optional)
For the cooking liquid:
Water from the can of tuna
3 cups water
1 – 2 inch squeeze anchovy paste
1 inch squeeze tomato paste
salt and pepper
Combine ingredients for cooking liquid in a sauce pan and bring to simmer
Heat the fat over medium in a sauté pan, and cook the onion it for a few minutes. Add the garlic. When both become tender, add rice. Sauté and stir rice with onion and garlic until rice looks pearly and smells nutty.
Add the wine. Cook until there is hardly any wine visible.
Add cooking liquid one or two ladles full at a time. Stir thoroughly after each addition. When the rice has absorbed most of the liquid in each addition, it is ready for more. If you think you are going to run out of liquid, add some water and more of the seasonings to the remaining liquid before you run out. Make sure the liquid you add to the rice is at hot, though, otherwise you really slow down the rice’s cooking. A few times throughout this process, taste the sauce forming in the risotto for salt and pepper.
Continue in this until the rice is tender on the outside, but still has a bit of a tough core. This takes less time than you think; maybe 20 minutes. Add the tuna and frozen peas, along with some more of the cooking liquid, and stir. You may need to go through the liquid addition and stirring process a few more times until the peas have thawed and the rice is cooked through. This will probably take 3 to 5 more minutes. Turn heat to low, add tomato, parsley and the red pepper flakes. Cover and let it all warm through for a few minutes. You may need to stir in more liquid before serving, if the risotto looks too dry for you.
You may have heard of the Italian culinary dictum that forbids cheese with fish or seafood. I ignored this, and topped my generous serving tuna risotto with some grated Locatelli cheese and black pepper. Delicious!
Comments