What makes risotto gummy

And what about mounting with cream? So many questions, so many grains of rice, so little time. Let's get right to it, shall we? First question: Which type of rice makes the best risotto? Rice contains two molecules that make up its starch content, amylose , and amylopectin. Generally speaking, rices with a higher proportion of amylopectin to amylose will tend to soften more completely and thicken their sauce more strongly. All risotto starts with a short- to medium-grain form of rice high in amylopectin.

It's the exact ratio of amylose to amylopectin that determine the final texture of your rice and sauce. There are dozens of cultivars of short-grained rice used in Italy, but here in the U. You may see the words fino or superfino written on the packaging of imported rices. While it'd be nice to imagine some Italian committee deciding exactly how fine a particular grain of rice is, it's not an indication of quality or attractiveness: it refers only to the width of the grain.

You can mostly ignore these labels. Basic instructions for old-school risotto : Heat up a large pot of stock on the stove and keep it at a bare simmer. Add another ladleful and repeat. Continue doing this until the stock has all been absorbed, the rice is plump, and the broth is creamy. This method works alright, but it's crazy inefficient.

First off, there's no need to heat up the broth in a separate pot while you make the risotto. Sure, it'll shave a few minutes off the cook time of the actual rice, but you add that time back and more in the amount of time it takes to heat up a pot of stock, not to mention washing two pots instead of one.

I've made risottos with stock straight from the fridge with no discernible difference in the final product. And what about adding liquid all at once vs.

There are a couple of arguments in favor of adding in batches and stirring. First: when you add in smaller batches, the rice is kept in close contact. More starch is rubbed off, and your risotto ends up creamier. For now, we'll ignore this theory and get back to it in a minute. The second argument is that it helps your rice cook more evenly. This one happens to be true. Sort of. Cook risotto in a standard risotto pot—that is, one that is relatively narrow along the bottom, and your rice and liquids stack.

There's a huge height difference between the rice at the bottom of the pot and that at the top. The rice at the bottom, closer to the heat source, overcooks while the rice at the top barely gets done in time. Stirring helps prevent this, but there's an even easier way: just use a wider, shallower pan. In a high quality wide skillet, the rice forms a fairly even thin layer along the bottom, which translates to much more even cooking.

Using very low heat after initially bringing the liquid to a boil also helps. By cooking rice in a wide skillet like this, I found that I could get perfect results by adding the rice and almost all of the liquid at once, covering, and cooking over very low heat until the rice was done, stirring just once during the process.

With the reserved liquid, I could then thin out the sauce to the desired consistency, boiling it hard for just a moment to thicken it up properly. Now, on to bigger, bolder questions:. First off: Butter, olive oil, or both? It's largely a matter of personal taste. I like the complexity that you get from both types of fats as opposed to just one. This is silliness and shouldn't be believed. A mixture of butter and oil will still burn at the same temperature as butter.

I know because I've tried it. It's the milk proteins in the butter that burn, and they don't care whether they're heated in oil or in pure butterfat.

The only reason to combine butter and oil is for flavor, and you have to be careful not to burn the mixture when you heat it. Do not use anything smaller. And do not use Teflon or non-stick. Then turn on the heat and proceed. This is a crucial first step to a creamy risotto, which is your ultimate goal.

I do not know the science behind this. You do not want crisped or browned onions. You want them to emulsify and completely disappear into the risotto. It happens almost like magic right towards the end, usually just after you've decided they won't and that you've done something wrong.

As the onions turn translucent, add the rice and slowly tickle the grains around the pot with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula. Do not brown the rice or allow the onions to brown either. Occasionally one or two pieces of onion will brown during this step, but this will not ruin the dish. Lower the heat slightly and continue. The rice will start to crackle and make a low popping sound, as well as an infrequent faint whistling noise.

This is what you are waiting for. It will only take minutes and then you must immediately add your wine. I always add white wine to my risotto. I actually tried red wine a couple of times to see how it would do -- I honestly hated it. The rice grains turned an unappetizing grey colour and the flavour of red wine was too pronounced in the finished product.

But maybe I'm mistaken and someone can point me to a fantastic red wine risotto? I am always open to trying new things and admitting I was wrong. Some chefs leave out wine entirely claiming it can become bitter. I have never personally experienced that bitterness, but if you do, the culprit may be the wine. So try it without next time. I have made risottos with and without white wine, but I very much prefer it with.

I like a hint of acidity and freshness in the background, and this is what wine brings. I have tried risotto with freshly squeezed lemon and once with apple cider vinegar instead of white wine -- it's not the worst thing, but it can quickly overpower the other flavours and add too much acidity. I'm not a purist when it comes to wine variety.

I prefer reds for drinking so I only really ever have Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs for whites and this is all I have ever used in my risotto as a result. I'm sure it's not the best possible choice or a traditional varietal, but I love the flavour. In any case, the wine is added immediately after the risotto is suitably toasted and it is cooked off completely at a higher heat before you add your stock.

If you are not using wine, you would be immediately adding your hot stock after the toasting step. Do not use cold or room temperature stock. Do not use boiling stock. Bring your stock to a boil as you do the other steps -- and then turn the heat off and leave it. It will come to the perfect temperature by the time you need to use it. Okay, so this one might be controversial: I salt the risotto as I cook.

Risotto recipes will recommend that you salt at the end or maybe only once at the beginning. If your stock is already salted -- this is wise advice.

Definitely don't start throwing salt around like crazy. And remember, the Parmigiano-Reggiano if using is also salty so you need to be careful. My homemade meat stocks are never salted because I use stocks in multiple recipes throughout the week and don't want to risk over-salting any of them.

If you're using salted butter which you absolutely should not, but whatever then definitely do NOT add salt. I add a tiny pinch of salt after each step.

Yes, it is hard to quantify what a tiny pinch of salt looks like. Unfortunately, it is one of those things that can come with making a recipe so many times. Err on the side of caution. Then taste and adjust at the very end by adding more if necessary. Italian cuisine makes liberal use of salt, but it does not cross the line into over-salting. You will not be able to recover your risotto if that happens.

If you make note of how much salt you add at the end, you can remember that for next time and salt throughout the cooking process. And yes I think there is enough of a difference in taste to learn how much to salt throughout the cooking process. Others will disagree.

This is the final trick for the creamiest risotto possible. And it is crucial. This is why it is important to read through the recipe notes, long as they may be, and this is definitely a long post. Use a microplaner to grate your Parmigiano-Reggiano and then keep it in the fridge while you cook.

For the butter, cut it up into smaller pieces and also store it in the fridge. When your perfectly cooked risotto comes off from the heat, you will let it rest for minutes and then beat in the cold butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

A silicone spatula works the best for this but your trusty wooden spoon will suffice. This final step makes for the creamiest risotto ever, I promise. If you followed these steps exactly, and the onion was not over-cooked but allowed to melt and emulsify with the wine and stock, you will have a restaurant-worthy, creamy, flavourful risotto. And you will now be able to make perfect risotto every time at home by yourself. After you have mastered how to make the perfect risotto, I recommend trying a risotto with dried porcini mushrooms.

Invest in high-quality ones and then add them in their dried form at the same time you add the rice grains for the toasting step. The dried mushrooms will absorb the correct amount of moisture from the stock in just the right amount of time it takes the risotto to cook. This risotto variant works wonderfully with rich beef stock! I will post more of my favourite risotto recipes over time, but for now -- enjoy this basic risotto flavoured only with homemade meat stock, butter, olive oil, onion, and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

If you have never had a basic risotto, this is a revelation in how Italian simplicity shines through with quality ingredients. What do you think? Am I missing a vital trip or trick that you utilize to make the best, the most perfect risotto every time? Let me know in the comments. A risotto dish can take up to 30 minutes to make, but it will only be a good risotto if ingredients are added in the correct order and are cooked for the right amount of time. So, read carefully and take note.

Here are the basic steps to making a great risotto. Add Arborio rice and toast until opaque. Add white wine; cook until almost completely absorbed. Add half a cup of hot chicken stock at a time; stir until absorbed, then repeat. Add butter and cheese and mix until melted. I love Mario Batali's mushroom risotto recipe because it stays true to the risotto dish, but the porcini mushrooms add so much and take it to new heights.

Make sure you don't make these mistakes, and you can make a wonderful risotto dish yourself. Join the Houston Press community and help support independent local journalism in Houston. Get the latest updates in news, food, music and culture, and receive special offers direct to your inbox. Support Us Houston's independent source of local news and culture. Texture can make or break the dish Every risotto dish must be of the perfect consistency and texture. Stir, stir, stir! I support.

Support the independent voice of Houston and help keep the future of the Houston Press free. Support Us. Keep the Houston Press Free. Since we started the Houston Press , it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Houston, and we'd like to keep it that way. With local media under siege, it's more important than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism.

You can help by participating in our "I Support" program, allowing us to keep offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food and culture with no paywalls.