Risotto

From Encyclopedia Jr, free information reference for Kids

Risotto is also the title of an album by Fluke.

Risotto prepared with mushrooms and scallions.

Risotto is a traditional Italian dish made with a suitable variety of rice such as Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. It originated in North Italy, specifically Eastern Piedmont and Western Lombardy, where rice paddies are abundant. It is one of the pillars of Milanese cuisine.

When risotto is cooked, the dry rice is fried briefly in butter (sometimes olive oil) before the broth is added. Other dishes exist that are similar, but they should not be called "risotto" if the rice is not toasted.

Recipes include "Risotto alla Milanese," made with chicken or beef stock and saffron, which is traditionally served with osso buco (a stew made from veal bones), and "Risotto al Barolo," made with red wine, but thousands of variations exist, both with vegetables and meat, as well as risottos made with various other wines, cheeses, or even fruits. "Risotto Negro" is a specialty of the Veneto region, made with cuttlefish cooked with their ink-sacs.

[edit] See also

• paella
• pilaf
• plov
• jambalaya
• fried rice
• congee

[edit] References

• Barrett, Judith, and Norma Wasserman (1987). Risotto. New York: Scribner. ISBN 0-684-18691-8.
• Hazan, Marcella (1992). Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0039458404X.

[edit] External links

• Shrimp & fennel risotto recipe
• Mushroom, bacon and walnut risotto recipe
• Pumpkin risotto
• Risotto history and how to make a perfect risotto