Intero Shares Risotto Recipe and Food Saving Pro Tips
By Jessi Cape, April 17, 2020, 2:00pm, On the Range
Chef Ian Thurwachter and chocolatier/pastry chef Krystal Craig – Austin natives, Intero co-owners, and husband and wife team – are dedicated to honoring every ingredient while utilizing Italian techniques to create seasonal dishes.
Here they’ve shared a recipe for risotto, “a great dish to try during social isolation because it uses shelf-stable ingredients that many home cooks already have on hand and because it takes time to master.”
Bonus: Below the recipe you’ll find five creative ways to repurpose food at home. Staying at home means cooking more and trying to make ingredients last between grocery runs and deliveries. Chef Ian, who runs a zero food-waste kitchen, is providing interactive, individually-tailored online cooking classes via Skype/Zoom. Participants can learn a dish from Intero’s menu, or work with him on a dish they want to master. You can find information about the classes here.
Risotto
(Serves 2)
Ingredients:
1 cup Carnaroli rice
32 oz. chicken stock
1/2 yellow onion, small dice
1/2 oz. olive oil
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 oz. butter
3 oz. Parmesan, grated
Salt to taste
Preparation:
1) Put a 2qt sauce pan on medium-low heat
2) Add olive oil, onions, bay leaf, and a pinch of salt
3) Cook, stirring occasionally until onions are tender. Add the rice and stir until the rice is hot to the touch and the individual grains of rice are translucent around the edges.
4) Add the white wine and turn the heat up to medium. Once the wine has been completely absorbed, add 3/4 of the stock.
5) Season to taste. Cook at a rapid simmer until the stock has been absorbed.
6) Add the remaining stock, cheese & butter. Stir vigorously until the cheese and butter are completely melted and the mixture has thickened slightly.
7) To serve, spoon the finished risotto onto two plates and finish with desired meat/vegetables.
Five Tips to Make Your Food Stretch
Don’t scrap the scraps
Can’t find jarred sauce at the grocery store? No problem. Use carrot tops to make a tasty pesto. Use leek scraps, onion scraps and the rest of your carrots for a flavorful stock.
Hidden stems
Herb stems are great for adding extra flavor to your dishes. Use basil stems to flavor vinegar by adding the stems to a bottle of vinegar for one week, then strain and use for salad dressing or dipping. Rosemary, parsley and oregano stems bring extra flavor to stocks and kale stems can be saved in the freezer for a nutrient boost in a smoothie.
Don’t “rind” if we do
To eat cheese rinds or not to eat cheese rinds? No matter which side of the argument you fall on, save those Parmesan and pecorino rinds for your next soup. Cheese rinds bring a depth of savory and salty flavor to soups and broths.
Bare bones cooking
Fish bones? Make a stock and use it to poach your potatoes for extra flavor. Chicken bones? Make a stock for some chicken noodle soup. Making stock is the easiest and most versatile way to repurpose food. Just place your protein and vegetable scraps into a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil then simmer for at least three hours.
Yes, whey!
If you’re doing this social distancing thing correctly, then you have plenty of time at home to try new things, like making your own ricotta. It’s easier than it sounds, and you probably have the two ingredients you need—milk and lemon juice—already in your home. The ricotta making process produces whey, a liquid protein you can use to augment dishes like pizza dough and risotto—two other pantry staple dishes you have plenty of time to master.
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