Ingredients
30g unsalted butter
2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
2 tbsp picked thyme leaves
2 lemons, 1 shaved into long strips of zest and 1 finely grated
300g risotto rice
500g trimmed brussels sprouts (any dodgy outer leaves removed), 200g shredded and 300g quartered
200ml dry white wine
900ml vegetable stock
Salt and black pepper
About 200ml sunflower oil
40g parmesan, roughly grated
60g blue cheese such as Divine Dairy Blue
Lemon juice, to taste
Summary
We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the popularity of Brussels sprouts this winter, what was once sidelined is now celebrated! This risotto incorporates the mini cabbages in two ways; gently cooked within the risotto and quickly shallow fried for a crunchy topping. The biggest tip we can give you for making any risotto, especially this one, is to have all your ingredients ready before you begin. Once you start stirring, you don’t want to be grating parmesan or fussing about with herbs. Get prepped and save yourself the stress.
Brussels Sprouts Risotto
If using stock that’s been frozen, bring it to the boil for a minute, then turn off the heat and set aside for later in the recipe.
Put the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. When the oil is hot and the butter melted, add the onion and fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly caramelised. Add the garlic, thyme and lemon strips, and cook for two minutes more. Add the rice and shredded sprouts, and cook for a minute, stirring frequently. Pour over the wine and let it absorb completely. Reduce the heat to a medium, add a good pinch of salt, and grinding of pepper, then begin adding the warm stock, ladle by ladle, stirring as it slowly absorbs. Continue until the rice is cooked but still retains a bite, and all the stock is used up – about 15-20 minutes.
While the rice is cooking, pour the sunflower oil into a second small-ish saucepan; it should come 2cm up the sides. Place on a high heat and, once very hot, use a slotted spoon to add a handful of the quartered sprouts, making sure they are completely dry first; they will still splutter, so be careful. Fry for about a minute, until golden and crisp, then transfer to plate lined with paper towel and sprinkle with salt. If you find the sprouts are taking longer than a minute or so to fry then your oil might be too cold and you run the risk of super oily, soft sprouts (as opposed to crisp brown ones).
Add the parmesan, blue cheese and lemon zest and stir gently. Serve at once, spooning on the crunchy sprouts and topping with lemon juice to taste.
Hints and Tips
This recipe has been adapted from one by Yotam Ottolenghi
