You can’t go wrong with risotto! It’s a wonderful Italian classic that suits almost every stomach, whether you are on a diet or just want something to fill you up on a working week. Making risotto may sound like a bit of a hustle (standing near the stove all the time, all that), but it’s a quick hustle and doesn’t really take that much effort to make. A wonderful solution for meal prep or to simply impress someone with your cooking

This risotto version is the one that I came up with while living on Lansdowne Avenue in Toronto, Canada. The major difference here actually represents my time at Lansdowne quite well: instead of using a single cup of wine, I’ve added an entire bottle. At the end, some alcohol may have gotten soaked into the rice. Keep that in mind if you are cooking for children or for someone who can’t stand the booze.

Let’s kick it off, shall we?

Ingredients Everything can be bought in any grocery store; feel free to substitute shallots with regular onions if needed; the Arborio type of rice is a must

Ingredients

  • Arborio Rice (2-2.5 cups)
  • Shallot onions (4 medium ones)
  • Tomatoes (3 medium ones)
  • Chicken stock (approximately 1 liter; I used garlic chicken stock flavour, you can alter it up to your liking)
  • Rose wine, dry, less or no sugar (750 ml)
  • Old Fort Cheddar cheese (150 grams; feel free to use other cheese)
  • Olive oil
  • Unsalted butter
  • Basil leaves
  • Salt, pepper
  • Any spice of your personal taste

Technology in use

  • Pan and a stove
  • Sauce pan
  • Spatula

1. Mise en place

Wash your produce. Put chicken stock in a sauce pan on the stove over low heat, just to warm it up when the time is right. Cut the shallot onions, cut ‘em finely, but don’t stress over it that much; just dice them. Wash your rice. Like, literally strain it under the running water in a bowl or something.

Warm your stock Getting that stock ready!

Additionally, it’s a good time to prepare your shrimps: take off their tales and any other shelling, and make sure that they don’t have black string running across (it’s their digestive tract). Cover shrimps with something, as we are going to use them at the very end. Shrimps ready!

2. Cook up the onions

Set the pan to medium heat and add a generous amount of olive oil. When you think that it’s hot, throw the onions in. Cook them until they are golden brown. Toss them periodically; try not to let them stick to the pan surface or overcook them. Onions in the pan

3. Get the rice into the pan and add one glass of wine

Now let the rock and roll begin! Add rice to the pan and toss it around with love and care so it gets coated with oil evenly. Continue stirring periodically while the rice heats up. You need to wait until it becomes oily, with a golden tint, and a bit transparent.

Right after that, pour one glass of rose wine in! Stir so the wine is soaked into the rice and the excess liquid is vaporized. Wine and rice in pan

4. Stir in the chicken stock and the rest of the wine right after it

Adding the liquid to the risotto is quite a repetitive process, but it won’t take too long. Here is what you have to do: Add one cup of chicken stock, stir it into the risotto, stir constantly with a medium speed, look at the rice, make sure that most of the liquid is soaked or vaporized, and then repeat, cup by cup. When chicken stock is up, get onto wine and keep repeating the process, one cup at a time.

Rice with liquid around That’s how it looks when you just add the stock to the pan

Rice with liquid soaked in That’s how it looks when liquid gets soaked in

Rice is ready When rice is ready, it’s all fluffy and thick. That’s how it looked on my end

Make sure to taste your rice for texture. If it’s already too fluffy, then stop adding liquid. If you still feel that it’s raw and you can feel it crunch, consider adding more liquid.

5. Add shrimps, cheese, tomatoes, butter, salt, pepper, and spices.

Chop tomatoes into small to medium pieces. Throw them into the pan along with shrimp, butter, grated cheese (grate it right over the pan like a pro, be cool), spices, basil, and salt and pepper to your taste.

Throw everything in!

Stir everything nicely, so all the flavors are combined and engaged. Continue stirring until the majority of the additional liquid is soaked in and the mass is thickened. Smell it, as it smells darn good.

The Lansdowne Shrimp Risotto is ready!

6. Dig in!

Time for a feast!

And there you have it! Lansdowne Avenue’s twist on the famous risotto is ready to fill you up during the week and boost your morale. It’s a wonderful side dish; combine it with barbecued sausages, cutlets, or any kind of meat of your liking. Or just eat it on its own. My friend’s favorite Cocktail Sauce (the one that is usually served with shrimps) would be a great addition if you’d like to experiment with your serving.

I hope this recipe helps you, and I wish you a great meal. Cheers!