I can’t think of a more perfect spring time meal than this Lemon & Asparagus Risotto. Creamy risotto with fresh asparagus and hits of lemon.
If you follow along, you’ll probably remember me saying many times how much I love risotto. Not only do I love eating it, I find it one of my favourite dishes to cook. It’s no where near as difficult as it’s made out to be and I hope you can make it as well.
My motto is that is you can stand and stir, you can make risotto!
First of all, risotto uses a special type of rice called Arborio Rice. What? It’s a short grain starchy rice originated in Italy and used in dishes like risotto. Because of it’s high starch level, it’s what gives risotto that creamy texture. So, don’t try to substitute another type of rice for this dish. Arborio Rice is the one you need here.
Risotto lends itself to pretty much any ingredients. Pretty much any kind of vegetables work well and seafood is delicious as well. If you’re looking for more risotto inspiration, you can take a look at this little list below for more inspiration.
- Creamy Broccoli Risotto
- Pea & Mint Risotto
- Butternut Squash Risotto
- Portobello Mushroom & Spinach Risotto
- Seafood Risotto
Notes About the Lemon & Asparagus Risotto
If you aren’t familiar with making risotto, it really isn’t too difficult at all. You just have to pay attention and stir.
- Make sure to use Arborio Rice.
- When cooking risottos sometimes you will need more stock and sometimes a little less. This usually depends on the type of pot you are using and how quickly the liquid is absorbing into the rice. I like to use a heavy bottomed stainless steel pot for making risotto and I always set the heat to medium-low once it starts to cook. This should help with the liquid being absorbed at the right temperature and the right time so you rice is cooked as well.
- If you get to the end and your rice is still a little hard, add more stock and reduce the heat as low as you can. This should help finish off the cooking of the rice.
Really that is the best advice I can give with making risotto. The recipe pretty much spells it all out for you below anyway.
Enjoy your cooking friends and I’ll be back again in a few days!
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Get the recipe!
Lemon & Asparagus Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 Cups Arborio rice
- 4 Cups vegetable stock
- 1 Cup white wine
- 1 Cup parmesan cheese fresh grated
- 1 medium onion finely diced
- 12 spears Asparagus cleaned, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
- Zest of one lemon
- Salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- Small bunch of fresh chopped basil
Instructions
- In a large stainless steel pot add one tablespoon of the oil and the garlic, cook for a minute. Add the onion and cook until they soften, about 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the rice. Stir for a few minutes until you notice the edges are translucent in colour. Next add all the wine and reduce heat to medium. Cook until all the liquid has absorbed. This will probably take about 2-3 minutes. Stir while cooking so it does not stick. Once all the liquid has absorbed add about 1 cup of the stock and the asparagus. Stir while cooking until all the liquid has absorbed. Continue adding stock gradually as the rice cooks and the stock is absorbed into the rice. Reserve about 1/2 cup of stock.
- Add the cheese, remaining stock, lemon zest, butter, and basil Stir for a a minute or so. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
- Can be topped with extra basil and parmesan when serving.
*A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
Thanks For Stopping By & Hope To See You soon!
