30 Minute Meals, Seafood Risotto

My kids, friends and roommates will frequently invite me to dine in so that I will contribute. They know I want to, because yes, I love to cook and I am good at it. I know what ingredients to keep in the house so that I can put together a quick meal. There is nothing more pleasant than sitting down to dinner with loved ones.

Just last night we decided after reading the table of contents from 30 Minute Italian by Fran Warde, that we wanted Seafood Risotto for dinner. Admittedly we wanted something special to celebrate the end of final exams and to welcome the holidays and time off. Seafood Risotto was enough out of ordinary to fill the bill.

A quick trip around my tiny kitchen revealed that we had all the necessary ingredients except butter (we use a lot of butter) and of course seafood. Seafood is best when purchased, cooked and eaten all in the same day. The original fast food!

This is not the recipe that was in the book. I used her recipe as a guide line. For Fran Warde’s exact recipe you can consult her book 30 minute Italian, page 46. This recipe serves four, takes 10 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook. I used a non-stick, five quart sauce pan to cook the risotto and a two quart sauce pan to heat the chicken stock. Prep includes getting your pans and your ingredients lined up and ready to use, heating your chicken stock, chopping the shallots, garlic and parsley, and cleaning the seafood.

Here is what you will need to prepare seafood risotto.
1. 4 cups of chicken stock
2. a good pinch of saffron threads
3. 8 tablespoons of butter, plus 2 tablespoons of butter
4. 2 tablespoons of olive oil
5. 2 average sized shallots
6. 1 clove of garlic
7. 10 ounces of Arborio Rice
8. 4 ounces of scallops 20/30 size
9. 4 ounces of shrimp 20/30 size, shell and head off
10. 4 ounces of crab (I use imitation crab)
11. 2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh parsley
12. ¼ of dry white wine
13. 4 ounces of grated Parmesan, plus 1 ounce
14. salt & pepper to taste
Here are your steps to perfect, pillowy Seafood Risotto.
1. Finely chop the shallots and garlic.
2. Heat the stock to a simmer in a medium sauce pan.
3. Wash the scallops
4. Wash the shrimp and remove the tail (if it still there)
5. Melt the butter and then add in the 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Keep the heat medium low
6. Add in the finely chopped garlic and shallots and cook them in the butter for 5 minutes. Do not let them brown.
7. Stir in the rice and coat it thoroughly with the butter and shallot mix.
8. Cover the rice with stock and stir. As the stock is absorbed, add more.
9. Set a timer for 10 minutes and stir your rice frequently. The frequent stirring helps to evenly cook the rice.
10. After 10 minutes the rice about half cooked. Keep adding stock and stirring the risotto for another 10 minutes. I always use a timer.
11. Add the seafood and the last cup of stock. Do not stir the mixture. The stock will slowly heat and gently cook the seafood. Set your timer for 5 minutes and make sure the heat is medium low. After five minutes, stir the mixture gently.
12. When the seafood is cooked, turn off the heat and stir in 4 ounces of Parmesan.
13. Take the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and cut it into small pieces and place them in the serving dish.
14. Spoon the rice onto the butter into the serving dish. Add in salt & pepper to taste.
15. Gently stir in the parsley.
16. Sprinkle the risotto with extra ounce of Parmesan.
17. Serve this with a Pinot Grigio or a Sauvignon Blanc and a Caesar Salad.