Valuable tips for preparing risotto:

• Type of rice – you need to choose the right type of rice. I highly recommend to use arborio rice which is a short-grain rice with a high starch content. The starch will assess the creamy consistency of risotto sauce.

• Chicken or vegetable stock instead of water – by adding broth, risotto will burst with more flavour than with just water. What’s more, you need to boil your stock in advance. Keep it warm, but not boiling hot when adding to the rice. If you add cold broth to rice, you will slow down the cooking process.

• Measurments – measuring the amount of rice and broth is crucial. We usually prepare our risotto with 2 cups of rice (500g) and 6 cups of broth (1500ml).
• Large pot – you need to use large pot for risotto, because rice will double in size while cooking. Also, when adding more ingredients such as onions, mushrooms, stock, etc. you will notice that this take space.

• Start with aromatics first, then add the rest – First add onions. shallots, or scallions and cook them with olive oil, until they get fragrant. Then you can add vegetables, butter and cook for few minutes. Rice goes as the very last.

• Toast the rice, but don’t burn – as I mentioned before, the rice goes very last and you gradually need to add warm stock.
• White wine – you can add white wine for more flavour. If you prefer to avoid alcohol, you can add lemon juice. When adding acidity to risotto, the ingredients bond all together and increase the flavour in the dish.

• Take it slow – you can’t rush when it comes to risotto. Be patient and follow all the steps.
• Stir it and add more stock gradually – you need to stir the rice constantly and cover it with stock. Once the stock is absorbed you need to add more just to cover the rice, until it reaches the softness. This will take approximately 15 – 20 minutes.