Nonna Luna's Bitter Rice
Category
Side Dish
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Ingredients
-
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large shallot, (chopped)
- 1 clove garlic, (chopped)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
-
1 cup risotto rice, such as Carnaroli or Arborio
- 1/4 teaspoon saffron
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
-
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan, (plus for serving, optional)
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 small head radicchio, (chopped)
Instructions
- As seen on: Giada In Italy, Episode 2. Nonna Luna's Secret: Entice with Rice
- Place a medium Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the olive oil, shallots, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the shallots are soft and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Add the rice and saffron and stir to combine and to coat the rice in the flavorful oil. Toast the rice for 2 minutes, stirring often. Add the white wine to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until almost all the liquid is absorbed. When the wine is absorbed, reduce the heat to medium-low and begin adding the broth 3/4 cup at a time, stirring often between additions (to release the starches) and waiting until the broth is almost entirely absorbed before incorporating the next addition.
This will take about 20 minutes total.When the last addition is almost absorbed but there's still a thick liquid surrounding the rice, stir in the Parmesan, cranberries, butter, radicchio, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Stir until the cheese and butter are melted and the radicchio is wilted. The mixture should still have movement and not be too stiff, add a bit more broth as needed to achieve the desired consistency. Serve with additional grated Parmesan if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition
- per serving
- Calories
- 626
- Carbs
- 54 grams
- Protein
- 20 grams
- Fat
- 33 grams
- Saturated Fat
- 15 grams
- Cholesterol
- 56 milligrams
- Sodium
- 647 milligrams
- Fiber
- 2 grams
- Sugar
- 8 grams
2 comments
You're not crazy! Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. It's the stamen of crocuses. Costco sells a stoppered bottle of saffron that contains about a tablespoon of it, so for 1/4 tsp you'd only need a small pinch of that tablespoon.
So, call me crazy, but when I've seen saffron for sale in the store, there are usually a few strands of saffron in a small bottle. To get enough strands to fill a 1/4 of a teaspoon, it's going to take me a few bottles to do that with. Am I missing something? At that cost, we're looking to spend $50+ for this dish. Correct me if I'm missing something. Thanks