As I show it here, this recipe does take a little planning, it’s a touch involved. But I love it, and there are many short cuts you can take. If you are entertaining, its possible to prep this all in advance, and execute this as a first course in about 20 minutes. It will look quite pretty, and quite nice to eat!
- Prawn and Saffron Risotto, plated
The ingredients (for two as main, four as starter)
I used whole prawns here, using the heads and shell for the stock, which means you waste nothing. You can short cut this by using a commercial stock and getting your prawns already shelled.
- 300 g whole prawns
Remove the heads, shell the prawns. Leave tails on or take them off according to your preference. Devein the shelled prawns, pat dry and reserve in fridge.
For stock :
- Heads and shells from prawns
- A mirepoix for stock (half a carrot, a small onion one stalk leek, two or three stalks celery, all roughly chopped)
- A generous pinch saffron
For risotto
- A rice cup of risotto rice (a standard asian rice cup is 180 ml)
- A splash of dry white wine
- One garlic clove, minced
- An inch of leek, sliced thin
- Olive oil
Sauteed Prawns
- Shelled prawn, deveined and patted dry
- A splash of white wine
- One clove garlic, minced
- Salt and pepper, if desired
Prep :
First, you need to make the stock. Put the prawn heads, shells and mirepoix into a pot, cover with water, and bring to boil. Do not add salt. Simmer for at least 30 minutes, or for hours, depending on your schedule. Strain and set aside. The stock at this point will taste sweet and delicious, but bland due to the lack of salt. The stock is key to a risotto. If you skip this step, and use a store bought chicken/seafood stock, you absolutely, absolutely need to taste it and check the level of saltiness. The cooking process of risotto concentrates flavors and saltiness. You could end up with salted risotto you can hardly eat.
If you are making ahead, this is the point at which the stock can be chilled, or even frozen. Much of the work is done. Chilled, the stock and prawns are good for up to two, even three days. Its important to note that whole prawns deteriorate fast – I can smell and taste the difference in a day, especially in the heads. When the heads are taken off and made into stock, the stock will keep well. Without the heads, the prawn meat keeps much better, and I can’t taste any difference up to three, even four days.
Mise en place
Assemble the stock, the shelled prawns, the rice, the minced garlic and sliced leek. Get the saffron ready and pour yourself a glass of wine.
Set the stock on the stove, and bring to a simmer. Place a sauce pan (for the risotto), and a frying pan (for the prawns) on the stove on low heat. Boil water in your electric kettle.
Have a sip of wine, take a breadth. Make sure you are ready. Once cooking starts, the risotto needs constant attention. Make sure you have everything.
Cooking
Place a generous pinch of saffron in the stock, allow this to infuse for a few minutes in the simmering stock.
Heat some olive oil in the sauce pan intended for the risotto, and fry the garlic and leek on medium heat till translucent.
Add in the rice and fry for a few minutes, till the rice is translucent, you can turn the heat up a bit at this point.
Pour in some wine, which should immediately sizzle.
Wait till the wine is completely absorbed, pour in a ladle-full of stock, and keep stirring the risotto. The rice will take on a beautiful yellow hue. Add another ladle only when all the liquid from the previous ladle is completely absorbed. The heat should be high enough for there to be a sizzle as more stock is added. The risotto should take 10 to 15 minutes. Use the package instructions as a guide, but as the risotto cooks, keep checking and tasting. If you run out of stock, add in more hot water. Stir constantly, scrapping rice from the bottom and keeping everything moving.
(Yes, you can instead saute the prawns ahead, and keep them warm, but juggling is fun). Now, here is the part that is a tad tricky. At some point, you need to saute the prawns, and you have to juggle this with the risotto which needs constant attention. I would start on the prawns just as I am coming to the last two ladles of stock for the risotto. This is when the rice is just about cooked, just a touch too hard. Turn the heat on the fry pan up to high, and add some cooking oil. When the oil is shimmering and smoking a bit, the prawns can go in.
You want the prawns just cooked, not one second more. Toss the pan regularly to get the prawns slightly charred all over. When they are just coloured, you can toss in some garlic. As soon as the garlic browns, pour in some wine.
If needed, cover the pan for a 30 seconds to a minute, to allow prawns to cook fully in the steam of the wine. You have to count on your experience and instinct for this. Not everyone has the same definition of “cooked”. For me, there should be a tiny core of semi rawness in a prawn.
If you have timed things right, you should be adding the last ladle of stock to the risotto at this point. For the last ladle, do not allow the liquid to fully absorb. Plate the risotto out while there is still some liquid left, it will look better on the plate. The liquid will absorb in the plate in a few minutes.
Spoon prawns over the risotto, pouring every last drop of cooking fluid over the rice. Garnish.
Eat
Immediately.
