CRAB & TRUFFLE RISOTTO

It dawned on me the other day that since starting my blog just over a year ago, I have not cooked one risotto. Shocking considering risotto is one of my favourite foods. I much prefer a home cooked risotto as they can be badly cooked when mass produced in restaurants and I like to add plenty of Parmesan (no surprise there)!! Arabella and I had planned to cook a Fay Ripley goat's cheese and smoked salmon risotto a couple of weeks ago but we never did, so instead Pascal and I made one last weekend with crab and truffles and it was incredible.

Ingredients for 4 people:

1 tbsp of olive oil
15g of butter, plus extra to finish the risotto
1 onion, finely chopped
300g Arborio rice
125ml white wine
900ml hot vegetable stock
75g Parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus extra for sprinkling if you wish (I did)
100g brown crab meat
100g white crab meat
A small black truffle, grated
Truffle oil (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a pan over a low heat and add the butter. When the butter has melted, stir in the onion and sauté over a low to medium heat for about ten minutes until softened..

While this is cooking make up the stock - I used a stock cube and boiling water.

Once the onion is softened, stir in the rice and cook for 1-2 minutes. 

Then pour in the wine and stir.

Add a ladleful of stock to the pan and stir.

When all the liquid has been absorbed, add another ladle.

Continue until all the stock has been absorbed - this should take about 20 minutes and all this stirring is like a little arm exercise! When adding the last of the stock, season to taste.

Stir in the Parmesan - it melts quickly!

Then stir in the brown crab meat and half of the white crab meat.

Top with a couple of knobs of butter and stir (once again).

Add half of the black truffle and stir for the final time (phew)!

Spoon into bowls and garnish with the remaining white crab meat and truffles (and Parmesan if you are a cheese maniac like me) and enjoy! We did also drizzle with some truffle oil if you have any handy but it is not essential.

This was exceptionally good!! I LOVE crab, it is something I will always order in restaurants but have never actually cooked with - I certainly will do again. Pascal, who is normally so anti fish, absolutely adored this too which was a huge surprise. Risottos are time consuming as you do have to stand and stir repeatedly however they are worth it. I can't believe I hadn't cooked a risotto for so long, I guess it is because Arabella and Pascal are such pasta fiends….thankfully I have some leftover rice so I am already planning my next risotto of pea, goat's cheese and bacon….and I am dribbling at the thought of it!!