Consume Me

This recipe quick as some others in but it is easy, and very tasty. If you suddenly discover you have extra people for dinner and need to pad this out a bit, it’s very tasty with some steamed Chinese dumplings alongside.

Risottos are actually very easy to make, and this is a good one to learn on, since it’s a fusion dish, and therefore expected to be a bit different. I use Arborio rice for this dish, rather than the more expensive Carnaroli.

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 45 Minutes
Ready In: 55 Minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, finely chopped

• 1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil

• 8-10 dried shiitake mushrooms

• 1L chicken stock (I use salt-reduced chicken stock)

• About 400gm free-range or organic chicken thigh fillet, chopped into chunks

• 3-4 star anise

• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

• Juice of half a lemon, or about 50ml of lemon juice from a fridge pack

• Pepper to taste.

Directions:

1. If you’ve starting from scratch, put the stock in a saucepan and throw in your mushrooms, along with the star anise.

2. Bring the stock to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the mushrooms are soft enough to cut (about 5-10 minutes).

3. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and pull out the mushrooms and slice finely (you can either hold them with tong, or wait a few minutes for them to cool down), then put them back into the stock to keep absorbing (and releasing) flavour.

4. Reserve a few slices for garnishing. If you’re using leftover rich soy shiitake, just cut them finely and add them to the stock (again, reserve a few slices for a garnish).

5. In a large pan, brown the chicken in ½ tablespoon of peanut oil on a high heat – it doesn’t need to be cooked through, just lightly coloured.

6. Add it to the stock mixture on the stove to finish cooking, then reduce the heat to medium and add the other tablespoon of peanut oil and the onion (don’t wipe the pan out).

7. Cook the onion until it’s translucent, stirring frequently.

8. Add the rice and stir until it’s coated in the oil and onion and chicken juices.

9. Ladle in stock until it reaches just under the surface of the rice (make sure you don’t add any of the star anises – they’re hard!).

10. Cook the rice, stirring frequently, until it’s absorbed all of the stock (or most of it, anyway), adding the chicken pieces and the shiitake once about ½ of the stock has been ladled in.

11. The rice should be just tender.

12. Stir through the lemon juice, and add pepper to taste, then serve.

13. Garnished with the reserved shiitake slices, and a star anise, if you like.