Risotto

My mom had a pressure cooker that she used. The main thing she used for was potatoes and a simple meal that consisted of ham, potatoes, & green beans (super simple and fast to make -- hardest part is the prep work). However, I have done many more things in my pressure cooker (including super fast chicken stock). I love it and use it to make my life as simple as possible while still having tasty food. The pressure cooker and my slow cookers are my best kitchen friends....after the coffee grinder, the electric kettle, and the french press.

I have generally avoided risotto because I don't always have time to pay attention to it while it cooks on the stove. Yesterday, I had one of those light bulb moments and checked a couple of my cookbooks for recipes. Yep. There was one in my favorite slow cooker book (check out her website here -- I own all 3 of her slow cooker books - for those interested, they are gluten free recipes, but easily done with non-gluten free items if that is not a concern for you!) AND there was one in my favorite pressure cooker book! WooHoo! Since I knew I would not have time to mess with my slow cooker before church the next morning, I checked out the pressure cooker recipe. Done. I had almost all the ingredients on hand.

M2 and I decided it was perfect to go with our chicken cordon bleu recipe for Father's Day dinner (much tastier than rice!).  So, we gave it a whirl. It is fabulous! Just like what we wanted - a tasty, creamy Parmesan cheese risotto! My beloved thought it was great. I will experiment with adding some other spices & such in next time, but either way, it is a grand slam for our family. Even Sir Picky Pants thought it was good and ate his serving!!

This recipe is from Miss Vickie's Big Book of Pressure Cooker Recipes by Vickie Smith. You can find her website here. I see that she has another pressure cooker recipe book out that I need to add to my collection!

Here is the recipe:

Basic Risotto

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons minced garlic
1 Cup uncooked Arborio Rice
2 Cups stock or broth, heated
1/2 Cup white wine
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

(Notes - when I made this, I had no wine, so I just upped the amount of chicken stock I used to compensate. I used shredded Parmesan cheese instead of grated. I also did a batch and one half instead of just 1 batch.)

Heat the oil in the pressure cooker over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring until clear, about 3 minutes. Add the rice, stirring until the grains are coated with oil. Add the hot stock, wine, and pepper.  Stir to mix and lock the lid in place. Bring to 15 psi over high heat, immediately reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting to stabilize and maintain that pressure, and cook for exactly 7 minutes.  Remove from the heat and use the quick release method to depressurize (this means I ran cold water over the top of the pan until it depressurized). Carefully open the lid after the pressure drops.  Stir in the Parmesan cheese. If the risotto isn't nice and cream, stir in a little more stock. Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the rice is the desired consistency (we did not do this - we stirred it up after adding the cheese and just let it set while we finished getting dinner on the table. It was perfectly done without us doing any other cooking). Serve immediately in shallow soup bowls (it served well on our plates).

Variations

• Add 1 cup chopped seafood, such as salmon, shrimp, or scallops, sauteed in olive oil.
• Add 2 cups chopped or sliced fresh vegetables -- green peas, mushrooms, greens, asparagus, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, squash -- whatever you like.
• Vary the cheeses and try different herbs and wines to suit your own personal preferences.