Shrimp, Asparagus, and Spinach Risotto

Risotto is one of the best “gourmet” meals to turn out in your own kitchen - especially if you are Gluten Free! - because it tastes so fancy. But really, there are two tricks to risotto, and neither of them are hard:

1. You’ve got to have the right rice;

And 2. You’ve got to know how to STIR. And who can't take a spoon and STIR?

See? Not hard!

Trick #1. The rice. THIS is the kind of rice you need for risotto. It’s called Arborio. Doesn’t matter a bit the brand, this is just what my grocery store had. It releases the starch that gives risotto its creaminess. I’ve tried making risotto with other rices: no go. Don’t bother. 😊 Spend the money and buy the Arborio.l 

Stirring we’ll get to in good time! I’m going to get you pictures of that.

First I’m going to get my asparagus and spinach ready.

The spinach I bought fresh, and am just steaming in the microwave. Spinach, a little water, cover. 4 minutes and stir, is what I do.

Asparagus was also bought fresh. If it’s good fresh asparagus, you can just hold it in your hand and snap the bottom “woody” parts off the stems.

Discard the bottom ‘snap.’ Then snap the rest into bite-size pieces into a plastic something that can go in the microwave; we’re going to steam that too. Try three minutes and go from there. I did three, stir, three; that was too long!

Normally I’d add sautéing the shrimp here, but I didn’t want to peel shrimp, so I wound up with frozen, cooked shrimp instead: just what the grocery store had. Convenience. I dislike peeling shrimp!

Now we’re ready to start the risotto.

Gather your stuff together. A lot of folks like onion in their risotto; I don’t like onion, but will often use shallots; quite frankly, I forgot to put them on the grocery list. So! Olive oil, garlic, and you need to have your broth ready. I’ve got mine in a 4C measure here, you see, so I can try and tell you how much I’m adding! (I don’t usually heat my broth. A lot of recipes tell you to do so.) 

Olive oil in the pan, enough for your garlic/diced onion/diced shallots - and enough to coat your rice, too, in a second. I’m using about 3-4 tablespoons. Cook your onions or brown your garlic. A lot of people use both.

Once those have cooked/browned, measure out 2 C of your <Arborio> rice. Add it right into the pan and start stirring. 

You’re wanting all the grains of rice to be coated and looking a little translucent. It’s kind of hard to see here. Aim at all the grains of rice being coated!

Then I added - I measured it! - a cup of broth and started stirring.

(A lot of recipes tell you to deglaze with white wine. I never have. The risotto turns out great anyway.)

SET A TIMER HERE FOR 20 MINUTES. That’s how you’re going to know when to start checking your rice for done-ness.

When it starts looking like THIS, when all the rice isn’t covered anymore and the boiling broth is causing little holes to open, that’s when you add more broth. Your rice will also start <sticking>! Definitely add more broth when you start sticking.

I added another cup or so. 

And so on. 

I kept that up until I had stirred in 4 C of broth precisely, and my 20 minute timer had (astonished!) 15 seconds left on it exactly. 

It doesn’t usually turn out that evenly!

Then I tested a few grains of rice and they were done. Take it off the heat!

I stirred in 2 tablespoons lemon juice and estimated about a tablespoon of mint flakes. I stirred in my asparagus, and then realized my pot was not big enough to stir in my spinach too. 

Needs must. Stir it together however you can. Mine ended up being stirred in its portioned-out Bento boxes. I topped it with the shrimp and some fresh Parmesan!

And this is how you tell a <really> successful risotto: not a thing stuck to the pan! 

SHRIMP, ASPARAGUS, AND SPINACH RISOTTO 

12 oz fresh spinach

1 lb asparagus, trimmed

12 oz frozen pre-cooked medium shrimp, thawed

2 C Arborio rice

3 T olive oil
3 T minced garlic
(1 diced onion, optional)

4 C low sodium, gluten free chicken broth

2 C fresh Parmesan 

Steam your spinach; set aside. Steam your trimmed asparagus; again, set aside.

Gather rice, olive oil, garlic, onion (if using), and broth. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. Add rice; stir until all grains are coated.

Add one cup of broth. Stir until the broth is almost absorbed and holes are forming in the rice as it simmers; see above. Add another cup of broth. Keep stirring and adding broth for about twenty minutes, until rice is tender.

Remove from heat.

Stir in lemon juice and mint. Stir in asparagus and spinach. Serve topped with shrimp and fresh Parmesan.

Servings: 7

Calories per serving: 333