This is an easy risotto recipe with green asparagus and vermouth . It’s a wonderful spring recipe to enjoy all these delicious tender green asparagus stalks you’ll find on every farmers market right now. It’s refined with vermouth which adds an extraordinary flavor to this Italian dish. It’s even an amazing asparagus recipe to impress your dinner guests and in my personal opinion the best risotto recipe ever.

Oh how I missed traveling during that pandemic time. I live a 1 hour drive away from the Italian border and during the pandemic not driving to Italy for a day trip felt like damnation. So what’s the next best thing to do when I’m not allowed to travel? Getting all the foreign dishes and flavors into my kitchen of course.

That perfect risotto recipe with its simple ingredients combines everything I love: green asparagus (omg so good- favorite food) and creamy decadent parmesan risotto. This is a combo made in food heaven. In my opinion it’s one of the best crowd-pleasing meals.

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The ingredients:

risotto rice: short grain rice is what you need.
olive oil extra virgin
homemade chicken stock. But you can use store bought one as well.
shallots
white wine. when I measure the white wine for the risotto I always pour myself a glass of wine too. Preferably sauvignon blanc .
vermouth: good value for money brands are Martini & Rossi Extra Dry, Noilly Prat original dry (thats the one I use ), Dolin Vermouth de Chambery Dry
lemon zest: make sure you use organic products
green asparagus
grated parmesan cheese. make sure to use a good quality parmesan and grate it before adding it to the risotto.
unsalted butter
heavy cream
black pepper and salt for seasoning.

Creamy spring risotto with green asparagus and vermouth – Whats important !

This is a classic risotto recipe which has a very creamy risotto texture. The vermouth , lemon zest and the asparagus gives this classic Italian rice dish a beautiful twist which makes it a perfect spring dish for your dinner table and one of these fabulous risotto recipe ideas.😊

First step: I always prepare all my ingredients in advance . There is nothing more annoying when I have to search for the ingredients like a hectic little hen during the cooking and eventually burn the rice. Nobody wants that.
I’m roasting the risotto rice for a couple of minutes with the minced shallots in olive oil over medium heat until the grains of rice are golden brown. Because that way it already releases some of its flavors and it starts fuming heavenly.
Stir the rice constantly with a wooden spoon.
When the risotto rice starts to smell I add the vermouth .
I’m using vermouth together with a dry white wine. It adds more rich flavor to the risotto and the asparagus.
Don’t be afraid of the added alcohol for the declacing. The alcohol vaporizes in the process and only leaves that amazing flavor. Promised.
I don’t add all of the hot stock at once. I add some of the soup and let it get soaked by the risotto and then I add some more cups of broth and let it get soaked again and so on.
Let the rice cook on a low simmer .
Of course you can use your own homemade stock. Use chicken broth or vegetable broth whatever you prefer.
Yes you definitely need all that butter, cream and parmesan cheese. Be my guest to add more cheese if you feel like it.
The vegetable stock is an about thing. Maybe your risotto rice brand will need more or less soup then I wrote in my recipe. When the rice is AL DENTE, the Risotto is ready for the finishing.

The history of risotto

The story of risotto began in the 14th century B.C., when the Arabs brought rice to Sicily and Spain during their rule. Italy was the ideal place to grow short-grain rice due to the humid weather and abundant flat land. As a result, rice became a main part of Italian food culture.

Valerius, a young apprentice, is believed to be the creator of risotto Milanese . In 1574, he was put in charge of making the stained-glass window that was to adorn the Cathedral Duomo Di Milano. While he worked, many of the townspeople made fun of him, giving credit to the herb saffron for the beautiful colors showcased in his artwork. As a result, Valerius became angry and devised a plan of retaliation. During his master’s wedding, he added an excessive amount of saffron to the rice being served as the main dish. He hoped his action would ruin the festivities, but instead the rice received great reviews, launching risotto into culinary fame.

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What ist the perfect risotto rice.

To find the perfect risotto rice, it is useful to study the consistency and cooking behavior of the different types of rice. Basically, in Italy, you cook the creamiest risotto with Arborio rice, Carnaroli rice and Vialone nano rice. All three are a starchy variety of rice and have a high starch content.

What to do with leftover-risotto rice.

My favorite recipe including leftover-risotto is Arancini . Arancinis are rice balls made of leftover-risotto rice stuffed with cheese , covered in bread crumbs and fried to golden perfection. This is so tasty and delicious .

How to store risotto.

While risotto is at its best when it’s fresh, if you do happen to have leftover, it will be fine in the refrigerator. The risotto will thicken because of the rice’s starch. Just store the risotto in an airtight container up to 5 days in your refrigerator. If your risotto happens to contain meat, store it up to 3 days in your refrigerator.

How to reheat risotto.

For every cup of risotto add 1/4 cup of hot broth and bring everything to a boil on the stove in a pot large enough to fit the risotto. Stir it for a few minutes until the rice warms up. If the risotto is still quite thick, you can add a splash or two more broth, as needed, to loosen it up.

Oh and before I forget it, this is a vegetarian, gluten free recipe. Not bad right? My sister and I mostly try to do without the meat. Mostly because we try to decrease our CO2 imprint in this world. I hope you’ll give this risotto recipe a go. Maybe for your next family dinner.

Make this recipe vegan

You can easily substitute the butter for a vegan plant based butter, add some vegan cream instead of the normal one and leave out the parmesan cheese and add 1-2 tsp yeast flakes. And voilá it’s vegan. One of the greatest asparagus recipes ever 😉.

Warm Vacation hugs, yours truly

Nina ❤️

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