Lemon Chicken Risotto

I am very enthused these days; maybe it’s the festive xmasý spirit or that I can see some changes on the blog or maybe it is just the end of the year. A year that has more or less been good; good is an understatement, I should say fabulous. Yes, there have been changes- big changes- and hiccups, but overall, it has been quite nice. Touche’…  Since I have been feeling satisfied with myself, I have also decided not to work much anymore till the 1^st now. That’s my treat to myself; of course I have to go to work for one more day this week, but that will be my last working day for the year! Instead, I had decided to focus on my energies on making one complex dish for Ak, before I signed off the blog for the year. Since Ak was the one who initiated this whole blog, and set it up to make me actually do it, I thought I had to do something fancy, and unexpected. Hence- the risotto. Now, SC, SG and PM are aware of the tomato and basil risotto (and i think i have very good reviews from them :p and i owe them one again!), that I think I have managed to cook reasonably, quite a few times, but I hadn’t really tried a complex recipe. I remembered Ak ‘looooving’ the Lemon Chicken Risotto, sometime when we were out for Dinner, and thought maybe this could be ‘the unpredicted one’. 

                Risottos are considered to be complicated; because it’s very easy to overcook or under cook. Also, the time taken to cook it, is considerably more than an average meal, since it included just standing and watching, refilling with stock and then waiting again for it to cook a little more. I have always been very skeptical of cooking a risotto, because no matter how many times you have made one before, one could still easily go wrong. To prevent that from happening, I thought I should use a tried and tested recipe, since I was also going to add chicken. My first halt was a cookbook on Italian cooking- Nothing; and then began my search online. I found a lemon risotto, a prawn risotto, a chicken risotto, an asparagus risooto, but NOT a lemon chicken Risotto. I searched keenly, but to no avail, since most recipes I found did either not have wine or no lemon or no chicken. I now had newfound regard for the Lemon Chicken Risotto; it seemed like a rare, unusual recipe. I returned to one of my favourite cooks, Nigella, and used the recipe for a Lemon risotto as a base which I planned to tweak (the original can be found here). Even though I reduced the quantities a bit, this recipe is definitely for 3 and not for 2!

                 The Risotto was a winner. Ak was ‘impressed’, so much so, that he brought out some wine in order to commemorate. In this wonderfully cold weather, this surely was more than just comfort food.

p.s. A tip: The recipe does take about 45 minutes to cook. I would suggest, keep a snack handy, for one would surely feel hungry while standing there, watching it cook. We had some magnificent Cranberry Goats Cheese, which was sent by SIL- Totally festive, and delectable. Thanks for the Xmas Goodies!

p.p.s I am not much of an egg person, especially when the yolk is used uncooked. Therefore, I skipped the Egg from the recipe. Feel free to use it though. Also, I skipped the celery, since I had run out of it!

For the Risotto;

250 g Risotto rice (arbario)

1 Chicken Breast

1 lt Stock (chicken is preferred, but vegetarian would do)

1 cup wine

4 Cloves of Garlic (finely chopped) 

1 Onion (finely chopped) 

1 Spring Onion (finely chopped) – optional

1 Tablespoon Butter

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

4 tablespoons cream

Juice of Half a Lemon

Zest of Half a Lemon

A handful of Rocket Leaves (finely chopped) 

3 Table spoons Grated Parmesan  cheese

Salt/ Pepper/ Thyme

For the stock, slice the chicken into smaller pieces (about 1/4"), in about a litre of water, along with some salt and pepper till the chicken gets almost cooked. Sieve the chicken pieces, using the water for the stock. Add a vegetarian stock cube to the water, and about another cup of water and let this stock be on simmer.

         In a separate bowl, add the cream to the lemon zest, pepper, 1 Tablespoon parmesan Cheese and thyme.

        Heat the oil and sauté the onion (excluding the spring onion) on medium heat, until it starts turning golden. Then, add the garlic and after about a minute, add the spring onion. Leave it on for about another minute, and then add the butter till it melts and finally add the Rice. Toss the rice in the pan, stirring until it gets completely coated with the butter mixture. Wait till the rice slowly changes color to a darker white, before finally adding the wine. Stir again, and wait till the wine gets absorbed. Add some salt and pepper. Once the wine is absorbed, add a cup of the hot stock, and stir, waiting for the stock to be absorbed. Repeat this process, and add the lemon juice. Keep adding the stock, and waiting for it to be absorbed until the stock gets finished, or the rice is cooked, becoming slightly creamier and al dente. While doing this, keep tasting for salt, and adding a little bit each time as required. Then, add the cheese, and once the risotto is cooked, remove from heat, and add the cream mixture, stirring to get a smooth, creamy risotto.

Mix in some of the Rocket, and use the rest for garnishing. Serve with some toasted bread.