Master Risotto Like a Pro Chef with This Essential Step!

Whenever you whip up a homemade risotto, it seems to take forever! However, cooking rice shouldn’t really eat into your time that much. According to Simone Zanoni, the Italian chef at George, the restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris, it typically takes just about 15 minutes from when you add the first ladle of broth to the rice. But, he notes, there’s a crucial initial step that many tend to overlook.

For many, the process of making risotto starts when the first ladle of broth hits the rice. But in truth, it begins slightly earlier. As Chef Simone Zanoni demonstrates in an Instagram video, you should always start making risotto with a “dry” pan. Initially, toast the rice in the pan with a pinch of salt and a small knob of butter. This should take about 1 to 2 minutes, he mentions, just enough to make the rice translucent. Then, deglaze the pan with a good splash of white wine. However, Zanoni warns, make sure the liquid has completely evaporated before moving on to the next step: adding the broth. Only then do you start timing the cooking process: from the moment the first ladle of broth is poured over the rice, count 15 to 18 minutes. But here’s a tip: “Contrary to popular belief, the rice needs to cook quickly, it should boil to release starch,” explains Zanoni. So no gentle simmering on low heat; it’s crucial that the burner is on high throughout the cooking process, he advises.

Finally, one last piece of advice, and it’s an important one: once the rice is cooked, let it sit for a minute or two. Allow it to cool down to around 70/80°C before stirring in the butter and grated parmesan vigorously off the heat, Zanoni suggests. It’s only by doing this that you’ll achieve a truly creamy risotto. Now it’s your turn to try!