Italian master chef Giuliano Hazan, author of four cookbooks including "How to Cook Italian" and "Every Night Italian," just returned from his acclaimed cooking school in Italy to teach TODAY viewers how to prepare a proper risotto. Here are two of his delicious recipes.
Recipe: Risotto with porcini mushrooms (on this page) Recipe: Butternut squash risotto (on this page)Put the dried porcini in a bowl, cover with water and soak for at least 15 minutes.
Put the broth in a pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to maintain a very gentle simmer.
While the porcini are soaking, peel and finely chop the onion.
When the porcini are ready, put the onion and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy bottomed braising pan and place over medium high heat. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion turns a rich golden color, which takes about 5 minutes.
While the onion is sautéing, lift the porcini mushrooms out of the water, squeezing the excess back into the bowl; do not discard the water. Rinse the mushrooms under running water, then chop them coarsely. Pour the water they soaked in into a small pot. Be aware that there may be some sand at the bottom of the bowl so pour carefully or strain through a paper towel. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to maintain a very gentle simmer.
Add the chopped porcini to the onion, season with salt, and stir a few times. Add the rice and stir until it is well coated. Add about 1 cup of the hot broth and continue stirring. Add only enough broth to produce the consistency of a rather thick soup and wait until all the liquid is absorbed before adding more. As soon as the water the porcini soaked in is hot, add that instead until you’ve used it all up, then go back to using the broth. Continue until the rice is al dente, which takes 20-25 minutes.
Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter and the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve at once.
Serves four as a main course or six as part of a multi-course Italian meal
Put the onion and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large heavy bottomed pot over medium low heat. Sauté the onion until it turns to a rich golden color.
While the onion is sautéing, remove the rind and the seeds from the squash, then cut it into 3/4 inch cubes. When the onion is ready, add the squash to the pan with about 1/2 cup of water. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the squash is tender, which takes about 10-15 minutes.
While the squash is cooking, heat the broth in a saucepot and keep it at a very low simmer.
When the squash is tender and all the water has evaporated, add the rice and stir until it is well coated. Add about 1 cup of the hot broth and continue stirring. Add only enough broth to produce the consistency of a rather thick soup and wait until all the liquid is absorbed before adding more. Continue until the rice is al dente, which takes 20-25 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped parsley, the grated Parmigiano and the remaining tablespoon of butter. Taste for salt and serve at once.
Serves four to six people
© 2013 NBCNews
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