Scallop Risotto
Scallop Risotto is a quick and easy recipe. With juicy scallops, asparagus and peas in a flavorsome rice base this dish is like fine dining!
Servings: 4
Calories: 797kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon butter unsalted, Note 1
- 12 scallops Note 2
- ¼ teaspoon salt Note 3
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon butter Note 4
- 2 tablespoon olive oil Note 5
- ½ large brown onion skin peeled and finely chopped, Note 6
- 1 tablespoon garlic chunky chopped garlic, minced or 2 fresh garlic cloves finely diced, Note 7
- 2 cups arborio rice Note 8
- ½ cup/125 ml white wine Note 9
- 4 cups/1 litre chicken stock (broth) Note 10
- 1 cup frozen peas Note 11
- 2 bunches baby asparagus ends trimmed, cut into thirds, Note 12
- ½ cup parmesan cheese freshly grated using a micro plane zester, Note 13
To Garnish (optional):
- black pepper
- pecorino romano cheese
Instructions
- Scallops: add the butter (1st lot), scallops, salt and pepper and cook the scallops for 3-4 minutes per side.
- Butter and oil: next without rinsing or cleaning the pan, add the 2nd lot of butter, the olive oil, garlic and onion. Stir to combine and let this mixture cook for 1 minute.
- Rice: next add the arborio rice to the hot pan and stir to allow this to get coated in the butter and oil mixture. Once it has, pour in the white wine and stir to allow it to mix in.
- Chicken stock: next gradually add the chicken stock to the pan, continuing to stir and allowing it to slightly absorb before adding more of it.
- Peas, asparagus and parmesan: next add the frozen peas to the pan and stir, allowing them to defrost and thaw before heating through. Once the peas are cooked (1-2 minutes), add the asparagus, give it a stir to mix it in and allow it to soften (1-2 minutes) then add the parmesan cheese and stir till it is consistently mixed into the risotto.
- Scallops: next add the cooked scallops back to the pan and allow them to heat through.
- To serve: once the scallops have heated through, turn the heat off, give the dish a generous sprinkling with freshly grated parmesan cheese, a touch of black pepper, provide bowls, forks and spoons then head to the table.
Notes
- Note 1 - Butter: we use butter both to cook the scallops and to combine with the oil when cooking the garlic and onion.
- Note 2 - Scallops: you will be able to get these from the delicatessen section of the supermarket or your fish monger. We want scallops with the roe and shell removed. Depending on the size of the scallops, you may want to increase this amount. If using small scallops 24 will work and each person will get 6 scallops. for smaller portions or less scallops per person 12 is the recommended starting point.
- Note 3 - Salt and pepper: we use salt and a little bit of black pepper for seasoning when cooking the scallops.
- Note 4 - Butter: the 2nd amount of butter gets added to the pan when we are adding the oil to cook the garlic and onion.
- Note 5 - Olive oil: we use the oil when cooking the onion and garlic. It plus the butter is the starting point in creating the risotto base.
- Note 6 - Onion: we peel and finely dice ½ a medium sized onion.
- Note 7 - Garlic: we fry a little garlic off on the pan when cooking the onion.
- Note 8 - Arborio rice: this is a special type of risotto rice which is known for being able to absorb liquids. You will find it where the other rice is at the shops and it will be labelled Arborio rice or risotto rice.
- Note 9 - White wine: the wine adds additional flavor to the recipe and is another liquid absorbed by the rice.
- Note 10 - Chicken stock: also known as chicken broth. This liquid gets absorbed by the risotto rice during the cooking process.
- Note 11 - Peas: we use 1 cup of frozen peas in the recipe. We add these 'frozen' to the risotto and let them defrost and cook in the hot pan.
- Note 12 - Asparagus: fresh baby asparagus spears are what you can see in the photo throughout the post. We simply trim the ends and then chop them into thirds.
- Note 13 - Parmesan cheese: freshly grated using a micro plane zester is best.
Nutrition
Calories: 797kcal | Carbohydrates: 107g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 57mg | Sodium: 965mg | Potassium: 1038mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 2436IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 239mg | Iron: 11mg