Risotto alla crema di scampi

Risotto con crema di Scampi

Prepare time: 30 min
Cook: 2 hrs
Ready in: 2hrs and 30 min
Servings: 4

For the bisque

  • 500 grams scampi/gamberi (good quality, fresh, unpeeled)
  • 1 onion
  • 1 celery stem
  • 1 carrot
  • 120 ml white wine
  • Olive oil
  • Handful of parsley (separate leaves from stems)
  • 4 cloves of garlic (smashed)
  • 500 ml smashed or pureed canned/bottled tomatoes
  • 300 ml water
  • 250 ml cream

For the Risotto

  • 320 grams of risotto, 80 grams a person (preferably carnaroli)
  • 1 shallot finely sliced in cubes
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 100 ml white wine
  • 30 grams butter
  • Salt
  • Chopped parsley leaves


Preparation
The Bisque
Start by cleaning the shrimps, leave the skins and heads apart from the body’s.
Clean all skins of onion, celery and carrots (use a peeler for the carrot and celery).
Cut into small pieces after.

Take a big pot and bring to heat, when hot add all the heads and skins of the prawns (no oil yet). In this way the skins and heads get roasted, for extra flavour. After 5 minutes start adding the olive oil, onion, carrot, celery, some parsley stems and the garlic cloves. Then blush off with white wine, let the wine evaporate a bit. Then start adding the tomatoes. Leave the bisque simmer for 1,5 hour with a lid on top.

Preparation for the risotto
Meanwhile you can start chopping the shallot and garlic in small pieces. Wash and dry the parsley. Take the tops of the parsley and cut very small.
Then in a pan start pan frying the body’s of the prawns with some olive oil and 1 smashed garlic. We keep them simple, since the risotto has so much flavour already!

Finishing the bisque
After 1,5 hours take the bisque from the heat and start blending until smooth. Then use a sieve and put on top of a bowl. Start adding the bisque and use a ladle to push the bisque true the sieve. Until you only have the concentrated bisque left in the bowl. This is the liquid that we will use for  the risotto. Bring the bisque on low heat, add the water and the cream and leave simmer.

Risotto
Take a big pot/wide pan and add a bit of olive oil, followed by the shallots and garlic. After a few minutes add the rice and stir until the rice is glazy. Then add the white wine and stir slowly until it’s evaporated. From now on keep stirring now and then, bit by bit start adding the bisque, stir until the rice takes all the juices and repeat again with adding the bisque, stir slowly “con calma” Repeat for 16/18 minutes depending on the brand/type of rice that you choose.

Finishing touch
Taste the rice, check if the outside is soft but there’s still a tiny bite inside, if so… perfetto! Start adding the butter and fresh parsley (leave some for plating though).  Mix and leave another 2 minutes with the lid on top.

Serving
This delicious recipe deserves a beautiful plate. So take to most beautiful plate you have, preferably flat. Take a big spoon of risotto and drop on the plate. Flat your hand underneath the plate and smash it, so the risotto swims in it’s own juices.
Finish with extra parsley and the gamberi on top!

Buon appetito!

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