In any area with a tremendous amount of water there will be catfish, and this is a tasty way to use them in a risotto; the recipe is from Ivano Remondini, of Castel D'Ario, in the bassa Veronese. To serve 6 you'll need:
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (500 g) short-grained rice, ideally Vialone Nano
- 8 medium-sized catfish
- 1 stick celery, minced
- A small onion, minced
- 8 ounces (200 g, or a cup) unsalted butter
- Peanut oil for frying
- 2 quarts (2 l) fish or vegetable broth (bouillon will work in a pinch)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 bunch parsley, minced
- Flour and salt
Preparation:
Clean the catfish if need be, dredge them in the flour, salt them, and fry them so their flesh is crunchy. Pick two of them, bone them, and shred the flesh into a bowl. Take a couple of spoonfuls of the frying oil and sauté the celery, onion and garlic until the onion begins to color, then add the shredded fish and the butter, and cook the mixture for about ten minutes, checking the seasoning, and adding the parsley at the end of the cooking.
In the meantime take a pot with a lid, bring the broth to a boil, and add the rice. Cook, covered, for about 8 minutes, then drain it and return it to the pot (reserve the broth when doing this, and taste a grain of rice; if it is very far form the al dente stage add a couple of tablespoons of liquid when you return the rice to the pot). Cover the rice tightly and let it sit for 15 minutes, then stir in the fish sauce. Serve the rice with the fried fish.
In the meantime take a pot with a lid, bring the broth to a boil, and add the rice. Cook, covered, for about 8 minutes, then drain it and return it to the pot (reserve the broth when doing this, and taste a grain of rice; if it is very far form the al dente stage add a couple of tablespoons of liquid when you return the rice to the pot). Cover the rice tightly and let it sit for 15 minutes, then stir in the fish sauce. Serve the rice with the fried fish.
