A simple sausage risotto made (ideally) with sausages from Mantova. In their absence make this sausage risotto with mild Italian sausages, not the more spicy variety. To serve 6:
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (500 g) Carnaroli or Vialone Nano rice
- 2/3 pound (300 g) mild sausage
- 1/2 cup (100 g ) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 quarts (1.5 l) simmering chicken broth
- A leek, the green top discarded, roots trimmed, and the remainder minced
- 1 cup (50 g) freshly grated Parmigiano
- Salt & freshly ground white pepper
Preparation:
Skin the sausages and crumble them.Sauté the minced leek over a low flame until it is just golden, then add the crumbled sausage meat and continue cooking until it too is lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove the mixture with a slotted spoon, turn the heat up slightly, and stir the rice into the drippings. Continue cooking for several minutes, stirring constantly lest the rice stick. Return the sausage mixture to the pot and begin adding the broth, a ladle at a time.
When the rice reaches the al dente stage turn off the flame, stir in most of the cheese, dust with a grating of white pepper, and serve with the remaining cheese on the side.
As a variation, stir a brimming cup of warmed red wine into the rice before you begin adding the broth.
The wine? I might consider a good quality Lambrusco here, for example Medici Ermete's Concerto.
