This risotto with leeks is a simple recipe. Sauté (many) leeks, add the rice and then cook, adding broth as necessary. Finally a little cheese and that’s it! An exquisite dish is ready on the table.
The writer is a leek lover. He has been pampering them for years, always discovering new recipes that enhance their sweet but also aromatic, fresh but – down there, almost imperceptible and yet present – also spicy flavor. So hear me out: this risotto with leeks is simple, quick and easy, but it’s also a real treat. Which also lends itself to many variations, one better than the other.
Below we give some suggestions, without much talk.
Note that, in general, the delicate flavor of leeks is enhanced by the rich complexity of flavors of balsamic vinegar. And since the flavor of this risotto is all linked to the leek, a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar glaze stirred at the end of cooking is fine.
Furthermore, on the Venetian plains there are many who enrich the initial sauté with a little bacon you hate lard chopped and crushed. While in the valleys of the Dolomites there are those who do it by adding a thick slice of Particle Chopped up.
Personally I recommend experimenting with cheeses. Understanding that Grana or Parmesan suits us well, from direct experience. I can recommend replacing the cheese completely.using a good taleggio cheeseeither asiago. In both cases, if you want to go overboard, even accompanied by a finely chopped walnuts.
My friend Ágata, who is nearby, tells me that the risotto with leeks is excellent, without making any further changes to the recipe, even adding one or two envelopes of saffron in the last 5 minutes of cooking. While Marcella suggests doing like a Milanese friend who cooks this risotto with the only cheese Gorgonzola.
- 300 g of rice for risotto
- 400 g of leeks
- 1 clove garlic
- 30 g grated Grana Padano
- 40 grams of butter
- 1 and a half liters of vegetable broth
- Pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Clean the leeks, removing the roots and the toughest or yellowish outer pods. Wash them (very carefully, they often hide dirt between the compact folds of the leaves), dry them and cut them into small pieces.
- Melt the butter with 3 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan, add the crushed garlic clove and let it fry for a couple of minutes. Next we add the leeks and cook with the lid on, over very low heat, for about 25-30 minutes, stirring several times. Be careful with the heat, because the leeks must dry completely without frying. They should not brown: if necessary add a few tablespoons of broth. Halfway through cooking, remove the garlic clove and add a pinch of salt.
- Add the rice, stir for a couple of minutes over moderate heat and then pour in the first ladle of boiling broth. Wait for it to be absorbed by the rice, then, stirring, pour a second saucepan and continue like this, adding boiling broth since the previous one has been absorbed by the rice. At the end of cooking, add the grated cheese, mix well and let your risotto with leeks rest for 2 minutes before serving hot.