Name: Risotto alla sbirraglia (Rice with Chicken and Veal)
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: Italy
Ingredients: 1 chicken, about 3 pounds, with giblets; 6 tablespoons unsalted butter; 1 celery stalk, chopped; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 3 cups Italian short-grain rice; 3½ quarts water, or half each water and chicken stock; ½ cup dry white wine; Grated Parmesan cheese for serving; Chicken neck, wings, back, gizzard, and heart; 1 yellow onion, chopped; Salt and freshly ground black pepper; 1 carrot, peeled and chopped; 6 ounces veal, finely chopped or ground

Preparation info

Serves
6

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Italian Slow and Savory

By Joyce Goldstein

Published 2004

About

This hearty dish, which takes its name from sbirri, a longtime pejorative for police, reportedly fueled the officers sufficiently to keep them awake on their watch. Nowadays in the Veneto, the term sbirraglia is synonymous with rice cooked with chicken. This recipe is from Padua, where the dish is made two different ways. In one version, the chicken is cut up and boiled to make a stock and to cook the meat. (If you opt to make the chicken stock with the pieces of chicken, ask