May Sound Pedestrian

‘Risotto’ used to be a standard part of our diet when I was growing up. It was a portmanteau dish which involved frying up a few leftovers, perhaps opening a can or two and then adding some rice, which had usually been cooked beforehand. It was somewhat stodgy but perfectly acceptable, better than the dreaded ‘rissoles’ – don’t ask – but not a patch on toad-in-the-hole.

A few smart London trattorias in the 1960s put us right about risotto, but it was at least another decade before most of us became aware of what a proper one should consist of. It was all about the rice. The other ingredients were just flavouring. Moreover, the rice had to be lovingly turned in butter and onions and then stirred constantly while hot stock was slowly added so that the starch from the rice formed a soupy emulsion with the stock.