Red Wine - Soyrizo Risotto
I stumbled across this Jamie Oliver recipe somehow after also scoring some Fieldroast Sausages. My mind immediately put two and two together and thought, HEY, I bet I could make this recipe with vegetarian substitutes and it would still have a pretty full flavor. Checks out.
There are so many new products available since I originally became vegetarian 20 years ago. It also helps that I live in California, land of health food products on every corner. It's so lovely to be able to experiment with so many kinds of options that are available just about anywhere these days.
This recipe could also easily be made vegan by leaving out the Parmesan cheese and adding in Nutritional Yeast. If you need it to be Gluten Free and I know that the Trader Joe's brand of Soyrizo is also Gluten Free.
I wound up making this Risotto on a Saturday Night when it was cold and rainy and decided to stay in for the evening. I turned on some dancy music and started cooking. This is a very cozy meal and was hearty enough to be served on it's own. I also thought about tucking this one away in case I ever wound up having the opportunity for a romantic evening at some point in the future.
Ingredients:
Olive Oil
2 shallots
1 clove of garlic
1 link of either Crumbled Soyrizo or Fieldroast Chipotle Veggie Sausage
1/2 a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley (Stalks and leaves used separately)
1 liter of organic vegetable stock
14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 3/4 cup Risotto Rice
1 cup Red Wine
3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
Directions:
1. Peel and finely chop the shallots and garlic, finely chop the chipotle veggie sausage if not using Soyrizo, then pick and finely chop the parsley leaves, finely chopping the stalks.
2. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a wide, shallow pan. Add the parsley stalks, shallot, garlic and Soyrizo to the heated oil and cook over a medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until the shallot is softened and the Soyrizo is beginning to crisp.
3. In another pan, heat the stock with the tinned tomatoes. Add the rice to the shallot mixture and stir to coat the grains. Cook over a high heat for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the grains have cracked and are slightly translucent at the tips, then pour in the red wine.
4. Stir well and cook until almost all the wine has evaporated. Add the hot stock and tomato mixture, ladle by ladle, stirring well with each addition, and only adding more when the previous ladle is almost fully absorbed. You may not need all of the mixture, or you may need to top it up with a little water.
5. The rice should be tender but with a little bite in the middle. When it’s cooked, add one last ladle of liquid.
6. Finely grate the Parmesan, then add to the pan with some seasoning. Stir well, take off the heat and cover. Leave for 5 minutes or so before stirring again, tasting and adjusting the seasoning, if necessary.
7. Serve topped with extra grated Parmesan and the chopped parsley leaves.
