Very Fishy Risotto

Here's another recipe that came out of that glorious summer's day I spent in Brighton, in the heady hot days of early April.  This one might be hazy on the details - I took photos at the time but didn't write anything down.  Bear with me though, I'm sure we can salvage something useful.

It's definitely a one-pot meal too, a factor that's swum back into focus for the first time since student days after my week without gas, relying on the borrowed camping stove, and that text from my sister asking for help as she doesn't have an oven at the moment.

Here goes then, recipe writing from vague memories and photographs - it's a new extreme sport!

Judging by the photos this is a bit of a production - I reckon there are about six portions from the quantities shown here.  Just cut it down for fewer people - just a leek instead of a leek and an onion, skip the mushrooms, just use the crab and skip the anchovies and crayfish...

For a big feast though, start with an onion, a leek and some mushrooms.  These look like oyster mushrooms to me, which suggests they were on special offer in Waitrose at the time - they are a useful addition to a seafood dish though as they do have a seafoody taste about them.

Chop them up and set them cooking over a low heat - as low as your stove will go - in a pan with a knob of butter and a generous splash of olive oil.

While that's going on, prepare a litre of vegetable stock from a cube in a measuring jug.  You won't be using all of it, but it's better to have too much ready than too little.

After five minutes or so the veg will be nice and soft so in goes the rice.  Use risotto rice (often labelled arborio rice).  Packet instructions generally suggest 75g per person, but we find that far too much - 50g per person is plenty.  On this occasion I was cooking with the intention of making leftovers so I think I used about 200g with the intention of making dinner for two, then lunch for two the next day.

Don't let your attention wander from the pan at all at this point or the rice will burn and you'll have to start again.  Keep the rice moving around in the pan until it's all coated in oil/butter but not brown or burned at all.

Now add a splash of stock - not enough to cover everything, but maybe half-way up.

Now for the fish.  I brought the dressed crab back from Brighton: it was only a fiver, which is a fantastic price for a fresh, locally caught dressed crab, and it came with the white and dark meat.  I had a tin of anchovies in the cupboard and felt that they would make a good addition in lieu of salt (you can use the oil they're stored in as cooking oil in the first step, too) and the crayfish tails came from Lidl.  I know, I know - local, under-the-arches fish suppliers and discount supermarket in the same blog post?  But as it happens Lidl do quite a decent line in MSC certified fish products for not very much money at all.

My number one alternative to shellfish would be smoked fish for a dish like this - top quality undyed smoked haddock from the supermarket fish counter with the skin removed and separated into flakes, for example.

Chuck your choice of fish in and give it all a stir.

Now the challenge is to cook your rice properly - the rest will take care of itself.

Risotto rice cooks by absorbing the liquid it's being cooked in.  It takes about 20 minutes (refer to the packet instructions) so the challenge is to add exactly the right amount of stock so that the rice is perfectly cooked at the same moment that there's no more liquid left in the pan.  How much stock is that per gram of rice?  Nobody has any idea so what we do is add stock little by little from that measuring jug.  You won't be using the whole litre - probably about half, in fact - but by making it up you've got as much as you'll need.

It is a slightly labour-intensive way of cooking, adding stock little-by-little and stirring most of the time, so maybe put the TV on loud enough that you can hear it from the kitchen, or start up a talking book on your iPod.  Or do I get bored too easily?

Judging by the photos, I obviously felt this needed a bit more vegetable component, so I chucked some frozen peas in a few minutes before the end of cooking time.

Judging by the pictures, there are about six portions here - just adjust for your numbers.  It's worth making some extra though, as you can turn leftovers into delicious fish cakes the next day.  Just make little cakes in your hands, pressing the risotto firmly together, and dip them first in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.  Shallow-fry for just a few minutes either side and serve with salad.  It's one of those meals where the leftovers are even better than the original dish!