Lemon Parmesan Risotto With Asparagus
Creamy lemon parmesan risotto is a perfect comfort food meal that is full of flavor from lemon zest and juice, onions, garlic, parmesan cheese, and warm broth. It's the perfect side dish for chicken, steak or salmon. While it can be reserved for special occasions, it really is easy enough for a weeknight meal if you plan ahead.
Risotto is an Italian dish made creamy with the use of butter and parmesan. There is no heavy cream added to risotto, rather the starchiness from the rice, the slow cooking process, and frequent stirring lends to the creaminess of a good risotto.
Risotto can be intimidating to cook because you have to stir frequently and add stock or broth one cup at a time until its fully absorbed, then repeat, but once you get the hang of it, you will feel confident to make risotto while preparing your main entree at the same time.
What's The Best Rice for Risotto?
Arborio rice is used to make risotto. Arborio is a short-grain rice that was originally cultivated in Italy and named after the area where it originated. Today arborio rice is also grown in the United States. Arborio rice is short and slightly oval-shaped with a pearly white exterior.
The production of arborio rice uses less milling than long-grain rice, which helps the arborio rice retain more of its natural starch content. The starch is released when the rice is cooked, resulting in a firmer, chewier, and creamier rice, which is ideal for risotto.
Ingredients in Lemon Parmesan Risotto
- 6 cups broth (vegetable or chicken), warmed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 shallot or yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups arborio rice
- zest of lemon
- 5 ½ cups broth (vegetable or chicken) at room temperature or warm
- ½ cup white wine
- juice of one lemon
- ½ cup fresh parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper
- 6 asparagus spears, chopped into 1" pieces
- parsley and extra parmesan for garnish
How to Make Perfect Risotto
Heat the broth in a medium pot until simmering. Keep on low heat. This will be used as the liquid for the risotto
In a large Dutch oven or pot heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the shallot or onion and cook (stirring often) until soft about 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about one minute.
Add the arborio rice and the lemon zest to the pot and stir to gently toast the rice for about 2 minutes.
Add the broth to the pot 1 cup at a time, stirring continuously until the rice has absorbed all the broth. Repeat until all the broth has been used. This can take up to 20 minutes.
Add the wine and lemon juice as the last cup of liquid, stirring the rice so that it absorbs the liquid and doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
Stir in the grated parmesan, 2 tablespoons of butter, salt, freshly cracked black pepper to taste, and the chopped asparagus. Let the asparagus cook until heated through about 5-6 minutes.
The consistency should be creamy with a little bite to the risotto, but not crunchy.
Garnish with additional freshly grated parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and fresh chopped parsley.
What to Serve with Lemon Parmesan Risotto
This risotto can be the centerpiece of a meal served with a salad, or you can serve it as a side dish for any chicken, steak, or seafood entree. It pairs well with other dishes that also have bright citrus notes like lemon chicken and lemon dill salmon, and of course, it's a perfect side for pan-seared steak or scallops.
Here are a few suggested pairings.
Seared Scallops in Brown Butter Lemon Caper Sauce
Skillet Creamy Garlic Lemon Chicken Recipe
Lemon Parmesan Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter divided
- 1 shallot or yellow onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups arborio Rice
- zest of lemon
- 5 ½ cups broth vegetable or chicken room temperature or warm
- ½ cup white wine
- juice of one lemon
- ½ cup fresh parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper
- 6 asparagus spears chopped into 1" pieces
- parsely and extra parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the broth in a medium pot over medium heat until simmering. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm. This will be used as the liquid in the risotto.
- In a large Dutch oven or pot heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the shallot or onion and cook (stirring often) until soft about 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about one minute.
- Add the arborio rice and the lemon zest to the pot and stir to gently toast the rice for about 2 minutes. Add the broth to the pot 1 cup at a time, stirring continuously until the rice has absorbed all the broth. Repeat until all the broth has been used. This can take up to 20 minutes. Add the wine and lemon juice as the last cup of liquid, stirring the rice so that it absorbs the liquid and doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Stir in the grated parmesan, 2 tablespoons of butter, salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste and the chopped asparagus. Let the asparagus cook until heated through about 5-6 minutes.
- Taste the rice to see if it's cooked through. If not - feel free to add ½ cup more water if needed. The consistency should be creamy with a little bite to the risotto, but not crunchy.
- Garnish with additional freshly grated parmesan cheese, lemon zest and fresh chopped parsely.
Leave a Reply