Delicious UK - (09)September 2020

deliciousmagazine.co.uk 73

make it special.

Ithinkclassicrisottoisverysimpleandabsolutelybeautiful

ifperfectlymade.However, ifyouwanttoenjoyitwithfriends

youhavetobetiedtothekitchenthroughoutthewhole

procedure.Thefollowingrecipewasdevisedwiththatinmind.

WhentherecipefirstappearedI wasseverelycriticised

bythepurists:howcouldI evencallita risotto?Yetifthe

proofofthepuddingreallyisintheeating,that’swhatmade

ita greathit.Therewasalsoa smallbonus.Myfavourite

ItaliancookerywriterAnnaDelContetoldmethatinLiguria

innorthernItalytheydohaveanoven-baked version called

‘arrosto’,sominewasnottotallyinauthenticafterall.

For 50 yearsI havealwaysboughtmydriedporcinimushroomsfrommyfavourite

Italiandeli,Camisa(camisa.co.uk– theonlineoperationismanagingtooperate as

normal in these trying times). All their products are the very best quality.

NEXT

MONTH

Deliaturnsher

focustored

cabbage

Oven-bakedwild

mushroomrisotto

wateroverthem.

SERVES 6 AS A STARTER

INGREDIENTS

• 10gdriedporcinimushrooms


• 225gfreshdark-gilled
  mushrooms


• 60gbutter


• 1 mediumonion,finelychopped


• Italianarborioricemeasuredto
  the175ml level in a measuring
  jug


• 150mldrymadeira


• 2 leveltablespoonsfreshgrated
  parmigianoreggiano,plus50g
  extra,shavedintoflakes with
  apotatopeeler


• Saltandfreshly milled black
  pepper


• Preheattheoven to 150°C,
  gas mark 2

EQUIPMENT

• Youwillneedanovenproofdish,
  approximately23cmsquare,5cm
  deep with a 1.5 litre capacity

METHOD
Firstofallyouneedtosoakthe
driedporcinimushroomsandtodo
this,youplacethemina jugora
bowl and pour 570ml of boiling
PORTRAIT: TREVOR LEIGHTON. FOOD PHOTOGRAPH: PETER KNAB

Thenjustleavethemtosoakand

softenforhalfanhour.Meanwhile,

chopthefreshmushroomsinto

1cmchunks– nottoosmall,asthey

shrinkdownquitea bitinthe

cooking.Nowmeltthebutterin

a mediumsaucepan,addtheonion

andletit cookovera gentleheatfor

about5 minutes,thenaddthefresh

mushrooms,stirwellandleaveon

onesidewhileyoudealwiththe

porcini.Whentheyhavehadtheir

half-hoursoak,placea sieveover

a bowl,linethesievewitha sheet

ofkitchenpaperandstrainthe

mushrooms,reservingtheliquid.

Squeezeanyexcessliquidoutof

them,thenchopthemfinelyand

transfertothepantojointheother

mushrooms and the onion.

Keeptheheatlowandlettheonions

andmushroomssweatgentlyand

releasetheirjuices– whichwilltake

about 20 minutes.Meanwhile,put

thedishintheoventowarm.Now

addthericeandstirit aroundtoget

a goodcoatingofbutter,thenadd

theMadeira,followedbythe

strainedmushroomsoakingliquid.

Adda levelteaspoonofsaltand

somefreshlymilledblackpepper,

stirandbringuptosimmering

point,thentransferthewholelot

from the pan to the warmed dish.

Stironce,thenplaceit onthecentre

shelfoftheovenwithoutcovering.

Seta timerandgiveit 20minutes

exactly.Afterthat,gentlystirinthe

gratedparmigianoreggiano,turning

thericegrainsover.Nowput

thetimeronagainandgiveit

a further 15 minutes,thenremove

fromtheovenandputa clean

teaclothoverit whileyouinvite

everyonetobeseated.Like

soufflés,risottoswon’twait,so

servepresto,prontoonwarmed

platesandsprinklewiththe

shavings of parmigiano reggiano.

Recipe:©DeliaSmith1995,Delia

Smith’sWinterCollection, published

byBBCBooks.

FormoreDeliarecipesandcookery

schoolvideos– includinghowtomake

oven-bakedwildmushroom risotto –

visit deliaonline.com