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