INSTANT RISOTTO
Serves 6
While I was working at Charlie Trotter’s, my future wife, Katie, came in as a stagiaire—a chef trainee on the line. She chose to work in my station and totally impressed me. After we started dating, Katie invited me over for dinner. I couldn’t recall ever having been invited over to someone’s house for a dinner date—nobody ever wants to cook for professional cooks. Katie made red wine risotto for me, with this great bottle of Italian wine. It was perfect. I’d never seen cooking that good at home; it was easily the best meal of my life up to that point. That meal was one of the inspirations for this dish.
The other inspiration was Ferran Adrià’s puffed rice paella, in which he served seasoned Kellogg’s Rice Krispies alongside an intense seafood broth and several different garnishes focused around shrimp. We make our own puffed rice and serve it with sautéed Brussels sprouts, English peas, earthy mushrooms, and just a touch of white cheddar. An intense garlic broth is poured over the rice just before serving. It’s an amazing play of textures and flavors that explode in your mouth. This is a wonderful dish for spring and remains the best risotto I’ve ever made.
GARLIC BROTH:
1000 grams half-and-half
40 grams shallot
30 grams garlic
5 grams thyme sprigs
5 grams salt
15 grams fresh lemon juice
PUFFED RICE:
200 grams uncooked converted rice (such as Uncle Ben’s)
400 grams water
850 grams (1 quart) canola oil for frying
1 gram salt
ENGLISH PEAS:
100 grams shucked green peas
10 grams unsalted butter
Salt for seasoning
Freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
BRUSSELS SPROUTS:
8 Brussels sprouts
10 grams canola oil
50 grams water
Salt for seasoning
MUSHROOMS:
3 king trumpet mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
3 maitake mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Salt for seasoning
10 grams canola oil
25 grams unsalted butter
TO FINISH:
42 grams aged white cheddar, grated
Grated zest of 1 lemon
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
Dehydrator (optional)
GARLIC BROTH:
Put the half-and-half, shallot, garlic, and thyme in a saucepot set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Season the broth with the salt and lemon juice. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot and keep warm until ready to plate.
PUFFED RICE:
Put the rice and water in a medium saucepot set over medium heat and bring to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 20 minutes, until all the water is absorbed.
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Spoon the cooked rice onto the prepared sheet pan and spread it in an even layer. Let cool to room temperature.
Line a dehydrator tray or sheet pan with a silicone mat and spread the rice out on it in an even layer so that every rice grain is separate. Dehydrate at 90°F for 12 hours. Alternatively, you can place it in the oven on the lowest setting until completely dry, 8 to 10 hours.
Preheat a deep fat fryer or pot of oil on the stove to 400°F.
Line a sheet pan with paper towels. Use a small strainer to spoon 30 grams of rice at a time into the hot oil and fry for 30 seconds, until the rice is puffed and light. Transfer the puffed rice to the prepared sheet pan and continue frying until all the rice has been puffed. Season with salt and reserve in an airtight container until ready to plate.
ENGLISH PEAS:
Set a large pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Prepare an ice bath. Blanch the peas for 30 seconds in the boiling water and transfer immediately to the ice bath. Drain the peas and store in a covered container in the refrigerator until ready to serve, up to 24 hours.
Just before serving, put the peas in a small pot with the butter and warm up over low heat. Add salt and pepper to taste and keep warm until ready to plate.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS:
Trim the roots of the Brussels sprouts and then quarter them. Put the oil in a large sauté pan set over high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the Brussels sprouts and sauté for 2 minutes, until they are golden brown. Add the water to steam the sprouts. Continue cooking until all of the water evaporates, and the sprouts are completely tender. Season with salt to taste and keep warm until ready to plate.
MUSHROOMS:
Season the mushrooms with the salt. Put the canola oil in a large sauté pan and set over high heat. Once the oil is hot, reduce the heat to medium, and sauté the mushrooms for 3 to 5 minutes, until golden brown. Add the butter to the pan and turn off the heat. Stir to glaze the mushrooms with the butter. Keep the mushrooms warm until ready to serve.
TO FINISH:
If necessary, put the Garlic Broth in a medium saucepot set over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Put 100 grams of Puffed Rice in each of 6 bowls. Add 3 pieces of Brussels Sprouts, 3 slices of king trumpet mushrooms, 2 slices of maitake mushrooms, 20 grams of English Peas, 7 grams of white cheddar cheese and 3 grams of grated lemon zest to the Puffed Rice. Pour the Garlic Broth into a pitcher. Serve the bowls and pour 150 grams of Garlic Broth into each bowl at the table. Instruct the guests to stir everything together to create an instant risotto and enjoy.
