Lip-smackingly good. Simple to make but gifts you half an hour when you can’t do anything but stir, patiently and calmly. That’s got to be good for your soul, and so is eating it. Feeds 4.
- 1 butternut squash
- 1 tsp dried oregano (or ½ tsp dried sage)
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp veg oil
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 120g smoked pancetta or bacon, cut into little cubes
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 280g risotto rice
- 250ml white wine
- 800ml chicken stock
- 30g parmesan, grated
- Squeeze of lemon
- Salt and black pepper
- Heat the oven to 180C fan (200 C)
- Peel and de-seed the squash, cutting the flesh into small cubes (keep them bite-sized, around 2cm)
- Tip the squash onto a large baking tray in a single layer. Add the oil, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix together with your hands to coat the squash
- Roast for 30-40 mins until soft and brown round the edges
- When there’s about 20 mins to go on the squash, start the risotto
- Heat the chicken stock in a pan next to where you’re going to cook the risotto. Just a simmer is fine. If it boils, turn it down or off
- In a large, heavy-handed saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat and then fry the pancetta cubes until they’re golden
- Add the onion and garlic and turn the heat down. Cook until soft, around 5-8 mins
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and pour in the rice
- Turn it over in the buttery, bacony onions for a minute. You’ll see the edges of the rice go clear and you’ll hear it crackle
- Pour in the wine and stir in. It will disappear almost immediately
- Add a ladleful of chicken stock and stir in. Keep stirring constantly, moving the rice around and getting all the way into the corners. As the stock disappears into the rice – so you can draw the spoon across the bottom of the pan and it leaves a clear line for a moment – add more stock a ladle at a time
- Keep the heat medium-high, and keep stirring and adding stock until the rice is cooked. If you run out of stock, just use water from a freshly boiled kettle. It will take roughly 20 mins. Don’t stop stirring!
- Turn off the heat. Stir in the roast butternut squash, parmesan, lemon and a bunch of black pepper. Stick the lid on and leave alone for 5 mins. Check for seasoning and add salt if needed. The stock, bacon and cheese can be quite salty so you may not need it. The texture of the cooked rice should be firm and a bit chewy, but not chalky. The sauce should be rich, coating the grains. And the risotto should be loose enough to spread into the bowl. It shouldn’t sit there in a stodgy lump, but spread out oozily. If its too thick, add a bit of boiled water and stir in
- Serve immediately, with a waft of chopped parsley on top if you like.
If you want to make the dish vegetarian, just leave out the bacon and add some toasted pine nuts at the end.
Sophie cooks 