Jamie Oliver’s easy risotto recipe to try this weekend

Without sounding too soppy, a well-made risotto is like a big cuddle from your mum, it just makes you feel good. Follow Jaime Oliver’s easy risotto recipe, which you can easily recreate to add your favourites. His version uses lots of lovely frozen veg.

Creamy and oozy Risotto by Jamie Oliver

Ingredients:

• 1 litre vegetable stock (a stock
  cube is fine)
• 1 onion
• 1 stick of celery
• olive oil
• 2 knobs of unsalted butter
• 300g risotto rice, optional is 125ml white wine
• 300g mixed frozen green veg such as
  spinach, green beans and peas
• 60g freshly grated Parmesan cheese,
  plus extra for sprinkling
• extra virgin olive oil

optional: 1 lemon

1.  Bring the stock to a simmer in a pan on low heat. Peel the onion, trim the celery, then finely chop or coarsely grate them. Put 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 knob of butter, plus the onion and celery into a high-sided pan on low heat. Season lightly with sea salt and black pepper and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the veg is soft but not coloured.
2. Turn up the heat to medium, add the rice and stir for 2 minutes, so it sucks up all the lovely flavour. If using, pour in the wine and stir until absorbed.
3. Add a ladleful of hot stock, stir and wait until it’s been fully absorbed before adding more. Cook for 16 to 18 minutes, adding more stock every minute or so and stirring regularly until the rice is al dente. This means it should be soft and a pleasure to eat, but still holding its shape.
4. About 5 minutes before your rice is ready, stir in the frozen veg to cook through.
5. Now, your risotto needs to be slightly looser than you want it to be, as it will thicken as it sits, so add an extra ladleful of stock. Turn off the heat, stir or beat in the remaining butter and the Parmesan, then season to perfection.
6. Pop the lid on and let it sit for 2 minutes before serving. The most important thing is that the risotto is always oozy.
7. Finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, an extra grating of cheese and, if you’ve got it, a tiny squeeze of lemon juice per portion.