Rafael Anton Irisarri has covered a lot of ground with us over the years, including two exclusive mixes (one from his woozy techno alias The Sight Below, and one from the Benoît Pioulard collab Orcas), a personal essay about discovering electronic music vis-a-vis The Orb, and a rebuttal-inspired rundown of 100 crucial ambient records.
Nothing — especially last week’s truly epic Peripeteia LP on Dais — could have prepared us for his latest contribution, though: a hearty round of Risotto alla Irisarri that serves four-to-six people and takes about a half hour (or one spin of Heaven or Las Vegas, a personal fav of the anodyne producer) to make….
INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 large white onion, finely chopped
2 medium portobello mushrooms, finely chopped
1 cup of Arborio rice
1/2 cup of white wine
4 cups of chicken broth (you can sub veggie broth to make it vegetarian)
¼ cup of grated Parmesan cheese (recommended, use to taste)
4 tablespoons of butter
Fresh herbs (we prefer thyme with this recipe)
DIRECTIONS
1. In a heavy 5 qt. sauté pan, add olive oil and sauté onion over medium heat until onion is softened and clear.
2. Add the Arborio rice and sauté 1-2 minutes until rice is coated.
3. Add broth to a 3 qt. saucepan and bring it to a very hot temperature, right before boiling point. (Do not let it boil.)
4. Add the white wine to the rice and stir constantly on medium heat until the wine is absorbed.
5. Add butter to the sauté pan and mix it in.
6. Using a ladle, add the hot broth on the saucepan to the rice, 1 ladle at a time (this is extremely important), stirring after each addition until broth is absorbed. (This is a time-consuming process, do not increase heat to speed it up. Like most good music, it takes time to develop!)
7. After 2 ladles are absorbed, add the chopped portobello mushrooms
8. After all of the liquids are absorbed the risotto should be creamy, add more liquid if a creamier texture is desired. Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese.
9. Serve immediately, preferably paired with a glass of Barolo.
