Tomato Risotto is one of my favourite risotti. Here, I’ve taken it up a notch by using a peat-smoked tomato sauce with truffle that lends incredible depth to this classic Italian recipe.
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Christmas Risotto
As Christmas draws near, the air fills with joy, laughter, and the tantalising aroma of festive feasts. This year, I’ve got a little something special for your holiday menu: Christmas Risotto. It’s a dish that’s simple, heartwarming, and brimming with festive cheer – a perfect addition to your Christmas table.
Whether you’re hosting a cosy dinner or looking for an elegant main (or starter), this recipe is sure to impress. With its deep red hue and rich, creamy texture, it’s as much a feast for the eyes as it is for the palate.
So what is this Christmas Risotto? Well, it’s a red coloured, tomato risotto. However, this is not your run of the mill tomato risotto with regular passata. This one, you’re going to be having dreams about!
It has smoky, tangy and earthy flavours. The smoked tomato sauce we’re using lends incredible depth to this Italian classic. So much so that once you’ve tried it, you’ll never go back to regular old tomato sauce or passata.
Peat Smoked Tomato Sauce
Some weeks ago, I was asked to come up with 4 recipes for Peat’d, a company that produces peat-smoked tomato sauces. They recipes were meant for Instagram, so this is not a sponsored post!
Their tomato sauces are like nothing I’ve tasted before; so incredibly complex and smoky, from being infused with peat, a natural, organic layer of soil.
Cold-smoked from sunrise to sunset in their traditional smokehouse, the result is just simply phenomenal. And I knew it would be perfect for this Christmas risotto.
The first recipe I made was for a Spicy & Smoky Shashuka with Merguez. I didn’t get around to posting it here on LinsFood, perhaps I should? But if you do fancy it, you’ll find the recipe on this instagram post.
If you’re not in the UK, and/or can’t get this smoked tomato sauce, you can still make this recipe by adding a teaspoon of sweet smoked paprika.
The other 2 recipes is a vegan green beans recipe based on a Palestinian one, and an Ecuadorian style ceviche. Look out for those in January and February.
Christmas Risotto Recipe
The recipe itself is pretty straightforward. We make it in the exact same way we do most risotti. But instead of stock alone, we add the smoked tomato sauce to the stock, cooking the risotto with the tomato stock.
When it’s done, we top our Christmas risotto with a little bit of parmesan and a light sprinkle of truffle dust for a decadent touch. And finally, with a slice of pan fried fish, which is optional. You can skip the fish if you are doing a vegetarian Christmas or a vegan one.
If you are new to risotto, you may want to check out this post Basic Risotto Recipe. It tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the art of cooking risotto. The history, the science, the reason, the types of rice, etc.
Cheese and Fish in Risotto
Purists will tell you that you never combine seafood and dairy in Italian cooking. More on the basic risotto post. This means that if you’re topping your Christmas risotto with the fish, you should leave off the cheese.
But this is a rule that’s broken more and more with the younger generation, so I don’t shy away from the combination either.
Having said that, I do finish it with olive oil instead of butter for our mantecatura, the final step in cooking a risotto. Read all about it on the basic risotto post here, and see what I’m talking about in the recipe card below.
Make it Vegetarian or Vegan
This is super easy. To turn this into a vegetarian Christmas risotto, just skip the fish and serve it as it is.
To make it vegan, just use vegan parmesan, or any vegan cheese you can find.
If you are into vegan/vegetarian meat alternatives (as my kids are), then I highly recommend frying up some vegan chorizo pieces to top your Christmas risotto. I use vegan chorizo at Christmas because of the vegan and pescatarian family members. And this meat lover loves it!
How to Serve Christmas Risotto
This tomato based risotto brings a touch of Italian flair to your festive spread. The gorgeous red colour echoes the holiday theme, while the creamy, indulgent texture offers comfort during the chilly season.
Best of all, it pairs wonderfully with everything from roasted vegetables to grilled prawns or even turkey leftovers!
In Italy, risotto is usually a primo (first course). In restaurants around the world though, it’s a main. You can pretty much do what you like, depending on how you celebrate Christmas.
And there you go. This Christmas Risotto is more than just a recipe, it’s an experience.
Any question, just drop me a line.
Christmas Risotto Recipe
Ingredients
The Risotto
- 1 jar PEAT'D Smoked Tomato Sauce with Truffle or 300 g/10.5 oz passata + 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
- 1 litre vegetable or chicken stock
- 1 large onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp EV olive oil
- 300 g risotto rice
- 125 ml dry white wine optional
The Fish
- 4 small fillets of Cod with skin on or any white fish
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- Salt
- Pepper
To Finish
- 60 g parmesan cheese
- 1 Tbsp EV olive oil
- Truffle dust
Instructions
Prep Work
- Place your stock and Peat’d Tomato Sauce in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a simmer, then reduce the heat right down and leave it simmering as we are cooking.
- While waiting for the stock, chop the onion and garlic up finely.
- Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper and set aside.
Let's Cook the Risotto
- Heat the olive oil on low heat in a large saucepan and sauté the onions for 2 minutes until softened, stirring regularly to stop them burning.
- Add the garlic, stir for 30 seconds, then add the rice and coat with all that fat, stirring well. Toast the rice for 2 minutes, until the edges turn a little translucent.
- Pour in the wine, increase the heat to medium and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add 2 ladles of the simmering smoky tomato stock and stir gently. Keep stirring regularly until the rice has absorbed the stock. Repeat this process for 15 minutes. You may not use up all the stock.Check your risotto, it should be done at this stage. Is the rice cooked through with just a little bite to it? If not, add 2 more ladles and cook until the stock has been absorbed. And another 2 ladles, if necessary. Now it should be done. Take it off the heat and leave to rest for 2 minutes.
Let's Cook the Fish
- Let’s attend to the fish. About 10 minutes into cooking the risotto, heat 2 Tbsp of vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Place the 4 fish fillets skin side down and cook for 2 – 3 minutes, until you have a golden, crispy skin. Don’t forget the risotto while you’re frying the fish.
- Turn the fish over and cook for another 3 minutes or so until your fish is cooked through. The time will depend on the thickness of your fish. Take them out onto a plate when done, to stop them over cooking.
Time to Dish Up
- Back to the risotto. After the 2-minute rest, add the grated parmesan and 2 Tbsp olive oil and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the parmesan is all blended in. This is called mantecatura and is the final step in cooking risotto, creating that creamy emulsion that the Italians call all’onda.
- Serve the risotto onto 4 plates and sprinkle some truffle dust and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
- Top with a fish each, skin side up and serve immediately.
