Barolo Risotto

History & Background

Born in the Langhe in the 19th century, when cooks began using local wines with rice to bring out their tannic structure. It became a nobility dish in the Savoy kitchens, the symbol of where Piedmontese rice meets Nebbiolo.

Ingredients for 4

• 320g Carnaroli rice
• ½ bottle of Barolo (or structured Nebbiolo) at room temperature
• 1L hot beef broth
• 1 shallot
• 60g butter for the soffritto
• 60g cold butter for the mantecatura
• 80g grated Parmigiano Reggiano 24 months
• Salt, fresh-ground black pepper

Method

1. Finely chop the shallot and sweat it with half the butter in a heavy pan.
2. Toast the rice 2–3 minutes, until the grains gleam.
3. Deglaze with 2 ladles of Barolo and let the alcohol evaporate completely.
4. Continue alternating hot broth and Barolo, a ladle at a time, for 16–18 minutes.
5. Adjust salt halfway through cooking.
6. Turn off heat and rest for one minute.
7. Manteca off the heat with cold butter and Parmigiano.
8. Serve with a grinding of fresh black pepper.

Wine pairing

The same Barolo used for cooking, with a few more years on it. Alternatively, a good-structured Barbera d'Alba.

Common mistakes

• Using a too-young, tannic Nebbiolo: makes the risotto astringent.
• Pouring all the wine at once: rice boils instead of toasting and loses structure.
• Cheap Parmigiano: needs 24–30 months to stand up to the wine.