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Squid,Sun-dried Tomato and Rocket Risotto

This was the first recipe I created that I could properly call my own and it really started off this whole food adventure. It took a few iterations until I was happy with it but it's now something I'm really proud of.

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Like a lot of my recipes it uses some ingredients that would be shunned elsewhere such as frozen squid from the supermarket and a fish stock pot. As with those others though, it's great how it is and I love being able to get the ingredients for a great meal in my usual weekly shop. If you can spare the time to find it and you replace with fresh squid and a homemade or really good (expensive) stock it will just take it to another level.

Ingredients

Serves 2

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  • 500ml fish stock

  • 30g butter

  • 1/2 large onion, diced

  • 1 bay leaf

  • 160g risotto rice

  • 125ml dry white wine (sml glass)

  • 150g or 4 small squid

  • 2 cloves of garlic, chopped

  • 1 tsp smoked paprika

  • 50g sundried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced

  • 50g rocket leaves

Method

First off we need to prepare the squid. You can either just slice it into rings or do it as I've done in the picture above. To do this cut the tubes in half lengthwise then score the inside of the flesh in a crisscross pattern, just using the weight of the knife so as not to cut through it completely. Then cut into small pieces, about 6 to 8 per half squid.

Now we fry the squid in a little olive oil with the chopped garlic and 1/2 tsp of the smoked paprika for about 1-2 mins otherwise it will overdo and go tough. You are just looking for it to go opaque but still feel bouncy when you push on it with a spatula. Once done use a slotted spoon to pull the squid out and put it in a bowl and set aside.

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Return the pan to the heat and melt 15g of butter in it. Don't clean the pan between as all the juices left in the pan will become a great flavour base for the risotto. Once the butter has melted add the onion and bay leaf and cook on a low heat until the onion is soft.

 

Now add in the rice and stir to mix it all in until the grains are glistening. Pour in the wine and simmer until it has almost all evaporated. Then add a few ladles of hot stock and cook over a moderate heat, stirring until it has been absorbed into the rice. I do this covered which isn't traditional but saves me having to use two lots of stock.

 

Continue adding stock a few ladles at a time until the rice is just a little bit too al dente for you. This should take around 15-20 minutes. Now stop adding in stock and uncover to let the remaining liquid reduce down until almost gone. Your rice should now be just right. This is all down to your preference, I like mine so that I can feel the individual grains but it's not crunchy like eating pine nuts instead of rice.

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At this point, stir in the squid, sliced tomatoes and rocket leaves. Cook for a further two minutes just to wilt the rocket and warm through the squid.

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Finally add the remaining butter to the risotto and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir, remove from the heat, put the lid on and leave for two minutes. This will allow the butter to create a beautiful glistening sauce.

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To serve pull out the bay leaf as no one wants to eat a whole one of those, spoon it into bowls and dust with the remaining paprika.

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