Do you fancy spring recipes? Try the asparagus and saffron risotto

Perfect for all occasions, the asparagus and saffron risotto is really simple to prepare, even in the tasty variant with speck.

Preparing a good risotto is not that difficult, however, when it comes to risotto with asparagus, the question seems to get complicated. Yes, because this vegetable is rather delicate and one wrong move is enough to compromise its quality. We have therefore decided to share with you all our tricks to prepare an excellent asparagus and saffron risotto, perfect if you are looking for tasty first courses.

The trick when it comes to asparagus is not to overcook them : the tips should be just blanched, while the stem can safely cook together with the rice, so as to be very tender when serving. As for saffron , on the other hand, add it at the end of the preparation so that its intense flavor is not lost in cooking. Have we convinced you to prepare this vegetarian first course?

How to prepare the asparagus and saffron risotto recipe

1. First, wash the asparagus well under running water. Then flex the final part of the stem in order to detach the more woody one. Reduce the remaining part into rather thin slices and keeping the tips whole.
2. Finely chop the shallot and brown it in a pan with the oil until it is tender and transparent.
3. At this point you can add the rice, toast it for a couple of minutes and incorporate the slices of stems prepared at the beginning.
4. Cover the rice with the boiling vegetable broth , adjust the heat so that it just simmers and start cooking. From this moment it will take, depending on the variety of rice, from 16 to 20 minutes.
5. Halfway through cooking, add the asparagus tips and saffron, dissolving it first in a little broth. As with all risottos, the broth must be added little by little, ladle after ladle, waiting for the previous one to be absorbed. This is the trick to obtaining a creamy asparagus and saffron risotto. At this stage also adjust the salt.
6. When cooked, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter and Parmesan, mixing well.
7. Serve the risotto hot.

If you want to prepare a risotto with frozen asparagus and saffron, our advice is to let the asparagus thaw at room temperature (or in the refrigerator) before proceeding with the preparation. If, on the other hand, the times are shorter, put them in a pan with a drizzle of water and a pinch of salt and cook them following the instructions on the package. In this case, however, add them to the rice only 5 minutes before the end of cooking or they will be overcooked.

Speaking of easy recipes, why not make a tasty variant enriched with speck? The preparation of asparagus, speck and saffron risotto is almost the same and does not reserve any additional difficulties. Simply cut the speck slice into cubes and brown it in a pan with the oil and shallot. Then continue as per the recipe, remembering that when you go to season with salt you will need a little less.

storage

Risotto is a genre that should be eaten immediately. However, if you have any leftovers, you can keep it in the refrigerator for a couple of days and reheat it in a pan or microwave before consuming it.