SHRIMP AND PEA RISOTTO 

I once wrote a book about risotto for Rizzoli called Risotto & Beyond, which featured 100 of Chef John Coletta’s recipes for Italian rice. Testing each dish, writing the text for the book, interviewing rice experts in Italy, and photographing there, I learned that Italy grows more than 200 types of rice, making it Europe’s largest rice producer. Americans only consume about 1 percent of the rice Italy exports, so in the States, we rarely go beyond the arborio and carnaroli superfino rices commonly used to make risotto. However, when making this lovely shrimp and pea risotto, you can use arborio, or do as the Italians do, and use Vialone Nano, the semifino Italian rice traditionally favored for seafood risottos (available online at Amazon). To begin this vibrant dish, you’ll make a simple shrimp stock and a purée of peas and lemon zest. These create the creamy risotto, which you will finish with sautéed shrimp, a few extra peas, and more lemon zest. So fresh!

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Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

For the shrimp stock:

• Shrimp shells and tails from 2 pounds raw, headless 21 to 25-count shrimp. Reserve the raw shrimp to sauté and add to finished risotto
• 1 white or yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

For the pea purée:

• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

For the risotto:

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small white or yellow onion, finely chopped to make 1/2 cup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/4 cups arborio or Vialone Nano rice
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1 to 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (optional)
• Sautéed shrimp (from the 2 pounds you shelled to make the shrimp stock)
• Additional 1/2 cup thawed peas
• Additional zest from 1 fresh lemon

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METHOD

Make shrimp stock: In a heavy-bottomed pot, combine all shrimp stock ingredients with 8 cups water over medium heat. Heat to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes. Strain the stock through a fine-mesh strainer. Discard all solids. Rinse the pot and return the strained shrimp stock to the pot. Return to a simmer while you make the pureed peas.

Puree peas: Place peas in food processor with lemon zest, salt, pepper, and olive oil OR place in a bowl and use a stick blender. Pulse to puree into a creamy paste with some chunky bits still visible. Cover and refrigerate.

Make risotto: Place all measured risotto ingredients on a work-surface near your cooktop with the simmering shrimp stock on one burner of the cooktop. Place a heavy sauté pan over medium-low heat on a second burner. Add olive oil and onion to the sauté pan and cook, stirring until onion is soft and translucent (it’s okay to add a tablespoon or two of water to help the onion soften without browning; just be sure the water has evaporated before moving to the next step). Stir in the salt and pepper. Add the raw rice and stir until kernels are well coated. Add wine and stir until wine has completely soaked into the rice. Add 1/2 cup of the shrimp stock to the rice and stir until mostly soaked in. Add another 1/2 cup of stock and stir in again. Repeat this until most of the stock has been soaked into the rice and rice kernels are tender but not mushy, with a creamy consistency (you may have as much as a cup of stock left over). Stir in the cold butter, if using. Turn off heat.

Sauté shrimp: In a second sauté pan over medium-high heat, quickly sauté shrimp in batches in 1 to 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste.

Finish dish: Stir pureed pea mixture into risotto. Add the 1/2 cup additional thawed peas and half of the sautéed shrimp. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt and pepper. Divide risotto into serving dishes. Top each with remaining sautéed shrimp. Garnish with fresh lemon zest. Serve immediately.