[0 - 2] Hey guys, welcome back to 'Basics with Babish'.
[2 - 3] With this week we're taking a look at
[4 - 7] Normally rice plays a supporting role, but in this dish
[7 - 8] it's the star of the show.
[8 - 11] Not only are we going to show you how to make it two different ways,
[11 - 14] we're going to take the leftovers and make them into Arancini,
[14 - 17] a whole different level of deep-fried deliciousness!
[17 - 19] Let's get down to basics.
[33 - 35] Alright guys so we're going to start by making a
[35 - 37] really standard risotto but in a
[37 - 38] kinda, funky way
[38 - 39] that is in a pressure cooker.
[39 - 41] With the pressure cooker on its hottest or
[41 - 43] browning setting we're going to sweat a small,
[43 - 46] finely chopped onion before adding two cups of
[47 - 50] The classics being Arborio or Carnaroli.
[50 - 53] We're then going to toast that rice for about one minute until
[53 - 54] the edges become translucent.
[54 - 55] Kinda like little ice cubes
[55 - 60] before deglazing with a good glug or about half a cup of white wine, whichever comes first.
[61 - 63] Continue to sauté until all the alcohol has cooked off and then we're adding
[63 - 66] four cups of chicken stock.
[66 - 67] It's a pretty good ratio to keep in mind.
[67 - 70] Two to one chicken stock. Two cups of rice.
[70 - 71] Give that a little mix,
[71 - 73] make sure they are no grains of rice stuck to the side of the pan,
[73 - 76] and gauge the locking lid on your pressure cooker
[76 - 79] and cook on high pressure for 5-6 minutes.
[79 - 83] And obviously use the quick release steam valve to let all the steam out before opening.
[83 - 87] Then we're going to grate a metric f*** ton of Parmesan into the risotto.
[87 - 89] Season with a little bit of kosher salt,
[89 - 90] freshly ground pepper,
[90 - 94] give the whole thing a stir to make sure the cheese is melted and the spices are evenly distributed and,
[94 - 96] there you have it! A very simple,
[96 - 98] sort of base-line risotto
[98 - 102] to which any number of attractive toppings and fillings could be added,
[102 - 105] while in this very simple state it's still very delicious,
[105 - 107] we're going to refrigerate most of this
[107 - 109] and use it later to make Arancini,
[109 - 111] we'll get back to that in a few minutes. For now
[111 - 115] we're going to make a more traditional risotto with some added flavors.
[115 - 118] Most notable among them being butternut squash.
[118 - 122] We're going to start by carefully endevouring to cut a whole butternut squash in half,
[123 - 124] scoop all the gnarly stuff out of the cavity,
[125 - 127] place any parchment lined baking sheet,
[127 - 129] and drizzle with a bit of olive oil,
[130 - 131] Make sure to rub it into every little crevice,
[132 - 135] and then stuff the cavity with a bit of fresh sage,
[136 - 137] Ok sorry I'm done.
[137 - 140] Season with a little bit of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper,
[140 - 142] place it cut side down on the parchment lined baking sheet,
[142 - 147] and bake at about 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes to an hour or until
[147 - 151] a paring knife shows little to no resistance when pierced through the flesh.
[151 - 153] We're going to scoop out most of the squash,
[153 - 154] reserving about a cup,
[154 - 158] placing the rest into a blender and adding some chicken stock,
[158 - 160] just enough to make this into a purée,
[160 - 161] so add a little splash,
[161 - 162] turn on your blender,
[162 - 163] see if it turns into a purée.
[163 - 165] This doesn't, so I'll add a little bit more,
[165 - 166] crank your blender on again
[166 - 170] and repeat until you have a nice, thick, butternut squash purée.
[170 - 174] Take a moment to appreciate how cool and steamy your whole kitchen looks,
[174 - 178] and now it's time to get down to the business of making risotto the old fashioned way,
[178 - 180] that is in a large, stock pot.
[180 - 183] We're starting out the same way by sweating a small onion in some olive oil,
[183 - 185] then once soft and translucent,
[185 - 187] adding one cup of Arborio rice,
[187 - 188] and then deglazing with-
[188 - 189] Hang on a second
[189 - 190] lets make sure this stuff is any good.
[191 - 194] Deglazing with a couple hearty glugs of white wine.
[194 - 196] Dry white wine like Sauvignon Blanc.
[196 - 199] Simmer over high heat until the smell of alcohol has cooked off,
[199 - 201] and then it's time to slowly start adding chicken stock,
[201 - 203] a couple ladlefuls at a time,
[203 - 206] from a separate pot in which we are keeping it at a constant simmer.
[206 - 210] Then once you're able to drag your spoon across the bottom of your pot and it leaves a trail
[210 - 212] of exposed pot behind it,
[212 - 215] we're going to add maybe two or three ladles of hot chicken stock.
[215 - 217] We're then going to repeat this process continually,
[217 - 218] stirring the risotto,
[218 - 220] cooking at a medium simmer,
[220 - 224] adding chicken stock as soon as your able to see the bottom of the pot when scraped,
[224 - 227] until the rice is just barely almost fully cooked.
[227 - 228] Toothsome, as they say.
[228 - 231] At this point, we're going to add out butternut squash purée,
[231 - 233] string to combine and continuing to cook at medium-low heat,
[233 - 235] until the rice is complete.
[235 - 238] But it's not yet time to eat this tasty slow cooked treat,
[238 - 241] first we need to add a little something savory, and a little something sweet.
[241 - 246] For the savory, we're going to fry some sage leafs in some butter until the butter barely turns brown.
[246 - 250] As soon as you see those milk fats solidify and darken, take it off the heat,
[250 - 252] and put it into a container where it can cool off.
[252 - 257] Remove the sage leaves and set it aside, and now it's time to address the sweet side of things.
[257 - 260] That is just going to be a few tablespoons of maple syrup.
[260 - 264] If you can't tell already, this is gonna be really, really a good thing to eat.
[264 - 265] We're also gonna add a little brown butter,
[265 - 266] reserving some for plating,
[266 - 269] and a whole bunch of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
[269 - 274] Mix that together until everything is all nice and melted, and then grab our reserved roasted butternut squash,
[274 - 278] give it a little chop, and add that for some textural bonus points.
[278 - 281] Mix that up and we're going to season with kosher salt and white pepper.
[281 - 283] Little known fact about white pepper:
[283 - 285] it tastes great and smells like death.
[285 - 287] And now when you thought things couldn't get any better,
[288 - 290] Plate yourself up a heaping helping of our risotto,
[290 - 294] top with a little bit of the brown butter that we set aside earlier,
[294 - 296] try to get lots of those little brown specks in there,
[296 - 298] and then top with our chopped bacon.
[298 - 301] Then you can use a vegetable peeler to shave some large...
[303 - 304] of Parmesan cheese on top,
[304 - 307] before garnishing with our fried sage leafs.
[307 - 308] And there you have it!
[308 - 309] Butternut Squash Risotto.
[310 - 313] But what about all that plain risotto from earlier Andy?
[313 - 315] Well buckle up, because we're making Arancini.
[315 - 316] Just like I promised.
[316 - 320] We're going to start by making a thin slurry of water and all purpose flour,
[320 - 323] then we're going to grab a handful of our chilled risotto,
[323 - 325] flatten it out into a nice little pancake,
[325 - 328] and then insert a hunk of mozzarella, jack,
[328 - 330] whatever kind of cheese you want in the center,
[330 - 331] Something nice and melty,
[331 - 334] form it into a very large - matzo balls sized - ball.
[334 - 339] Then we're going to coat the ball in the flour and water slurry like the bitter herbs in salt water at the passover,
[339 - 341] and then coat in panko breadcrumbs,
[341 - 347] before dropping into a deep fryer or dutch oven filled with vegetable oil set to about 350°F (175°C).
[347 - 353] We're then going to fry these for about 7-10 minutes, flipping occasionally until they are golden, crispy brown all over.
[353 - 358] Remove and drain on paper towels before plating up and serving with some warm tomato sauce.
[358 - 361] This is an excellent use for leftover risotto,
[361 - 365] and is an easy way to impress your friends with crispy exteriors, flavorful interiors,
[365 - 366] and of course,
[366 - 369] porn-y, melty, pull apart, cheese shots.
[369 - 371] I really hope you try this one for yourselves,
[371 - 374] especially next week when I'll be cooking along live with you on Twitch,
[374 - 378] go check out my channel at twitch.tv/bingingwithbabish
[378 - 383] every other Thursday, I cook last weeks basics live so you can cook along with me,
[383 - 386] and we can chat, shoot the breeze, and make some delicious food together.
[386 - 388] I look forward to seeing you guys there,
[388 - 391] this was the last episode of basics to come out of the old basics kitchen,
[391 - 393] so next time I'll see you guys in the new place!