Cucumber Risotto with Yellow Peppers and Cilantro

Risotto is one of the easiest dishes to prepare, yet it continues to intimidate most amateur cooks. The essence of risotto is in the cooking liquid and whatever tidbits you might choose to put in it at the end of the cooking. The rice itself has a very delicate and subtle flavor, and the grains readily absorb the flavors in the liquid. There are several different brands of Arborio rice available, and nowadays, you can find all of them at your local supermarket. You may have to go to one of the high-end 'organic' markets to track down a more exotic rice, but in the end, you are cooking it slowly, adding liquid only as it is absorbed.

You can use almost anything to cook the rice: water, chicken stock, beef stock, vegetable stock, fish stock, lobster stock, even a fruit 'stock' for a dessert risotto. I've put raw shrimp in at the end, using the heat of the rice to cook it; I've used beef stock to cook the rice, then added wasabi powder in at the end, spread it out on parchment paper to a half-inch thickness, cooled it in the fridge overnight, then fried it in peanut oil and served it with grilled steaks. I always use white wine, in amounts from a third of a cup to a whole cup, and here again, Chardonnay will give you a different result than Pinot Grigio. This is where matching flavors becomes very important; you don't want to overpower your main dish with a heavy risotto. Unlike some guests at a dinner I prepared who complained that the rice was too bland; I sneered at them. Philistines!

I was doing a dinner for a hostess who was concerned about calories and heavy dishes that would leave her guests feeling bloated, and so I suggested a vegetable risotto to go with a poached salmon filet. Here is that risotto:

3 yellow bell peppers (remember that as bell peppers ripen, their flavors will intensify...green is least ripe, red is most ripe)
12 large cucumbers
2 tablespoons of minced shallots(chopped up very fine, like grains of rice)
1 3/4 cups Arborio rice
1 cup of white wine
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
3/4 cup of chopped cilantro

Turn on your broiler and put the peppers on a rack in your oven, turning them with tongs until they are charred and blistered all over. Put them in a paper bag and let them cool until you can safely handle them. Slip the skin off: it should come off quite easily. Seed the peppers and dice them, about the size of your pinky fingernail.

Peel the cucumbers and chop them into one inch chunks. Put them into your food processor or grinder until they are a smooth puree. Force this through a fine mesh strainer into a large measuring cup. Press hard and get as much juice out as you can. Pour the juice into a large saucepan and heat it just below a boil. You want the liquid to be hot as you add it so that it doesn't slow down the cooking rate of the rice.

In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat and saute the shallots until they are tender, about 5 minutes, tops. Do Not let the butter brown! Add a pinch of ground white pepper. Add the rice and stir it all around until the rice is covered with the butter and the shallots are mixed in. Martha (Stewart) says that the rice will sound like glass as you stir it.

Now add the wine and cook at medium heat until most of the wine is absorbed. Play with the heat so that the rice cooks at an adequate rate, but not so fast that you're rushed. This would be a good time to pour yourself a glass of that very same wine and enjoy it as you prepare the risotto. Relax. Stir until the pass of your spoon leaves a dry swath through the rice.

Now begin to to add the heated cucumber juice, about a half a cup at a time. Stir until most of the liquid is absorbed, then add more. Be prepared to spend about a half an hour doing this. This much rice will absorb almost six cups of liquid. Relax. Take a sip of wine. Compliment your guests on their attire. Continue to stir. Do Not stop stirring, and Do Not leave the rice unattended! If the rice burns, you will be beaten and then pulled apart by large Celtic draft horses and your body parts will be scattered among the tank farms in Revere.

The rice will develop a nice cream and eventually, the grains will be al dente, which means that they will provide only token resistance to the pressure of your teeth. They should not be mushy. Do Not let the rice dry out. Take the pot off the heat before all the final liquid is aborbed; it will continue to cook of its own volition while you plate the rest of the meal. Add a teaspoon of kosher salt. Add in the diced yellow peppers and stir to mix them. Add the cilantro and fold it in gently. You now have a delicate green risotto, with yellow dice and dark green flakes; beautiful!

You are now ready to serve. Relax. Take another sip of wine. Your guests will be mystified that a dish so light can bear such a complex constellation of flavors.

This recipe is not my own. I owe thanks to Michael Romano, whom I've never met, who was gracious enough to share this marvel in the 2001 edition of "Chefs of The Times", published by The New York Times, and edited by Michalene Busico.

There you have it.