Nettle Risotto Recipe
If you subscribe to my newsletter, you’ll have heard how I won the wild edibles lottery and found my go to source for nettles in the high desert. Not an easy thing to do! Now it’s time to use some of those nettles!
It’s been years and years since I’ve been able to make this risotto recipe. I made it the very first time I started foraging back when I was living in the South of France. This recipe is so delicious and full of nutrients. It’s light enough for a summer meal. I think risotto is a very underestimated dish, it can feel home-y and comforting or elevated and gourmet. I think this one of those time we’re it feels like a gourmet dish.
If you’ve never cooked with wild nettles before, they just take a little preparation. You just need to wash them and blanch the leaves before putting them in to the rice. No harder than steaming broccoli.
Let’s get to it!
Wild Nettle Risotto
Ingredients:
1 cup of arborio rice
1 small onion diced or 1/2 table spoon of onion flakes
1 large clove of garlic minced
olive oil
2 cups of fresh nettle leaves
1 heaping teaspoon of “Better than Bouliion” veggie version
salt to taste
2 cups nettle water reserved
parmigiano for topping (if you can eat dairy unlike me!)
Method:
Start by preparing your nettles. Wearing glove strip the leaves off the stems and place them in a bowl. Rinse with cool water and drain.
Then bring a medium pot with 2 1./2 cups of water to a boil. Add a teaspoon of salt to the water and then the nettle leaves. Allow them to blanch for several minutes until they wilt and turn a. vibrant green. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to sit and steep a few minutes. You are essentially making a “nettle leaf tea” which will be used to cook the rice with. After 5 minutes remove the nettles from the water and set aside.
In a pan on medium heat, cool the onions until they start to get translucent. Then add in the rice. Dry cook the rice for 2-3 minutes stirring continuously.
Add a little bit of the nettle water to the rice. The pan will sputter for a second so be careful. Continue to add water until the water is level with the rice. Add in the “Better than Bouillon” and stir continuously until the water is somewhat evaporated and you feel like it needs more liquid. Add more just until the rice is covered. Repeat this process until the rice is almost cooked about 20 minutes.
Give the rice a taste as you go testing for doneness. It should be soft but not mushy and it will be very creamy. By stiring and adding water we’ve used the rice’s own startches to create a creamy sauce. At this point add in the nettles. If you need to add more salt go for it.
When it’s ready serve it up grate fresh parmigiano on top. Alternatively you could do pecorino as well.
Notes: I like my risotto to be forkable. So I cook it until it is a bit stiffer. Some people like it looser. Also risotto is often made with a 1/4 of white wine. You could totally add that in. I leave it out for picky eaters.
Enjoy!
If you make this please leave me a comment below. I’d love to know how it turned out. Do you cook with nettles? Share the way you use them!
Want to explore more things with nettles?
