Best-of-the-best risotto alla milanese

Best-of-the-best risotto alla milanese

Sunshine-yellow rice, heady with saffron and rich with bone marrow… This simple risotto from Lombardy is one of the greatest Italian dishes of all time.

Best-of-the-best risotto alla milanese

Risotto alla milanese is the perfect recipe to hone your risotto-making skills. Its vibrant colour is always a showstopper and, even without its usual accompaniment of ossobuco (a veal shank stew), it’s one of the most satisfying dishes to master. Before you start, read our full guide to achieving risotto perfection.

Raise your cooking to a new level with more of our brilliant best-of-the-best recipes.

  • Serves icon Serves 4
  • Time icon Hands-on time 45 min

Sunshine-yellow rice, heady with saffron and rich with bone marrow… This simple risotto from Lombardy is one of the greatest Italian dishes of all time.

Risotto alla milanese is the perfect recipe to hone your risotto-making skills. Its vibrant colour is always a showstopper and, even without its usual accompaniment of ossobuco (a veal shank stew), it’s one of the most satisfying dishes to master. Before you start, read our full guide to achieving risotto perfection.

Raise your cooking to a new level with more of our brilliant best-of-the-best recipes.

Nutrition: Per serving

Calories
658kcals
Fat
36g (20g saturated)
Protein
16g
Carbohydrates
61g (2.9g sugars)
Fibre
1.9g
Salt
1.2g

Ingredients

  • 1 litre beef or chicken stock
  • ¼ tsp saffron threads
  • 100g unsalted butter
  • 40g bone marrow (about 1 bone), chopped into small cubes
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 300g carnaroli risotto rice
  • 125ml dry white wine
  • 50g parmesan, finely grated, plus extra to serve
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Method

  1. Pour the stock into a saucepan over a low-medium heat and warm through until steaming. Add the saffron to a large, high-sided frying pan or saucier pan over a low heat and gently toast the strands for a minute, then tip them into a bowl. Add a ladleful of the warm stock to the saffron and leave it to steep and release its flavour.
  2. Put the frying/saucier pan back over a medium heat. Add 2 tbsp of the butter and the bone marrow. Once the butter has melted and the bone marrow has rendered its fat, add the onion with a pinch of salt and gently cook for about 8 minutes or until softened and translucent (not coloured).
  3. Tip in the rice and stir for a couple of minutes to toast – the grains should start turning translucent at the edges. Pour in the wine and turn up the heat to medium, then let it bubble away, stirring, until almost completely absorbed by the rice.
  4. Pour in a large ladle of the warm stock – it should be enough to just cover the rice, so you might need a little more, depending on the size of your ladle. Stir until absorbed, then repeat the process a ladle at a time until the rice is cooked al dente (soft but still with a slight bite). You may not need all the stock, and this could take 20-30 minutes, so be sure to taste the grains regularly.
  5. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the saffron-infused stock, then vigorously beat in the remaining butter and the parmesan. Cover and leave for 1 minute, then season to taste with salt (how salty your stock is will determine how much you need to add) and serve with a crack of black pepper and extra parmesan.

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving
Calories
658kcals
Fat
36g (20g saturated)
Protein
16g
Carbohydrates
61g (2.9g sugars)
Fibre
1.9g
Salt
1.2g

Buy ingredients online

Recipe By:

Pollyanna Coupland
Food producer, delicious.

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