Risotto is the recipe that taught a lot of us what white wine does in a pan. It goes in early, hits the toasted rice, and lifts everything with a clean brightness that stock alone simply can’t. Twenty minutes of gentle stirring, a glass of wine for the cook, and dinner makes itself.
This one leans on lemon to keep it fresh — perfect for a weeknight that needs rescuing.
- Reach for
- a dry, unoaked white — Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc or unoaked Chardonnay.
- How much
- 150ml (a small glass).
- What it’s doing
- it hits the toasted rice and sets a bright, acidic base the whole dish builds on — the lift you can taste against the cream.
- No open bottle?
- 150ml extra stock + a good squeeze of lemon. Close enough for a weeknight, though the wine adds a roundness lemon can’t.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 1.2 litres (5 cups) hot vegetable or chicken stock
- 2 tbsp butter, plus 2 tbsp to finish
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 300g (1½ cups) risotto rice (arborio or carnaroli)
- 150ml dry white wine — in early, before the stock
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 50g (½ cup) parmesan, grated
- Salt and black pepper; chopped parsley, to finish
Method
-
Keep the stock at a gentle simmer in a separate pan. Melt the butter with the oil in a wide pan and soften the onion for 6–8 minutes without colouring.
-
Add the rice and toast for 2 minutes, stirring.
Toast until the edges of the grains turn translucent — it keeps the risotto from going gluey.
-
Pour in the wine and stir until it’s almost fully absorbed.
Wine goes in before any stock — it sets the bright base note everything else sits on.
-
Add the hot stock a ladleful at a time, stirring, letting each addition absorb before the next. Continue for about 18 minutes, until the rice is creamy but still has bite.
-
Stir in the lemon zest and juice.
-
Off the heat, beat in the parmesan and the remaining butter, then rest for a minute.
This off-heat beating — mantecatura — is what makes risotto glossy and creamy without any cream.
-
Season and loosen with a splash more stock if needed. Finish with parsley.
Use the rest
Got a final splash in the bottle? Freeze the last of the bottle in an ice-cube tray for the next risotto or pan sauce — or pour yourself a glass while you stir.
Pour alongside: the same crisp white. Make ahead: best eaten fresh — risotto won’t wait.