My sister-in-law doesn’t like rice. What? You may be asking yourself, how can a person dislike something so innocuous. That’s almost like saying you don’t like water– which come to think of it, my sister isn’t all too crazy about. I guess you could say that I come from a family of awkward eaters. But back to rice, well, I love it. And I also adore soup. So what about a meal of soupy-rice? Bring it on!
Warm and nourishing, a stick to your ribs sort of meal that is both homey and satisfying. And it couldn’t be more simple. Like a risotto, only stripped down. Minus the continual, deltoid-building stirring, Risi e Bisi makes a lovely, hot meal, with just a crust of bread, and perhaps a salad to round the whole dish out.
Made with arborio or carnaroli rice, the short-grained rice with a high starch content, this soup gets creamy and thick as you simmer it. Starting out the soupy concoction is pancetta, Italian style bacon, cut into lardons, then only a handful of other ingredients, including frozen peas get thrown in the mix. Then you let the entire mixture be, the rice grows al dente, absorbing the stock, and a cloudy, flavorful, and gorgeous soup is born.
I call Risi e Bisi delightfully bland. There was not one flavor that stood out among the ingredients, each flavor played off one another so nicely. There was no vying for top place among your palate. It was the type of meal that was addictive. Not in a crunchy popcorn sort of way, but in a steaming bowl of mashed potatoes way.
The recipe comes from Comfort Foods, a compendium of all things homey. I adapted it by first frying up the pancetta, draining, pouring off some of the fat, and then proceeding with the onion. I reintroduced the pancetta in the last five minutes of cooking. This ensured a crisp pancetta, which is the way that I prefer. But listed below is the unadapted recipe.
Risi e Bisi
adapted from Comfort Foods
Serves 4-6
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 oz. pancetta, cut into small cubes
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 1/2 cups shelled young peas (frozen is fine)
1 cup risotto rice
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
Put the stock in a saucepan, bring to a boil, then maintain a simmer. Heat the oil and half of the butter in a large saucepan. Cook onion and pancetta over low heat for 5 minutes, or until softened. Stir in the parsley, peas, and 2 ladlefuls of stock. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the rice and remaining stock. Simmer until rice is al dente, and most of the stock has been absorbed. About 15 minutes. Stir in the remaining butter and parmesan cheese, season, and serve.
Note: This dish will continue to absorb stock, so any leftovers should be stored separately from a bit of leftover stock, then reheated, and brought back to a soupy consistency.
