This creamy shrimp risotto recipe was inspired by a trip to Venice. It’s made with tiny pink shrimp, shallots, parsley, and lemon zest. You will think you are in Italy!
In this recipe
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What is Venetian style?
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Which shrimp to buy
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The best risotto rice
Have you ever had a food epiphany?
Years ago, at a restaurant on Venice’s Grand Canal (back in the lazy days of business trips with expense reports), I had a seafood risotto that was so silky, so rich, so creamy, yet still light, I didn’t know what it was me I ate every grain with a stunned and happy expression on my face and I still remember that risotto more than what was at St. Mark’s.
Although I had no idea at the time, according to my friend Hank, seafood risottos are a specialty of Venice. There they are usually served all’onda or “wave” risotto, meaning a fluffy and almost soupy risotto best eaten with a spoon.
Hank and I spent the day cooking together and he showed me in great detail how he makes this Venetian-style shrimp risotto.
My dad stopped by just in time for lunch and finished his bowl of shrimp risotto and announced, “Hank, I don’t like shrimp and I don’t like rice, but I love this.” So there you have it.
Which shrimp should you buy for this risotto recipe?
Use the smallest shrimp you can find. Try to find tiny pink shrimp in the frozen section of the supermarket. These “boreal” shrimp, or Maine shrimp, are unusually sweet and come pre-peeled and pre-cooked.
Any shrimp larger than the last finger on your pinky should be cut in half.
The best rice for risotto
Risotto recipes call for risotto rice, an Italian type of rice that contains enough starch to make the risotto’s creamy sauce.
Arborio rice is fine for this purpose, but if you can get hold of it, use a Carnaroli rice. Even better is a rice called Vialone Nano, which is more tender and creamy than the other types of risotto rice and works well in this shrimp risotto.
love shrimp? Try these recipes
- Shrimp, scampi
- Pasta with shrimp and artichokes
- Shrimp with zucchini noodles and lemon garlic butter
- Shrimp pasta alla vodka
- Shrimp, Lemon, Spinach Linguine
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Check out this Shrimp Risotto recipe
Shrimp Risotto
ingredients
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8th ounces clam juice or fresh fish broth
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4 cups water
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3 tablespoon butter
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1 big shallotfinely chopped
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1 Cup Risotto rice (Arborio or if you can get it, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano)
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1 Cup dry white winelike Sauvignon Blanc
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2 cups (8 ounces) small pink shrimpthe smallest you can find
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2 tablespoon finely chopped Parsely
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1 tablespoon Finely grated Lemon peel
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Kosher salt
method
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Heat the mussel juice and water:
Place the clam juice in a saucepan with 4 cups of water, heat until steaming. Don’t let it boil.
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Sauté shallots:
In a separate (heavy-bottomed) saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat and sauté the chopped shallots until just translucent, 2-3 minutes.
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Put rice in the pot:
Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes until all of the grains are well coated in butter and beginning to toast.
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Add the wine and stir:
Increase the heat to high and add the white wine. Stir the rice vigorously with a wooden spoon. Once the wine is boiling, reduce the heat until the wine is just gently simmering.
Stir almost constantly. You do this to stir the rice, releasing its starch and creating the creamy sauce you want in a risotto.
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Gradually add the hot liquid:
When the wine is almost gone – do not let the rice sizzle on the bottom of the pot – pour in 2 ladlefuls of the hot mussel stock and water mixture. Stir well and add a healthy pinch of salt.
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Keep stirring, let simmer and add liquid by the spoonful:
Let this liquid simmer, stirring almost constantly, until almost gone, then add another ladleful of broth.
Continue doing this until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Taste the spoon and see if the risotto needs salt. If so, add a small pinch.
This much risotto rice should take a total of about 4 to 5 cups of liquid (including wine) to come together, so start tasting the rice by the 3rd cup. When it’s almost there — firm in the center but translucent on the outside and completely surrounded by a creamy sauce — add another cup of broth, stir well, and taste the salt again. (If not, you have stale rice and need to go another cup and let it cook away.)
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Add shrimp, parsley and remaining butter:
Now add the shrimp, parsley and the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Stir constantly until about half of that last cup of broth you added is gone: remember, you want this risotto to be fluffy and creamy.
Just before serving, add the lemon zest and serve immediately. Best served with bowls and spoons instead of plates and forks.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 578 | calories |
| 20g | Fat |
| 40g | carbohydrates |
| 37g | protein |
