Lemon and Thyme Risotto

Name: Lemon and Thyme Risotto
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 large onion; 2 egg yolks; 3 ounces parmesan; 2 smallish lemons; Bunch of thyme; 1 1/2 quarts (6 cups) vegetable stock; 4 tablespoons butter; 1 tablespoon olive oil; Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper; 14 ounces risotto rice; 1/4 bottle white wine

User Reviews

5.0

27 reviews

Excellent

Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Total Time
30 mins
Servings
4 to 6 servings
Calories
685 kcal
Course
Main Course
Cuisine
Italian

Lemon and Thyme Risotto

Iris Warren

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This lemon and thyme risotto, with its luxuriously creamy texture and lovely lilt of lemon, may seem as though it took all day to make. That couldn't be further from the truth. Shhhhhh. No need to tell anyone else that. It can be our little secret.

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Ingredients

Servings

1 large onion
2 egg yolks
3 ounces parmesan
2 smallish lemons preferably organic
Bunch of thyme
1 1/2 quarts (6 cups) vegetable stock
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
14 ounces risotto rice such as Arborio, Carnaroli, Vialone Nano, or the like
1/4 bottle white wine

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Instructions

Chop the onion into small dice—you want the onion to disappear into the risotto, so don’t make the pieces too big. Place the egg yolks in a bowl. Grate the Parmesan. Zest the lemons and squeeze the juice. Reserve a few strips of lemon zest for the garnish. Pick the thyme leaves from their stalks, but leave a couple of sprigs whole for the garnish. Place your pan of stock onto the stove, bring to a boil, and then turn down to a simmer.
Place the butter, oil, onion, and a pinch of salt in a wide pan over medium heat. Cook the onion very gently for about 4 to 5 minutes, until soft but not colored. It is really important with a risotto not to brown and burn your onion. This is a delicately flavored dish and the bitterness of burned onion will flavor the whole thing. (Keeping the onion in the center of the pan, rather than spreading it out, runs less risk of scorching. Placing it in a cold pan, without heating the oil first, also helps.)
When the onion is soft, add the rice and stir very well to coat every grain. The pan will be getting quite hot and dry now, so add your white wine, sprinkling it in carefully around the pan—this evenly distributes the wine and helps it to reduce and evaporate more quickly. Add half of the lemon juice and half of the zest and cook for 1 minute. Keep stirring gently. You will hear the wine “singing” as some of it reduces in the pan. This will probably take about 2 minutes, and then the rice will look dry again.
Now you are ready to add your hot stock, a ladleful at a time. After every ladleful, stir well, really scraping the bottom of the pan, until the stock has almost disappeared into the rice. Then add another ladleful, keeping the rice moist all the time—don’t let it get dry in between ladlefuls. After about 15 minutes of adding stock and stirring in this way, start to taste—be careful, since the rice will be very hot. The rice needs to be tender, but still have some bite to it. Your risotto should take no more than 20 to 25 minutes from start to finish.
When you feel that it is almost there, take the pan off the heat.
Quickly mix the cheese, as much thyme as you please, and the remaining lemon juice and zest into your bowl of egg yolks, and then beat this into your risotto as energetically as you can. The risotto should be nice and relaxed and creamy. If it feels a bit too thick, whisk in a little more hot stock. (Rice retains a lot of heat, so you can relax and not rush to finish it off.) It should be creamy and slightly soupy, so if you think it's too stodgy at the end, you can just add some more hot stock until you are happy with the consistency. Taste and season if you need to. However, remember that if you're using store-bought stock, it may be very salty anyway, as is the Parmesan, so you may not need much salt.
Spoon the risotto into wide bowls and garnish with the reserved lemon zest and thyme. [Editor's Note: Leftover risotto? One of our recipe testers forms the cold risotto into oblong little orbs of sorts, coats them in fine bread crumbs, and fries 'em up. Gotta say, we love that idea. And we think you will, too.]

Nutrition Information

Show Details

Serving 1portion Calories 685kcal (34%) Carbohydrates 94g (31%) Protein 17g (34%) Fat 23g (35%) Saturated Fat 12g (60%) Monounsaturated Fat 8g Trans Fat 1g Cholesterol 137mg (46%) Sodium 1772mg (74%) Fiber 5g (20%) Sugar 7g (14%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 4to 6 servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 685 kcal

% Daily Value*

Serving	1portion
Calories	685kcal	34%
Carbohydrates	94g	31%
Protein	17g	34%
Fat	23g	35%
Saturated Fat	12g	60%
Monounsaturated Fat	8g	40%
Trans Fat	1g	50%
Cholesterol	137mg	46%
Sodium	1772mg	74%
Fiber	5g	20%
Sugar	7g	14%