Green Beans and Lardon Risotto for Four

Even the most plain ingredient can be used in a risotto recipe and shine. Take the green beans for instance, some might not be fond of its earthy taste, but once you cook the chopped green beans in lardon fat with extended cooking time in chicken stock, green beans can transformed into soft and flavorful element for a somewhat fancy risotto dish.

Green beans and lardon risotto -

Ingredients (about 4 portions)?

• 22~24 green beans
• 120 grams lardon 
• 2 regular measuring cups arborio rice
• 1/2 small onion
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 small bundle/25 grams flat leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 lemon (for the zest only)
• Some aged Parmigiano Reggiano

How?

Slice the lardon to strips. Peel and chop the onion. Finely chop the flat leaf parsley, including the stems. Zest half the lemon. Snap both ends of the green beans and pull out the strings attached if any. Once done, chop the green beans.

Prepare a big pan or I used a Dutch oven instead. Add in the lardon and switch to medium heat. Sear till the fat starts to render and the lardon turned crispy brown. 

Transfer onion over along with 1 teaspoon of salt. Mix and sear till the onion turns translucent or even slightly golden on the edges.

Add the beans and give it a quick stir. Cook for about two minutes.

Add in rice and give it a few mixes. Make sure every grain has been coated with the lardon fat.

Pour in dry white wine and mix a bit, cook for about 30 seconds. Pour in some chicken stock and water, about one cup at a time. Cook till the liquid has been nearly fully absorbed by the grains then continue to add more stock or water. 

Keep doing so till the rice is about ready. Towards the end, add in some unsalted butter, which will create a velvety touch to the risotto.

Also add in most of the chopped parsley and all the lemon zest. Mix and let it cook for one more minutes.

Plate and garnish with some of the remaining chopped parsley. Also shave some aged Parmigiano Reggiano over.

It's up to you how long you would like to cook the risotto. Some prefer a "dryer" consistency, like the one I have here this time. Some prefer to cook the rice a bit longer. In that case, perhaps use one to two more cups of chicken stock or water for a creamier result. 

Extended reading:

• Simple but not boring - asparagus risotto