My Chorizo & Butternut Risotto is a creamy and easy twist on an Italian classic. It is packed full of veg with added zing from the smoky fresh chorizo. Great for a weeknight dinner or something a little more special, give it a try!
Dice 200g Onions and start gently frying them in 40g Salted Butter over a medium heat in a large saucepan with 1 tsp Sea Salt Flakes.
Continue cooking until the onions are soft and translucent - a good 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, peel and chop 400g Butternut Squash into inch cubes. Set the quash to steam. This takes circa 12 minutes in the microwave or a little longer on the hob.
Add 1 tbsp Garlic Paste and 2 tbsp Sherry to the onions and keep stirring until the sherry has all but disappeared.
Add 100g Risotto Rice to the onions and stir to coat the rice grains in the fat and sherry residue.
Measure 1 litre Hot Water from your boiled kettle and add about 1/8 (125ml) to the rice. Keep stirring until the rice has mostly absorbed the liquid.
Add 2 tbsp Chicken Stock Concentrate and 1 tbsp Fresh Thyme Leaves to the pan along with another 1/8 of the water.
Continue to stir while the rice absorbs the liquid.
Continue to add the water a little at a time whilst you start to cook the other ingredients and set the cooked butternut squash aside.
Quarter 250g Mushrooms and add to a large frying pan with 20g Salted Butter and 1 tsp Sea Salt Flakes.
Keep an eye on the rice.
Fry over a high heat until the mushrooms are golden brown, soft all the way through and any moisture released has evaporated. Put the mushrooms aside.
Keep an eye on the rice.
Skin 175g Fresh Chorizo, quarter them lengthways and then cut into small chunks.
Fry the chorizo over a medium heat until crispy. Remove the chorizo pieces from the pan leaving the oil set aside.
Once the rice has absorbed all of the water and is just cooked all the way through, add the steamed butternut squash cubes. Stir through whist squashing the majority of the cubes so they become part of the sauce. Some cubes can be more lightly crushed to provide a chunkier texture.
Add the cooked mushrooms, chorizo cubes, 100ml Crème Fraiche and remaining 2 tbsp Sherry. Stir until fully combined.
Serve in shallow bowls with 5g Fresh Parsley scattered over the top. Also grate 30g Parmesan on top and drizzle some of the oil from the chorizo pan.