Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce

Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce. Fall is a time for Risotto, pure delicious comfort food. This Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé Sauce is absolutely exquisite! The salmon offers a lovely smoky backdrop to that rich creamy Rosé sauce, and the rice gives an amazing foundation of velvety smoothness with a subtle bite of nuttiness.

Song of the day: " Lovesong" by The Cure

[This post is sponsored by Stefano Faita. As always, all opinions and ideas are entirely our own.]

When I think of Fall

To me, Fall brings back so many memories. The colored leaves falling off the trees. Helping my father bag up the leaves, truthfully diving into the pile of leaves and making a mess. That crisp air in the early morning. More so, I remember coming into the house and smelling the aroma of a good risotto cooking. Whether with tomato sauce or mushrooms, butter and Parmigiano or allo Zafferano, it was always a feeling of comfort and love, not to mention absolutely delicious!

Today we are sharing this beautiful Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce, and all those feelings it brings with it. Come let's get into the kitchen and we will show you just how we made it!

Ingredients for this Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce

All in all, this recipe is not complicated. The ingredients are simple, and easy to find. Here they are:

• Carnaroli rice (or Arborio)
• Smoked salmon
• Stefano's Rosée sauce*
• Shallots or onion
• Olive oil
• Butter
• White wine
• Fresh parsley
• Salt and pepper

*Note: To find out where you can pick up Stefano's sauces click on this link.

Here is what you will need from the kitchen:

• A medium deeper sauté pan
• Small sauce pot for the broth
• Spatula or wooden spoon
• Chopping knife
• A glass for the wine
• Some ramekins to put the rice and shallots in
• Bowls for plating

Hints for a great risotto:

• First of all, we want our broth warming in a pot close to the action on the stove. This will keep the cooking of the rice consistent. If you put cold broth into the pan with the rice, it will stop the cooking time and you are not going to get that creaminess out of the rice.
• Secondly, always toast your rice in the pan with the oil and onion or shallot. This really brings out that nuttiness that we want.
• Thirdly, risotto is not a "throw rice into a pot with water, bring to a boil etc". Risotto needs the stirring and lots of love to coax the starch out of it. This is what makes that creamy texture. When you plate risotto it flows, it does not stack.
• Fourthly, the broth is added ladle by ladle. When the broth begins to dissipate, then another is added.
• Lastly, at the end the heat is turned off, a nice dollop of butter is added along with Parmigiano. However, in risotto dishes with seafood or fish, the Parmigiano is not used. Then the lid is put on and the risotto rest for a couple of minutes.
• Most of all, use really good ingredients!

Time to learn how to make this Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce!

• Place broth in a pot and put it on a low heat.
• In the sauté pan drizzle in olive oil and throw in the minced shallots, cook until softened.
• Next, throw in the rice and with a wooden spoon or spatula give it a good stir. We want that rice coated with the oil and the flavor of the shallots. More so, we want to toast the rice a bit too so we get a beautiful nutty flavor out of it.
• At this point we add the white wine, cook out the alcohol, and when it has dissipated add in 2 ladles of vegetable broth, and yes, keep stirring!

• As the broth dissipates add another ladle of broth. What I do is run the spatula right down the middle of the risotto. If it comes together real quick, it is not time yet. If the fold comes slowly together then it is time for another ladle of broth.

It is time to add Stefano's Rosée sauce to the risotto!

• It has been about 10 minutes of adding broth and stirring. Now the Rosée sauce goes in. I love the color of this sauce. It looks so luxurious and creamy.

Stir, stir, and more stirring!

• Are you tired of stirring yet? Just think, you are going to have amazing arms after making risotto. Remember 5 stirs with the right and five stirs to the left, lol. While the sauce and risotto are getting to know the rosée, we are going to cut up the smoked salmon into bite size pieces.
• After the sauce and risotto have cooked for about 5 minutes, time to add in the pieces of smoked salmon. Some more stirring, of course. The salmon does not take that long to cook, only about 3 minutes!

Important Notice!

In the end, risotto is always finished with a dollop of butter after the heat is turned off, and that is what we are going to do now. Yes another good stir to incorporate the butter. If you are feeling daring you can do the wave by using the pan and the flip motion to create a wave and a slap just like the sea or ocean. We call it all'onda (create a wave with the risotto). Put the lid on and let sit for a couple of minutes. I bet you're getting hungry, it smells so good!

Time to plate the Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce!

For a plate use a shallow pasta bowl, not a soup bowl, and ladle in the risotto. Give the plate a little tap on the bottom to settle the risotto in and finish with a garnish of freshly chopped parsley, and a grating of black pepper. This Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce is ready to serve!

The moment we have been waiting for!

I am just itching to get my fork in the risotto, however I am going to let Nicoletta taste first. By the look on her face, I think she likes it. I have to have a taste!

Wow just the aroma alone gets me all mouthwatering. The sauce so sweet, and plenty of rich tomato aroma, and with that smokiness of the salmon it is a perfect delight to the first stages of the senses. I love the dichotomy of creamy and al dente that happens between the rice and the sauce. The velvetiness of the salmon is a perfect addition.

For me, I love the richness of the rosée sauce. Subtle tomato accents with that sweetness all wrapped in a pool of creaminess. Then the salmon comes in with a little smoke and boy that butter just melds everything together beautifully allowing the ingredients to shine without over powering each other!

Italian Tradition

In Italy, Sunday lunch is a very important thing. It is a time for family to get together and enjoy a wonderful meal. I really think that this risotto is a perfect Primo Piatto for such a lunch. I hope you enjoy this Smoked Salmon Risotto in a Rosé sauce as much as we have! Thanks for joining us in our kitchen, always a pleasure to have you!

Buon Appetito!

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