Fava Bean and Bacon Risotto

Submitted by luvcookn

"Who doesn't like a good risotto? This provides a complete protein. This is from The Natural Menopause Cookbook."

 

• Ready In: 35mins
• Ingredients: 9
• Serves: 2

ingredients

• 1 2⁄3 cups frozen fava beans
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 slices smoked Canadian bacon, rind removed, roughly chopped
• 2⁄3 cup arborio rice
• 2 1⁄4 cups hot chicken stock
• 1⁄4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• parmesan cheese, shavings to garnish

directions

1. Cook the fava beans in a saucepan of lightly salted boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Drain and plunge into ice-cold water to cool. Peel away and discard the outer shells and set the beans aside.
2. Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion and bacon and cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Add the rice and beans and continue to cook, stirring for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add enough hot stock to cover the rice and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until most of the stock has been absorbed. Continue adding the stock in this way until it is almost completely absorbed and rice is tender.
4. Remove from the heat, stir in the grated Parmesan, and season to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan shavings.

Reviews

[Allisonsdinner]

My mom's words: "I would definitely make it again." Made it as directed but substituted vegetable broth for chicken and didn't heat it ahead of time. Also used fresh fava beans. Easy and delicious.

 

[Karenlyn2]

This was nice! I used pancetta and added about 1/3 c. of dry vermouth to the rice, reducing it to nothing before adding any broth. I also used more cheese and tons of black pepper. I LOVED the flavor of the bacon and vermouth, and would definitely suggest adding that. The fava beans were great in this, too. Great recipe!

 

[Debbies Man]

Excellent! The fava beans and the bacon are an excellent combination. I made the dish exactly to recipe with the exception that I used FRESH fava beans (instead of frozen). They took a bit more prep time, but well worth it. Of course, they may be hard to find, but the fresh fava beans are outstanding in the dish. I also used a very nice Hickory Smoked artisan bacon in this. The flavor went well with the parmesan and fava beans. I recommend a nice Zinfandel as a pairing.