Saffron & Mussel Risotto: Wine Pairing
As already mentioned, September is Antipodean Wines month at Hay Wines.
For this reason, with this article we would like to suggest you an Antipodean Food & Wine matching that can combine ingredients (and wines) traditional of this part of the world.
Mussels (in particular the green-lipped variety) are a kiwi classic, cooked or raw, in the shell or from a pot.
This is an excellent and simple dish, which can demonstrate why these two classic flavours work very well together!
Saffron & Mussel Risotto: Wine Pairing & Recipe
Recipe from: Foodlovers NZ, foodlovers.co.nz.
Smart tip: add garlic and parsley while steaming the mussels to give extra flavour.
Saffron & Mussel Risotto: Ingredients (4 servings)
- 4 cups (1 litre) chicken stock;
- pinch of saffron threads;
- 40g butter;
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped;
- 300g Arborio rice;
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese;
- salt and freshly ground black pepper;
- 32 small green lipped mussels, scrubbed and debearded.
Saffron & Mussel Risotto: Method (preparation: 5 minutes; cooking: 30 minutes)
- heat the chicken stock in a small saucepan until simmering. Crush the saffron threads and add to the stock;
- melt the butter in a saucepan and gently cook the onion until tender, add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter;
- add 3 cups of the stock, bring to the boil and reduce back to a simmer, cover and cook on a very low heat for 15 minutes, stir once during cooking and add the remaining stock if needed;
- continue to cook until the grains are just tender. Stir through grated cheese;
- meanwhile place the mussels in a saucepan with a little water, cover and steam over a medium heat until they open. Discard any that don’t open;
- serve the risotto topped with the mussels.
Saffron & Mussel Risotto: Wine Pairing