NRS01: Paella-Inspired Seafood-Asparagus Risotto パエリア風味シーフードとアスパラリゾット

Welcome to New Risotto Sunday, a brand-new recipe feature on I am a viking! Every Sunday for the next, say, forty-four weeks or so, I will be making a brand new, completely original risotto and posting the recipes and results here. Why forty-four, you ask? Because that is precisely how many risotto recipes I came up with during a day-long brainstorming session at work. (My job is boring.) I would never dream of giving away any risottos to come, but I will tell you the three categories into which I have divided them: Old World Risottos, New World Risottos, and Silk Road Risottos. They will draw on ingredients and culinary aesthetics from around the globe.

This momentous first risotto is a combination of fragrant saffron, luscious seafood, and vibrant baby asparagus entwined in rich, creamy Manchego. Special thanks goes to the country of Spain for the idea behind this Paella-Inspired Seafood-Asparagus Risotto.

3/4 cup Arborio or Japanese rice
about 4 cups hot vegetable, seafood, or chicken stock
1 cup white wine
meat from 2 king crab legs
4-5 large scallops
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/3 cup grated Manchego cheese
15 stalks baby asparagus, cut into thirds
olive oil
salt
pepper

1. Heat plenty of olive oil (about three tablespoons) in a frying pan over medium-high heat.
2. Once oil is hot, place scallops in pan and sear on both sides, then remove from oil and set aside.
3. Lower heat to medium and add garlic. Salt and pepper well and sauté until lightly browned.
4. Add rice and stir well to coat with oil. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly, to toast rice.
5. Add about 3/4 cup wine to deglaze. Stir into rice well and cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed/evaporated, then add saffron.
6. Add a ladleful of stock to the pan and cook until most of the liquid is gone, stirring thoroughly.
7. Repeat step 6 until rice is nearly cooked through. Add asparagus and crab along with more stock and cook until rice and asparagus are both al dente.
8. When the last of the liquid is finally absorbed, add remaining 1/4 cup wine and cheese. Stir and cook until thick and creamy.
9. Serve in a shallow bowl with seared scallops and a spritz of lemon juice.