Risotto alla Milanese is the dish Milan is judged by. It has four ingredients that matter and four steps that decide the result. Most home versions fail at step one, not step four.
Start with the tostatura
Toast the rice dry, or in a little butter, until the grains turn glassy at the edge and chalky in the centre. This seals the outside of the grain so the starch releases slowly across the whole cook rather than all at once in the first three minutes. Skip it and you get rice pudding. Carnaroli is the grain to use. It holds shape longer than Arborio and forgives a thirty second overshoot.
The stock decides the flavour
A weak stock cannot be rescued later. Use a real veal or chicken stock, kept at a bare simmer beside the pan. Cold stock drops the pan temperature and stalls the starch release. Add it a ladle at a time, and only when the previous ladle has almost gone. You are not boiling rice in stock. You are coaxing starch out of it.
Saffron goes in late, not early
Bloom the saffron threads in a few spoons of warm stock and add it in the last third of the cook. Added at the start, the aroma cooks off and you are left with colour and very little else. Threads, not powder. Powder is where saffron gets cut with turmeric and safflower.
Mantecatura is the whole point
Take the pan off the heat. Rest it thirty seconds. Then beat in cold cubed butter and grated Parmigiano Reggiano hard, with a wooden spoon, until the risotto turns glossy and moves in a slow wave. Off the heat matters. On the heat the butter splits and you get grease instead of emulsion. This step is called mantecatura and it is what separates a restaurant risotto from a home one.
The consistency test
Spoon it onto a warm flat plate and tap the rim. It should spread slowly into an even layer, what Italians call all onda, on the wave. If it holds a dome it is too dry. If it runs to the edge it is too loose. Loosen with stock, tighten with thirty more seconds of heat before the mantecatura.
Frequently asked questions
Which rice is best for risotto alla Milanese?
Carnaroli. It has a higher amylose content than Arborio, so it holds its shape while still releasing the starch that makes the sauce.
Do you have to stir risotto constantly?
No. Stir often enough to keep the grains moving and stop them catching, but constant stirring breaks the grains and makes the finished dish gluey.
Can you use bouillon cubes?
You can, but the dish has nowhere to hide. With four ingredients, the stock is most of the flavour.
Why is my risotto gluey?
Usually a skipped tostatura, too much stirring, or finishing on the heat instead of off it.
Chef Giampaolo Maffini is a Milan-trained Italian chef with forty years across eighteen countries, trained under Gualtiero Marchesi, the first Italian chef to hold three Michelin stars. TIME Magazine named him a Chef to Watch in 2004. More about Giampaolo.
Working on an Italian menu? Chef Giampaolo Maffini takes restaurant openings, Italian menu development, kitchen training and task force chef contracts worldwide. See the consulting services or email chef@chefmaffini.com.
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