Beetroot Risotto

Beetroot and goats cheese had a bit of a moment a decade or so ago. It was on every restaurant menu and in varying combinations – beetroot and goats cheese tart, beetroot and goats cheese pasta. Trends come and go, but beetroot risotto never fell out of favour for me.

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There is no getting away from the fact that this is a….vivid dish. There is no escaping the fact that, just maybe, it looks a little bit like brains. Lean into it – make it for the kids for Halloween tea!

Seriously, though, it is delicious and you should try this beetroot risotto. The beetroot is earthy and sweet, and with the thyme and goats cheese it’s just perfect.

Another point to note – my husband is a keen runner and all of his research has told him that beetroot is EXCELLENT for runners. It’s full of nitrates, which improve exercise performance. With this recipe being carb heavy too, with plenty of white rice, it makes a great option for pre-race fuelling (e.g. the night before your marathon).

Beetroot Risotto – The Ingredients

• Beetroot – use raw beetroot and roast it yourself for best results (it doesn’t take long!) If you need to, though, you can use precooked beetroot (plain, not pickled).
• Onion – necessary, for flavour
• Risotto rice – Arborio rice is the one you need to look for.
• Red wine – you could use white, but red adds a nice depth and sweetness here.
• Vegetable stock – or use 1 litre water and a vegetable stock cube. You could use chicken stock instead, if you like.
• Thyme – adds a beautiful earthiness to the dish. Try to use fresh, if you can.
• Goats cheese – the tanginess works perfectly with the sweet beetroot. Feta would also be nice.

Cooking the Risotto

Lots of people are scared of making risotto, but they needn’t be. It doesn’t need constant stirring – just a little attention and love. Here are my top tips:

• When you add the risotto rice to the pan, give it a really good stir to make sure it all coats in the oil. This will help it to cook more evenly.
• Each time you add stock, stir really well to make sure that the bottom isn’t sticking. You’ll want the risotto to stay liquid enough to avoid sticking, so if it starts to, add more stock.
• Season at the end of the cooking process. Some stocks are saltier than others, so you don’t want to end up with an over (or under!) salted risotto.

The recipe below serves 4 – to increase you can just add an additional 100g risotto rice per person and increase the stock accordingly.

Beetroot Risotto with Goats Cheese

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Harriet Young

Vibrant beetroot risotto with creamy goats cheese

5

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Total Time 50 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  

• 4 large raw beetroot
• 2 tbsps good olive oil
• 1 onion
• 400 g risotto rice
• 1 small glass red wine
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 1 small bunch fresh thyme
• 25 g goats cheese

Instructions

 

• Cut the top and bottom off the beetroot. Chop the beetroot into bitesize pieces (no need to peel). Drizzle with one tablespoon of the olive oil and a pinch of salt, then put in the oven to roast at 180 degrees for 20 minutes, shaking a couple of times throughout the cooking process.
• Chop the onion and add to a casserole dish with the rest of the oil, and cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes before adding the risotto rice.
• Stir for 30 seconds and then add the wine.
• When most of the wine has been absorbed, begin to add the stock bit by bit, stirring fairly often to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
• When you have added half of the stock, add the chopped leaves of the thyme then continue adding the stock.
• After the beetroot has cooked for 20 minutes, add it and any cooking juices to the risotto. Continue adding the stock bit by bit.
• When all of the stock has been added and the risotto is deliciously gloopy (around 45 minutes), turn the heat off and put the lid on the pan for 5 minutes. Taste, and add salt and pepper where necessary.
• To serve, top with a spoonful of goats cheese. Enjoy!

Keyword beetroot, goats cheese, rice, risotto