Risi e bisi (pronounced Rees-e a Bee-zee) is an ancient Venetian dish, which used to be cooked for the Doge on St. Mark’s day (April 25th) since the XVI century.
From The Most Serene Republic it spread along both coasts of the Adriatic Sea and down to Greece, Turkey and even Lebanon.
It’s neither a soup nor a risotto but something in between.
The delicate flavor of this dish makes it ideal for spring, when green peas are sweet and tender.
If you want to make this recipe vegetarian, just omit the pancetta (or prosciutto).
An ancient trick to give it a brilliant green color is to boil the pea pods in a separate pot, puree them with a hand food mill, and add a few tablespoons of this puree before putting in the rice.
Ingredients: Sp Gf Ef
(Serves 4)
- 12 oz. of shelled green peas
- 6 oz. of rice (preferably Vialone nano or Arborio)
- 1 quart of beef stock (homemade or from organic broth cubes)
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 Tbsp. Evoo
- 2 Tbsp. lean Pancetta or Prosciutto, in small cubes
- 1 Tbsp. of parsley, finely minced
- 1 Tbsp. of fennel leaves, finely minced (optional).
- 2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, grated
- Salt
- Pepper
Prepare the stock in advance by boiling a nice piece of beef meat, some beef bones, 1 onion, 1 carrot and 1 stalk of celery. You can substitute stock with broth made with organic cubes.
Shell the green peas. Melt 1 tbsp. of butter in a sauté pan, add the olive oil, the cubed pancetta (or prosciutto), the parsley, the fennel, and the onion. The fennel is optional, but it makes this rich dish much more digestible.
Sauté on medium heat for a few minutes, add the green peas, sauté them with the other ingredients for a couple of minutes, add a ladle of broth and cook for 10 minutes.
Add the rice and keep cooking, stirring often and adding broth, one ladle at a time, so that the rice never gets too dry. The consistency should always be “wavy”.
When the rice is cooked (in about 12-15 minutes) add the remaining Tbsp. of butter, the grated Parmesan cheese and grind some pepper. Stir and serve hot.