POST-ROAST RISOTTO

This week, and for the first time in a while, I cooked a roast chicken dinner. 

As I really can’t be bothered with making stock, chicken leftovers are usually served up as cold meat or  in a curry.  This time though, we still had had some of the lemon and thyme used to flavour the roast left, along with a variety of healthy vegetables.

With the addition of rice -  always a cheap and easy way to bulk out a meal – this was the obvious solution.

We call it Post-Roast Risotto. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 onion, chopped

Half a lemon

250g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

225g broccoli florets (stems can be kept for Odds and Sods Stirfry)

175g fine beans

1.5 litres vegetable stock, made with Marigold Bouillon

Leftover roast chicken, as close to 200g as you can manage.

350g Arborio rice

200ml white wine

fresh thyme leaves

Freshly grated parmesan

salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan and add the chopped garlic and onion.   Cook on a gentle heat for 2-3 minutes until the onion softens and begins to turn transparent.

2. Break the broccoli into florets and halve the beans. Blanch in salted water for 4-5 minutes.  Drain and refresh under the cold tap. Put to one side.

3. Add the rice, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and approximately a ladleful of stock.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Cook gently, stirring while the stock is absorbed, adding ladleful by ladleful as each addition is soaked up.  Make sure at least a ladleful is left for the final stage.

5. After approximately 15 minutes your stock should be mostly absorbed and the rice creamy.  Add the mushrooms, broccoli, beans, cold chicken, thyme leaves and your remaining stock.

6. Cover and simmer for another 5 minutes until the rice is tender and all the liquid absorbed.

7. Adjust your seasoning if needed, and serve with freshly grated parmesan.  Thrifty and delicious!