Oven Baked Risotto with Bacon and Tomato

An easy oven baked risotto recipe, no stirring and super tasting, created using store cupboard staples. A brilliant family dinner favourite. 

There’s nothing quite like the comforting carb-fest of a bowl of beautifully made, silky risotto. For me, something about that welcoming bowl of rice, made into something delicious, just says “all is okay with the world”.

Years ago, in a wonderful local restaurant (which is now, sadly, less wonderful) I ate a really simple saffron risotto with shavings of Parmesan.

I’ve often thought about that risotto and it’s the only dish that got a place in what would be my last supper menu without too much need to over analyse it. And oh, believe me, I’ve analysed my last supper menu A LOT.

I love well made risotto so much, but I hardly ever have the time to spend twenty minutes diligently stirring to make it. So, over these years of busy motherhood, I’ve perfected my own really simple cheat’s risotto. Of course, it’s not quite what you’ll get from giving it twenty minutes of TLC, but the addition of excellent quality tinned tomatoes, helps to create that velvety, starchy sauce.

You might remember that I’ve been working with Cirio, who make the best tinned tomatoes I’ve ever used. In this recipe I’ve used the Cirio Pomodorini Cherry Tomatoes. These little red jewels keep their shape through the cooking (as you’re not stirring) for bursts of taste in the finished dish.

This is a perfect, midweek family meal. On the table in less than half an hour, from simple ingredients.

Oven Baked Risotto with Bacon and Tomato

 

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Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 tsp Olive oil
• 1 Large onion, finely chopped
• 2 Cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 200g Smoked bacon, cut into very small pieces
• 300g Arborio Rice
• 1 litre Vegetable stock (made with a good quality cube is fine)
• 1 x 400g tin of Cirio Pomodorini Cherry Tomato (see note above)
• A handful of fresh thyme leaves (strip them from the stalks)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

To serve:

• Parmesan cheese
• More fresh thyme leaves

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160C.
2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy, oven proof/hob proof saucepan (which has a lid).
3. Fry off the onion, garlic and chopped bacon until the onion is soft and the bacon has started to brown.
4. Add in the rice and stir everything together until the rice is well coated.
5. Allow to cook for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring, until the rice starts to look shiny.
6. Add in the stock, the tomatoes and the handful of thyme, along with some ground black pepper.
7. Stir well and put on a well fitting lid.
8. Pop into the oven for 20 minutes.
9. After the 20 minutes, stir, check for seasoning and add salt only if needed (this will depend on the bacon you used).
10. Serve topped with some more fresh thyme (just a little) and grated Parmesan.

3.5.3208

What’s your favourite store cupboard stand by meal? What would be on your last supper menu..?

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Disclosure: This recipe was commissioned by Cirio. As always, all opinions are truthful and I wouldn’t endorse a product I didn’t genuinely think was brilliant.

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The post Oven Baked Risotto with Bacon and Tomato appeared first on Taming Twins.