Sticky risotto?

[archiduc]

Originally Posted by synecdoche

I made risotto for the second-ever time last night. It tasted amazing, but it ended up being very sticky and gluey. I think had I turned the plate upside-down, it wouldn't have moved.

How can I avoid this next time? It was a very basic recipe, just arborio rice and stock, doing the ol' add some stock, wait until it is absorbed, add some more, till the rice is done.

I started by sauteeing some onion, celery, and garlic in oil, added the rice, then started adding the stock. About halfway through I added some chopped asparagus and a bit of lemon juice, too. I stirred in some butter at the end, too.

Hi Synedoche,
Lots of things could be happening here but it sounds to me as though you did not have enough liquid/stock in the recipe at the end. The mixture should be moist before you add the traditional finishing mix of butter and freshly grated parmesan at the end.

The mixture needs to be sufficiently strong enough to create a dome shape when you pick it up with a spoon but slack enough when you place it on a plate, so I suspect that you reduced the mixture too much and a tablespoon of two of your good stock will have been advantageous. Remember that the risotto thickens on standing as it is a starch product and adding freshly grated parmesan (an essential final ingrediants also thickens the mix).

Hope this helps,
Archiduc