I’ve always loved risotto. I love the way it tastes, the rich starchiness of it, punctuated with the umami-ness of freshly grated parmesan. I especially love risotto made with home-made stock. It’s comforting in a way few other foods are. I also love making it. It’s a dish that forces you to slow down, and after a long (stressful) day at work, that is often what one needs most—except, of course, a kiss and a hug from the wife and a couple licks and wags from the dogs. Risotto requires patience, which I’m not known to have. But for this dish, in order to make it just right, I’m forced to slow down, softly stirring the just simmering rice for anywhere from 20 minutes to half an hour. And it’s something I really enjoy. I enjoy the process. I also enjoy the anticipation of perfectly cooked risotto, and enjoying it with someone (or some ones) special.
One of the sweetest people in Singapore is the chef of the Tiffin Room at Raffles Hotel. Chef Yogesh believes that food tastes better when you “cook with love.” Whether that’s a love of the food, the people you’re serving, or both, I was never completely sure. But, in essence, he’s right. Food tastes better when it’s made passionately, for people you care about. And risotto is the perfect kind of food for this. It forces you to really spend time on it, on what for many would be an annoying, monotonous task. But to the ones cooking it, as Yogesh would say, “with love”, it’s hardly a chore, but something to take pleasure and pride in.
The above is a plate of some risotto my wife and I made last night. We used pulled pork (saved from the slow braised belly pork we made a few days back) and home-made pork stock. We added some peas for color and taste, and, of course, fresh parmesan.
About Aun Koh
Aun has always loved food and travel, passions passed down to him from his parents. This foundation, plus a background in media, pushed him to start Chubby Hubby in 2005. He loves that this site allows him to write about the things he adores--food, style, travel, his wife and his three kids!
