RECIPE | Antonio Salvatore’s Risotto with Saffron, Red Mullet and Gremolata

Serves 4

For the Vegetable Broth

Ingredients

• 1 red onion
• 2 carrots
• 2 sticks celery
• parsley stalks
• salt

Method

1. Roughly chop the vegetables and herbs.
2. Put all the cut vegetables, herbs and salt in a large saucepan with water and boil for about 20 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, filter the broth and set aside for use later.

For the Red Mullet Sauce

Ingredients

• bones from a red mullet
• 1/2 an onion
• 1 stalk celery
• 1 carrot
• 200g peeled tomatoes
• 40g cognac
• salt
• black pepper

Method

1. Put the vegetables with the red mullet bones in a saucepan and brown them.
2. When everything is well coloured, flambé with the cognac.
3. Add some of the vegetable broth from the step above, along with the tomatoes and boil for about 40 min.
4. Strain the sauce and reduce.
5. When the sauce is well reduced, season with salt and pepper.

For the Parsley Powder

Ingredients

• handful of parsley

Method

1. Dry the parsley in the oven at 65 ° C for about 20 minutes.
2. When it is dry, chop it or mix it with a blender to obtain a fine powder.

For the Gremolata

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of parsley
• 1 clove of garlic
• zest of half a lemon

Method

1. Finely chop all the ingredients with a knife or food processor.
2. Set aside for later use.

For the Risotto

Ingredients

• 240g Carnaroli rice
• 1g saffron
• 4 red mullet fillets
• 20g parsley powder (from above)
• 20g gremolata (from above)
• 60g red mullet sauce (from above)
• vegetable broth (from above)

Method 

1. Toast the rice with a drizzle of olive oil. When the rice grain is hot to the touch, add some vegetable broth to start cooking the risotto.
2. Cook the rice for about 14/15 minutes over moderate heat, gradually adding the broth that the rice needs.
3. Three-quarters of the way through cooking, add the saffron.
4. Once the risotto is cooked, whisk over the heat off with olive oil.
5. Cook the red mullet fillet by searing it on the skin side and finishing in the oven for about 4 minutes.
6. Serve the risotto on plates, top with the cooked mullet fillet (1 per person).
7. Sprinkle the gremolata and the parsley powder over the risotto and serve with a spoonful of red mullet sauce to complete the dish.

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Recipe courtesy of Antonio Salvatore of Rampoldi and Michelin-starred Table d’Antonio Salvatore au Rampoldi in Monte Carlo.