My love for a big bowl of creamy risotto is huge. As someone who was a vegetarian for many years and someone who is married to a vegan, risotto saves the day in a lot of ways. It’s creamy, hearty, and absolutely perfect for a customizable topping that suits almost any dietary preference. If you’re wondering about how I adapt this for my vegan husband, I serve his lemon risotto with grilled vegetables, and I use vegan butter and vegetable broth. I love to riff on my instant pot risotto recipe and make the same substitutions for him, and omit the Parmesan in favor of extra salt. I needed a way to use the leftover shrimp from my shrimp fried rice recipe, and I thought of risotto! I used both lemon juice and lemon and top it with shrimp. The flavor combination of a grilled shrimp skewer plus tangy lemon is so refreshing! Shrimp is the ideal protein, because you can keep in the freezer until right before you need it. Plus, it comes in bags that allow for you to take out exactly how many you need while saving the rest. I also use frozen shrimp for my garlic butter shrimp, which seems so impressive, but is really the simplest meal. We’ve got lots of things to do with shrimp today!
Ingredients for lemon risotto:
shrimp: We need 12 whole shrimp that have been deveined but have their tail left on. We’re serving 6 shrimp on top of each bed of lemon risotto. olive oil: The shrimp sears in olive oil in a grill pan. fresh lemon: We need both the lemon zest and lemon juice for this recipe. The shrimp marinate in the lemon juice, and the risotto is flavored with the lemon zest stirred in. salt and pepper: For seasoning and garnishing along the way. red pepper flakes: Just a bit of spice on the shrimp to counterbalance the creamy lemon risotto. butter: I use a small amount of unsalted butter for sautéing the vegetables. onion: We need ½ a cup of diced white or yellow onion. garlic: Two small cloves of garlic, minced. arborio rice: You really need arborio or Carnaroli rice to make risotto. These short rice grains release starch while cooking, making risotto creamy. No other rice will work. dry white wine: I like to deglaze my pan with a dry (not sweet) white wine before adding the chicken stock to bring acidity to the dish. If you don’t like to cook with wine, leave it out and substitute an equal amount of chicken broth. chicken broth: Homemade chicken broth is always amazing, but I also recommend a low-salt chicken broth from the store. fresh parsley: Optional fresh parsley, for garnish.
How to make lemon risotto with grilled shrimp:
I happen to think risotto for two is a great date night at home recipe, and I suggest serving it with molten chocolate cakes for two for dessert!
shrimp: We need 12 whole shrimp that have been deveined but have their tail left on. We’re serving 6 shrimp on top of each bed of lemon risotto.olive oil: The shrimp sears in olive oil in a grill pan.fresh lemon: We need both the lemon zest and lemon juice for this recipe. The shrimp marinate in the lemon juice, and the risotto is flavored with the lemon zest stirred in.salt and pepper: For seasoning and garnishing along the way.red pepper flakes: Just a bit of spice on the shrimp to counterbalance the creamy lemon risotto.butter: I use a small amount of unsalted butter for sautéing the vegetables.onion: We need ½ a cup of diced white or yellow onion.garlic: Two small cloves of garlic, minced.arborio rice: You really need arborio or Carnaroli rice to make risotto. These short rice grains release starch while cooking, making risotto creamy. No other rice will work.dry white wine: I like to deglaze my pan with a dry (not sweet) white wine before adding the chicken stock to bring acidity to the dish. If you don’t like to cook with wine, leave it out and substitute an equal amount of chicken broth.chicken broth: Homemade chicken broth is always amazing, but I also recommend a low-salt chicken broth from the store.fresh parsley: Optional fresh parsley, for garnish.
