A Recipe for Risotto Made With Amarone Wine (Risotto all'Amarone)

How to make risotto with Amarone della Valpolicella, a rich red wine from Verona.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons (1.5 ounces/43 grams) plus 2 teaspoons butter
• 1.5 cups (11 ounces/320 grams) of Carnaroli risotto rice (or Vialone Nano)
• 2 cups (16 ounces/473 mL) Amarone wine
• 0.75 cup of freshly grated Monte Veronese (Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese)
• Vegetable (or chicken) broth (as needed)
• Fine sea salt (to taste)

Steps

1. In a medium Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed saucepan, toast the rice over medium-low heat in 2 teaspoons of the butter
2. In a separate, nonreactive saucepan or Dutch oven, gently heat the Amarone wine and, as soon as it reaches a bare simmer, add it to the rice.
3. Continue cooking the rice, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until the wine is absorbed, about 16 to 18 minutes. Add a bit of vegetable broth, as needed, toward the end of cooking. 
4. When the rice is cooked to al dente consistency and the liquid has reduced to a creamy sauce, remove the risotto from the heat and add the remaining 3 tablespoons butter and the grated Monte Veronese cheese. Stir until well combined, season to taste with salt, and serve immediately.
5. Serve the finished risotto sprinkled with grated or thinly shaved aged Monte Veronese cheese (another Veronese specialty), Grana Padano, or Parmigiano-Reggiano . It makes sense, of course, to serve this risotto paired with a glass of Amarone della Valpolicella wine.