Lemon and Dill Risotto

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I love it when inspiration for a recipe comes from a single ingredient. That is exactly where this delicious Lemon and Dill Risotto came from. We had made a wonderful and simply sauce for Tacos which consisted of Greek Yoghurt, Sour Cream, Lemon, and Dill. The sauce was amazing. In fact, look out for the Taco sauce recipe soon on this website! Anyway, we had all this leftover Dill in the fridge, which is what inspired us to whip up this simple, yet amazing recipe

There is no denying that when it comes to food pairings, Lemon and Dill are up there with some of the best friends in the food world. Similar to Garlic and Onion, Honey and Soy, Bacon and Everything, Lemon and Dill pairs so beautifully together whenever they’re combined in a dish. I guess that is what is so special about this Lemon and Dill Risotto is that the star of the dish is simply these two amazing ingredients

This Risotto celebrates its core ingredients and is not shy about it!

With so few ingredients making up this dish, you really do get to experience the star ingredients in their truest form. That is exactly what this dish is about too. If you’re a fan of Lemon and Dill, you will absolutely love this recipe. From the first bite you’ll know exactly what we mean by this. The dish flavor is bright, acidic, and packs a punch!

Lemon is used so frequently in recipes as a flavor enhancer. It brings brightness and acidity to a dish. Usually, it works as an ingredient to help balance out dishes that would be otherwise too rich, or heavy. In many ways it serves a similar purpose in this Risotto, as the natural creaminess of Risotto benefits massively with a bright, Lemon hit

The difference with this dish, however, is that Lemon is the strongest ingredient at the forefront of the meal. It truly celebrates Lemon as a star ingredient. One worthy of being the primary flavor in a recipe!

Dill is another ingredient that is not shy on flavor. In fact, Dill is one of the most intensely flavored herbs out there. Packed full of a unique flavor, slight aniseed, yet almost produces a grassy-like flavor. Dill is perhaps a less commonly used Herb than some of its senior cousins like Parsley, Cilantro, and Basil. It works perfectly in this Risotto as a beautiful, complimentary flavor to the Lemon

The secret to a perfect Risotto every time

There is one trick to use when making Risotto to guarantee it’ll be packed full of flavor every time you cook it. Regardless of what type of Risotto you’re making, you must follow this trick. That is, to use your own homemade stock

The cornerstone to flavor in Risotto lies in the Rice, and when the Rice is cooked, it absorbs all the flavor that it is cooked in. If you cook the rice simply in water, there will be no flavor in the Rice! It’ll just taste bland and dull. Good quality Stock will give the rice an unbelievable amount of flavor which transforms your Risotto into restaurant-quality levels

We also urge you to please make your own Stock / Broth and resist the urge to take a shortcut and buy the store-bought stuff. The stuff from the store doesn’t taste nearly as good as homemade broth. Also, to keep it shelf-stable, they are packed full of Sodium (Salt) which means it is incredibly bad for you to eat. Even the ‘low sodium’ stuff is packed full of it. It’s bad for you, and adds way too much Salt to the dish which completely alters the flavor, and not in a good way

Making your own homemade stock is so easy. For this recipe we’re using our Chicken Stock recipe. You can also use Vegetable Stock if you want to keep this dish Vegetarian or Vegan

It’s a Risotto, so of course we’re adding Parmesan Cheese!

This beautiful Lemon and Dill Risotto wouldn’t really be complete without adding a generous amount of Parmesan Cheese now would it? The classic finishing ingredient in most Risottos is some good quality Parmesano Reggiano Cheese. We highly encourage you to splash out a little bit more cash and get the good stuff. Like good quality Olive Oil in a salad, you can taste the difference with good quality Parmesan Cheese in a Risotto

Parmesan Cheese adds a beautiful nutty flavor to the Risotto, as well as that sharpness that you associate with the cheese. Once melted into the Risotto, it adds much needed body to the Risotto as well as a creamy, velvety texture

Eat this recipe as is, or use it as a base for adding more delicious ingredients to a hearty Risotto

We made this Lemon and Dill Risotto and ate it exactly as the recipe goes below. It tasted amazing as it is, so we guarantee you’ll be more than happy with this dish as a meal for dinner. However, it is such an adaptable recipe with ingredients that pair with so many proteins that you can add your favorite ingredients to this recipe, and it’ll taste special

Chicken would be a great addition to this dish. We’d suggest simply pan frying up the Chicken separately in a pan with a bit of Salt and Pepper then mixing it into the dish once the Risotto is cooked. This way you’ll be sure that your Chicken is not overcooked, yet still has a little bit of time to absorb that beautiful Lemon and Dill flavor before serving

Another classic combination with a Lemon and Dill Risotto is adding Salmon. Like all seafood, Salmon and Lemon work wonders together. The bright acidity of the Lemon really helps to bring out the beautiful flavors of the Salmon. The fattiness of Salmon is a great contrast to the Lemon and Dill too and does help to mellow out the overall flavor a tad. Great if you’re looking for a Risotto with a little bit more accessibility, as this Risotto can be a little sharp! (not necessarily a bad thing though!)

The combination of Salmon with the Lemon and Dill Risotto is so good that we made our own Salmon Lemon and Dill Arancini (recipe coming soon!) with the leftovers! If you’ve got leftovers we highly recommend giving this recipe a try. It’s great for Lunch the next day or as an appetizer before your next meal

This dish can be 100% Vegan. Simply use Vegetable Stock and omit the Parmesan Cheese

Finally, if you’re looking for a purely Vegan dish this is a super easy recipe to adapt. Instead of using Chicken Stock you can make a beautiful Homemade Vegetable Stock which will taste just as good. Also, just exclude the Parmesan Cheese at the end and you’ve got a 100% Vegan Lemon and Dill Risotto to dive into

Lemon and Dill Risotto Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup Arborio Rice
• 3 cups Chicken Stock (recipe here)
• Juice of 3 Lemons
• Zest of 1 ½ Lemons
• ½ cup Fresh Dill, chopped
• 1 Onion, finely diced
• 4 Garlic Cloves, finely diced
• 1 ½ cups White Wine
• 1 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• Salt
  
  

Instructions

1. Add the Olive Oil to a large frying pan or Pot and place on the stovetop over medium heat. Once the Oil is hot, add the Onions and 1 tsp. of Salt. Cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally
2. While the Onions are cooking, pour the Chicken Stock into a separate saucepan and heat. Do not boil, but ensure it is at a warm temperature
3. Once the Onions have started to brown, add the Garlic and Rice, and stir through well. After 1 minute, add the White Wine and stir occasionally until the Wine has almost completely disappeared – about 3-4 minutes
4. Begin to add the Chicken stock about ½ cup at a time, stirring consistently as the stock absorbs into the Rice. Once the Stock has almost completely absorbed, add another ½ cup of Stock
5. Repeat this process until the rice has absorbed all the Chicken Stock. This process will take about 20 – 25 minutes. The Rice will be cooked, and the Risotto will have a slightly runny texture, which is exactly what you want
6. Add the Lemon Juice, Lemon Zest, Dill, Parmesan Cheese, and 2 tsp. of Salt then turn off the heat. Mix well and taste for seasoning, adjusting accordingly
7. Finish by serving the Risotto onto individual plates with a garnish of more chopped Dill. Grate some additional Parmesan Cheese over the top and serve immediately
   
   

We love this Lemon and Dill Risotto because it is so easy to make and packs an amazing amount of flavor. If you love these kinds of dishes we recommend you check out these other recipes of ours which are easy to make and are super flavorful:

• Hanger Steak Frites
• Easy Chicken Burritos
• Harissa Chicken and Vegetables
• Honey Soy Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry
  
  

Happy Cooking!