Purple Risotto

risotto alle carote viola

I love colorful food! It is more appetizing and exciting to cook with and eat. Generally, naturally colorful food is more nutritious and healthier (key word *natural* sorry Flaming Hot Cheetos). One of my favorite colorful vegetables is the purple carrot, which I have turned into purple risotto.

Heirloom carrots can grow in a variety of colors, but I’m always drawn to the purple ones – probably because purple is my favorite color! I love their cross section that shows layers of yellow and orange rings, like a beautiful bull’s eye.

Another trait to the purple carrot is that the color will bleed and transfer to surrounding ingredients. This can be unwanted and unappetizing if you haven’t planned for it, but used purposefully, it can create a beautiful final dish.

With this purple carrot risotto, I create a purple tinted vegetable broth to cook the rice with and add in some cooked carrot rings for contrast. Of course, finishing with some grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, the end result is a deliciously creamy and earthy spring risotto dish.

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Risotto is a standard of Italian cuisine and has a reputation of being intimidating and difficult. But, I enjoy standing at the stove stirring warm broth into the rice, watching the grains slowly plump up and thicken. It can be very relaxing and meditative. It’s important to take the time to appreciate the cooking process and ingredients. Of course, I recommend having a glass of wine close by to help you get in the mood. Chefs get thirsty!

Tips for Making the Perfect Risotto

• Keep the pot of broth warm over a low heat.
• Add broth slowly to the rice, one ladle at a time. Stir gently and wait for the liquid to be almost fully absorbed before adding another.
• Continue to taste to check for seasoning and doneness. Risotto rice should be cooked al dente, like pasta, so it should have a slight chew.
• Turn off the heat when the risotto is still a little saucy and serve immediately. If the pan is completely dry, then you will end up with a dry risotto once it is plated.

Ingredients

• Purple carrots
• Celery
• Onion
• Arborio rice
• White wine
• Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• Extra virgin olive oil

Purple carrots, like their orange cousins, are highly nutritious and are rich in vitamin A and beta-carotene. However, their main difference is the presence of anthocyanin, which gives them their color. This purple pigment, also found in purple and blue foods like blueberries, is a terrific source of healthy antioxidants.

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Arborio rice is the classic choice for risotto. Try using Carnaroli rice if you can find it. It produces the creamiest risotto and is more resistant to overcooking and becoming mushy. Risotto rice should be cooked to al dente, like pasta, so it should have a slight chew.

Step by Step

Many Italian risotto recipes start with making a simple, homemade vegetable broth consisting of onion, celery and carrot. For this purple risotto, the carrot will flavor the broth and tint it a deep purple color.

Add the water to a pot along with half the onion, celery ribs and carrot. The carrots I cut into chunks so that they cook through faster, which will take about 8-10 minutes once the water has come to a boil. Make sure to season the broth with salt.

Then lower the heat and remove the carrot chunks with a slotted spoon and transfer to a straight sided container, like a tall measuring cup, along with a couple tablespoons of water. Blend with an immersion blender until a thick, creamy consistency. This can also be done in a stand blender.

Keep the pot of broth over a very low heat just to keep it warm.

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Now, to start the risotto, heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large sautépan set over medium-high heat. Sauté the other half of the onion, minced. Stir occasionally and cook until soft and translucent, 3-5 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper. 

Add the carrot discs, stir and cook for another 2 minutes, just until they develop a little color and begin to soften. It’s hard to see browning on dark purple carrots so don’t panic over this step. The carrots will continue to cook in the broth along with the rice.

Add the arborio rice and stir to thoroughly coat the grains in the oil and onions. Keep stirring and let them toast and begin to turn opaque, about 1-2 minutes.

Pour in the white wine and stir until the wine is absorbed by the rice.

Add one ladle of warm broth to the pan along with a large spoonful of the pureed carrot. Stir until the carrot is distributed and the broth is almost all absorbed.

Repeat with remaining broth and carrot puree, until the rice is cooked through and has achieved a rich, creamy consistency. You may not use all the carrot puree. Just keep adding until you achieve desired taste and consistency. This process should take approximately 25 – 30 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Turn off the heat and stir in the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Risotto is best served immediately!

Tips and FAQs

For extra creamy purple carrot risotto, stir in a knob of butter at the end with the parmesan cheese. 

Substitutions

• Store-bought vegetable broth can be used in place of the homemade broth. Remove celery and half onion from the recipe.
• For dairy-free purple risotto, omit the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Purple Risotto Recipe

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