Turkey and Ham Risotto Recipe

A Great Way to Use up Christmas Leftovers

Dec 28, 2007 Elizabeth Gregory

This is a very flexible recipe that can be adapted to use up whatever you happen to have left over from your Christmas Dinner.

Serves Four

Ingredients;

  • 300g short-grain or risotto rice
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 small knobs of butter
  • 1 glass of red wine (optional)
  • at least 1 pint of hot vegetable or chicken stock (made up from a stock cube is fine) - you may need more than this depending on the rice you use
  • 1 generous handful each of cooked ham and cooked turkey, chopped into small cubes
  • 1 generous handful frozen peas

Instructions:

  1. Finely chop the onion and garlic. Heat the olive oil with one of the knobs of butter in a large, deep-sided frying pan, and gently fry the onion and garlic for a few minutes until just becoming translucent.
  2. Add the rice to the pan and stir around for a minute so that the rice absorbs some of the oil in the pan. Then turn the heat up high and add the glass of red wine, stirring continuously - the liquid should quickly burn off but the rice and onion will have absorbed all the flavour. You can omit this step altogether if you prefer not to use alcohol, or you can substitute another alcoholic drink such as white wine or vermouth instead.
  3. Now turn the heat down to a gentle simmer and begin to add your stock. You should add this gradually, stirring often, taking care to add it slowly enough that the rice can absorb all the water. Don't be tempted to turn up the heat to reduce the amount of time spent at the stove - the stock will all evaporate before the rice is cooked. The amount of liquid you need varies according to the type of rice you have used - I always make up around a pint and a half and then discard any I don't use at the end. You shouldn't need to add salt, as the stock and the ham will both provide saltiness, but you may wish to add some pepper at this point.
  4. After about 10 or 12 minutes, when the rice is almost cooked, add the chopped meat and peas to the pan and continue stirring and adding stock until the rice is cooked to your taste. Don't allow the risotto to become too dry - ensure that you have a little liquid left in the pan. Once the rice is ready. turn off the heat and add the second knob of butter to the pan, stirring gently until it has melted - this produces a lovely thick glossy sauce.
  5. Serve immediately. This can be eaten on its own but goes well with a green salad or some crusty bread if you need to make it stretch a little further.

Variations:

  • Any cold meat can be used in this recipe. You could also use uncooked meat such as chicken breasts - simply cut into small cubes and add to the pan with the onions at the beginning.
  • You can omit the peas, or replace them with any other leftover vegetables you may have, such as mushrooms or sweetcorn.
  • The recipe I have gven here is quite rich, but if you want to make this even more comforting for a cold winter night, grate a little parmesan and add at the end with the butter.

The copyright of the article Turkey and Ham Risotto Recipe in Recipes is owned by Elizabeth Gregory. Permission to republish Turkey and Ham Risotto Recipe in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
Turkey and Ham Risotto, Liz Gregory, 27/12/2007
Turkey and Ham Risotto
    
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