the thin chef

In an effort to eat more cleanly, more locally, more healthfully, Jason and I have cut meat out of most of the meals we eat at home. I was a vegetarian for about a year in high school (and even flirted with veganism until I remembered how much I love cheese), and even though I do enjoy eating meat—hello, did you read my last post about bacon?—I am usually completely satisfied with meals created without it.

Perusing the recipes at vegetariantimes.com, I stumbled upon this brilliant idea to cook sushi rice like risotto (it’s short-grained and high-starch, after all, just like arborio or carnaroli), using miso broth instead of stock. I didn’t follow their recipe exactly…I just took the method and tailored it to the vegetables I had on hand. Even if you don’t love miso soup—Jason doesn’t—the nutty, salty flavor adds a perfect something extra to the flavor. And of course, I used copious amounts of garlic and ginger for even more flavor.

Totally satiating, a bowlful of this vegetarian risotto is a perfect dinner paired with sliced cucumbers simply dressed with soy sauce, rice vinegar, and toasted sesame oil.

Sushi Rice Risotto
Serves 4

3 tablespoons white miso paste
2 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
3 or 4 large cloves garlic, minced
6 green onions, sliced (about 1 cup)
1  1/2 cups short-grain sushi rice
2/3 cup sake or dry white wine
1 pound baby bok choy, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Combine miso with 6 cups water in a saucepan, whisking to combine. Bring broth to a simmer, and adjust heat to keep at a simmer.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Add pepper, and cook until just tender. Transfer to a plate, and set aside. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in the stockpot over medium heat. Add ginger, garlic, and green onions. Cook, stirring constantly, until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Add sushi rice, and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add sake, and cook 1 or 2 minutes, until liquid is almost completely absorbed.

Ladle in 1/2 cup miso broth; cook and stir until broth is almost absorbed. Continue adding broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring often and allowing rice to absorb most of liquid before adding more. When rice is mostly done, stir in bok choy, stirring until wilted. Keep adding broth until rice is tender and cooked through. Add red pepper back to pot, stirring to combine. Taste for seasoning, and add salt and pepper, as needed. Add sesame oil, and serve immediately.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, August 19th, 2010 at 2:39 am and is filed under Asian, basic techniques, comfort food, healthy, inspiration, vegetables, vegetarian. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.