Ingredients

Method

• 4 cups chicken stock 
• ½ spiral fatty boerewors (about 350g) 
• 2 T olive oil 
• 75 g unsalted butter
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated 
• 1 t coriander seeds, crushed 
• 4–5 thyme sprigs, leaves picked 
• 330 g arborio rice 
• 1 1/3 beer (lager)
• 100 g pecorino or Parmesan cheese

Method

Ingredients

1. Place the stock in a saucepan and bring to the boil, then reduce heat to very low and keep just below a simmer.

2. Squeeze the meat from the boerewors casing, then place in a cold, deep pan with the oil over a medium heat. You want to gently start to render the fat from the boerewors. Cook until the meat is very caramelised and break up the meat using a spoon if necessary. Remove the sausage mixture.

3. Add 50 g butter to the pan, then add the onions and cook for 10 minutes over a gentle heat. You don’t want much colour on the onions, you just want to cook slowly and intensify their sweetness.

4. Add the garlic, coriander seeds and thyme and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Add the rice, season, then stir for 2 minutes to coat in mixture. Add the beer, bring to a simmer and cook for 3–4 minutes until slightly reduced.

5. Add the hot stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring and allowing all the stock to be absorbed before adding the next, until all stock has been used, the rice is al dente and the mixture is creamy (this will take about 15–20 minutes).

6. Remove from heat, season and stir in the cheese and dollop over the remaining 25 g butter. Allow the risotto to stand for a minute or two for the butter to melt, then either toss the mixture together quickly or stir vigorously to emulsify. This makes the risotto extra creamy at the end!

7. Stir through the crisp boerewors and serve topped with extra Parmesan and cracked black pepper

Find more risotto recipes here

Extracted with permission from Food Trail South African recipesby Warren Mendes and published by Penguin Random House South Africa.