Creamy Pea Risotto with Taleggio and Crispy Pancetta

Name: Creamy Pea Risotto with Taleggio and Crispy Pancetta
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Carnaroli rice 1.7 cups; Peas 2 cups; Taleggio cheese 3 oz; Smoked pancetta 5.3 oz; Vegetable broth 5.1 cups; White wine 3 oz; Fine salt to taste; Taleggio cheese 3.5 oz; Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese 3 oz

Difficulty: Easy
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Serving: 4
Cost: Low

PRESENTATION

Recipe by
Lulù Gargari

Creamy Pea Risotto with Taleggio and Crispy Pancetta opens with a technique that defines the whole dish: instead of folding whole peas into the rice, the peas are blended into a smooth, vibrantly colored cream that becomes the backbone of the risotto. Taleggio—a Lombard cheese with a soft, assertive character—goes in twice, once to deepen the pea cream and again at the mantecatura stage, the final off-heat stir that gives risotto its silky, emulsified finish.

Crispy pancetta lands on top, its salt and crunch cutting cleanly through both the richness of the cheese and the sweetness of the peas. The ingredients are straightforward, but the layered use of taleggio and the contrast between melting cheese and crisped cured meat give this pea risotto with pancetta and taleggio a refined, composed quality that holds up at a dinner-party table without demanding much from the cook.

INGREDIENTS

Carnaroli rice 1.7 cups (320 g)

Peas 2 cups (300 g)

Taleggio cheese 3 oz (80 g)

Smoked pancetta 5.3 oz (150 g)

Vegetable broth 5.1 cups (1.2 l)

White wine 3 oz (80 g)

Fine salt to taste

For finishing: Taleggio cheese 3.5 oz (100 g); Parmigiano Reggiano PDO cheese 3 oz (80 g)

Preparation

How to prepare Creamy Pea Risotto with Taleggio and Crispy Pancetta

To make the risotto with pea cream, Taleggio and pancetta, first prepare the Vegetable broth and keep it hot. Cut the pancetta into cubes, put it in a saucepan 1 and sauté the pancetta without adding any extra fat. When it is crispy and golden 2, set it aside and add the peas to the same saucepan 3.

Let them cook for a few minutes, moisten with a ladleful of hot broth 4 and cook for about 10 minutes in total, stirring occasionally 5. Transfer the peas to the jug of a blender, then add about 3 oz (80 g) of Taleggio, another ladleful of hot broth and puree with an immersion blender 6.

You should obtain a smooth, velvety cream 7. In the same saucepan add the rice 8 and toast it dry for about 2 minutes, stirring often. Deglaze with white wine and let the alcohol evaporate completely 9.

At this point start cooking the rice by adding a ladleful of hot broth at a time 10. Always make sure the liquid has been absorbed 11 before adding more. Halfway through cooking, season with salt to taste and incorporate the pea and Taleggio cream 12.

Finish cooking the rice, then turn off the heat. Add 3.5 oz (100 g) of Taleggio cut into pieces and the grated cheese 13. Stir vigorously to finish until you obtain a creamy, slightly loose risotto (all'onda). Plate and top with the crispy pancetta 14. Your risotto with pea cream, Taleggio and pancetta is ready to be served 15!