Our friend Safia gave me the idea for this dish when we were talking about our favourite food combinations. Roasted red peppers and paprika create such a deep, delicious flavour that tastes delicious cooked into a risotto here, plus the colour is breathtaking! It's a great dish to make when you've got all of the cupboard ingredients in the kitchen and have this recipe on hand to brighten up any evening.
Serves 4 & takes 45-50 minutes to cook
Ingredients
For the risotto
2 veggie stock cubes, mixed with 900ml boiling water
1 red onion, peeled and diced
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced
300g risotto rice
2 teaspoons of paprika
2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
Olive oil
Salt
For the red pepper paste
1 jar of roasted red peppers (350g drained weight), drained
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon of harissa paste
Pinch of salt
Method
1. Place the stock cubes in a large pan with 900ml of boiling water and mix until well dissolved.
2. Place a pan over a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil. Once warm, add the chopped garlic, onion and a pinch of salt, mix well and cook for 5-10 minutes until soft.
3. Once the onion has become soft, stir through the risotto rice and paprika, and cook for 2 minutes before adding a quarter of the hot vegetable stock. Mix well and leave to simmer for 30 minutes, stirring constantly and topping it up with a quarter of the stock every time the risotto rice looks like it has absorbed most of the water.
4. While the risotto rice simmers, place all of the paste ingredients into a blender. Blend until smooth, adding a dash of water to create a red paste.
5. Once the risotto rice feels soft and has absorbed all of the water, stir through the red pepper paste and nutritional yeast. Cook for 5-10 minutes until everything is piping hot and cooked through.
