Acquerello is the very best risotto rice you can buy

Risotto: it’s one of my favorite dishes. Not only because of the flavor (make Roberto’s saffron risotto and you’ll understand what I mean), but certainly also because of the process. Making risotto is relaxing and rewarding. Stirring over a steaming pan as more and more aromas are released and the risotto slowly reaches perfection… heavenly! You make the very best risotto with the best rice: Acquerello risotto rice. 

Risotto is a simple dish with few ingredients, which is why it’s important that all the ingredients are of the highest quality. And that starts with the type of rice you use. Famous chefs such as Alain Ducasse and Heston Blumenthal are fans of Acquerello risotto rice, so you know: this must be really good stuff. What’s the secret of this rice?

Acquerello risotto rice

Arborio is the best-known and most widely available risotto rice in supermarkets. There’s nothing wrong with it; you can make delicious risotto with it too. It’s rice with a large, almost round grain. The downside of this rice is that it quickly becomes overcooked. That’s why I swear by carnaroli rice, which has a slightly longer grain. Thanks to its higher starch content, this highly praised rice can absorb more moisture without becoming overcooked. The Rondolino family’s Acquerello therefore also uses this type of rice.

Since 1935, they have harvested Piemontese rice in the Po Valley (arborio rice is also harvested in the Po Valley, incidentally). And they take their time doing it: they happily allow a year for the grains to dry, and for part of the harvest even seven years! During cooking, the grains increase enormously in size and all the flavor goes into the grain instead of remaining on the outside. The result is a wonderfully creamy risotto with a firm texture.

Rice grains that dance in your mouth

Another part of the secret is how the rice is treated. In the final stage, it is processed using a special machine that improves the quality of the polished rice. In the last phase, the germ that was removed before the process began is added back to the rice just before packaging in the form of a very healthy oil extracted from the germ. This is also why Acquerello rice is vacuum-packed.

The rice grains you then take out of the package and use to make your risotto produce grains that, as Italians say, dance in your mouth (‘ballano in bocca’). And with this golden step-by-step risotto guide, you can turn it into the risotto dish of your dreams.

Acquerello rice is available through food-service supplier Vanilla Venture.

Also read:

• The brilliant trick for a super risotto you’ll wish you’d known sooner
• Risotto al Barolo is the recipe you’ll want to make tonight
• Recipe for an insanely delicious lemon risotto