Eliane’s Risotto

March 27, 2025

(I am so excited to start a recipe with this phrase.) My grandmother used to make a risotto. She taught my mother, who taught me. I make it all the time. It's delicious. It's not risotto. I think my mom and grandmother grew up in Egypt and just didn't know what a risotto was. Whatever it's amazing just make it.

I want to emphasize that this recipe is a very simple base (rice, ground beef, tomato paste) and lots of improvisation. The goal is to make something that feels multi-layered and savory.

Serves about 5.

• 1½ lb ground beef (20% fat)
• 1 yellow onion (minced)
• 3 oz tomato paste
• 14½ oz can of peas and carrots
• Random garbage (see below for advice)
• 2 cups dry rice
• Some vermicelli or orzo (not much)
• Butter
• Grated cheese (cheddar works well)

Again, really just mess around with these ingredients.

• Rice:
  1. Melt several tablespoons of butter in large pot.
  2. Add vermicelli or orzo, stir frequently until light golden color. This can burn easily, pay attention.
  3. Add rice, 4 cups of water or broth, and some salt.
  4. Simmer 20 minutes or whatever the rice directions say.
• Sauce:
  1. Put large pan on medium heat.
  2. Add meat and onions.
  3. Cook until meat is quite cooked—dark brown and crusty. Don't stop when it's medium-gray, and don't spoon off the fat, that's the tasty part.
  4. Add tomato paste and whatever else you want (see below for advice).
  5. Add 1 cup of water. Simmer for as long as you like. This part can be made ahead of time, just turn off the heat and let it sit on the stove.
  6. Here you can either use as-is, or add more water and one teaspoon flour dissolved in cold water to make a thick sauce.
  7. Add the peas and carrots.
  8. Simmer, adding water and/or flour, to make saucy mess, about 15 minutes.
  9. Optional: Add 1 tablespoon cream.
  10. Salt and pepper to taste.
• Have each person serve themselves some rice and sauce, and top with grated cheese.

Some advice:

• For the seasonings, use whatever you have that's savory and flavorful. In the past I've used:
  • Lots of black pepper
  • Oregano
  • Soy sauce (for flavor and salt)
  • Dark soy sauce (for color, looks great!)
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Sriracha for a bit of heat
  • Garlic
  • Sautéed bacon
  • Balsamic vinegar after you turn off the heat
  You get the idea, just look in your pantry. There's no “right” taste for this dish.
• One way to tell if you've properly salted the rice water is to taste it. See if it tastes like you want the rice to taste. This is especially helpful if you've replaced some of the water with broth or stock, which can itself be salted.
• There's not much tomato paste. It's not a spaghetti sauce. The tomato is there to give it a bit of color and flavor.
• If the onion comes out too raw for you, you can saute it first, before you add the beef. A fast way to do this is to put it in the frying pan with some salt, water, and oil, cover it, boil it for five minutes, take the cover off, let the water evaporate, saute it a bit more until it's light brown, push it to the side, then add the meat. Once the meat is browned, mix the onions back in. See the photos below.

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