Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto with Lemon

May 20th, 2009 by katie

I love shrimp, risotto, and asparagus.  So I knew I would love this dish when I saw it in Gourmet magazine.  This is an excellent example of how frozen shrimp can be an great cheap protein.  Two pounds of frozen shrimp often go on sale here for less than ten dollars: making any shrimp dish a frugal choice.   I added some garlic and feta and served this with a fantastic Greek salad for a delicious, fresh meal.

This risotto is fantastic.  Creamy and satisfying like any risotto but still fresh and light tasting.

Risotto with Shrimp, Asparagus and Lemon

serves 6, prep 10 min, cook 40 min, adapted from Gourmet, May 2009
  • 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 1/4 cup Arborio rice
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine*
  • 2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1/2 cup crumbled feta
  • salt and pepper
  1. Combine broth and water in a small sauce pan.  Bring to a boil.
  2. Prepare and ice bath and add asparagus to boiling broth.
  3. Boil for 4 minutes or until crisp tender, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the asparagus to the ice bath. Keep broth at a simmer.
  4. Melt butter over medium heat in a large saucepan.
  5. Saute onion until soft.  Add garlic and saute a minute or two.
  6. Add rice and and cook another minute.  Add wine and simmer, stirring, until absorbed.
  7. Continue adding 1/2 cup of hot broth and stirring until most of broth mixture is absorbed and rice is al dente.
  8. Stir in shrimp, and cook until shrimp curl and turn pink, it only takes a few minutes.
  9. Stir in asparagus, lemon zest, Parmesan and feta, and salt and pepper to taste. Thin risotto with remaining broth as desired.

Cost Analysis:

  • 1 lb asparagus: $1.79
  • 1 1/4 cup Arborio rice: $1.87
  • 2 lb medium shrimp (frozen and thawed): $8.99
  • 1/2 cup crumbled feta: $1.75
  • Total cost for 6 servings: $14.40 or $2.40 per serving

* Apparently I was going to tell you something about dry white wine, but I forgot.  I like to use really acidic, grassy whites for risotto.  I like Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs: they are Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand and are always crisp and grassy.  I like Starborough, Kim Crawford, and Whitehaven.

Posted in Easy, Main Dish

9 Responses

  1. sweetbird

    I adore risotto, but rarely have the patience to stand in front of my stove for twenty minutes to make it. This would be a good way to use up the shrimp in my freezer though…

    You know you really don’t have to stir it the way people say. I mean you do have to stir every now and then but I just rummage around the kitchen doing other prep stuff. I add some broth, stir, then go chop tomatoes, then come back, stir, check how much liquid is in the pot, then either add more broth or go chop up something else. I actually put the risotto on and then cleaned my shrimp and made the salad while it was cooking. -Katie

  2. krysta

    i loved this recipe. i loved the lemon and everything was cooked perfectly but my italian grandmother is shaking her fist at you. tsk, tsk, you gotta stir.

  3. Sandi

    LOL. You don’t really have to stir constantly thank heavens. Risotto is on the menu a lot more frequently since I discovered that.

  4. noble pig

    I saw this too and it looked amazing and wow what a great picture, very appetizing.

  5. EB

    How did the feta work? It seems like it could easily overpower.

    I used domestic feta so it certainly wasn’t in danger of overpowering the other flavors, an imported feta might be stronger. I like feta in risotto because it doesn’t melt and disappear the way other cheeses do. It gets creamy and soft but stays in little chunks, like the asparagus and shrimp. So you can choose feta bites and non-feta bites as you eat. -Katie

  6. Hungry Jenny

    Mm, that looks gorgeous! Definitely gotta try that one out. I haven’t been able to master risotto yet – well, I tried it once and it went extremely wrong!

    x

  7. sweetbird

    I’ve tried making it without stirring it constantly – and although it might just be my teensy bit of psycho – I think it’s much different than if it’s allowed to sit for a while. It’s almost gummy, instead of creamy.

    But that may just be me…

    I am crazy about orzotto on the other hand.

    Hmm, I haven’t noticed it to be gummy, but I have also made it with both Arborio rice and long grain without noticing a significant difference. Perhaps a risotto-off is in order… -Katie

  8. Kevin

    That is one nice looking spring risotto!

  9. kimmer

    so i made this with whole-grain minute rice (before i noticed that minute rice specifically should not be used) and, following all the other directions, it still turned out very tasty. i don’t know if it had the same texture as real risotto, having never tried risotto before last night, be we enjoyed it regardless. will make this again!

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About chaos

cha·os -noun 1. a condition or place of great disorder or confusion. My chaotic kitchen is the result of three kids, two adults, dog, cat, and fish, a food obsession, a wine drinking hobby, and too few hours in the day. Between trying to feed a family of five healthy, happy meals, watching my weight, saving my pennies, and staying partially sane I have picked up a few tricks along the way. So here they are: the very best tips, tricks, and recipes from my chaotic kitchen-to yours!

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