Here on WGC we’re all about balance. Between salads, brownies, pasta and everything else covering the pages of my blog - I think it’s obvious that balance is key! That said…I love a risotto moment! Summer Corn Risotto with Shrimp & and a cold glass of white wine or two is the PERFECT way to bring a group of friends together this summer for a gorgeous al fresco meal. 🙂
Some people are intimidated by risotto - but guess what - it’s totally not that hard. It just requires a tiny bit of attention, some cheese and some really delicious wine (to cook with and to enjoy with the meal!) Okay are you ready to dive head first! We have 3 parts of this dish - none of which should scare you! First – let’s talk risotto!
Risotto is just a special kind of rice (you can find it at just about every grocery store ever) that you cook slowly with small additions of liquid every few minutes. First the liquid comes in the form of wine, and then you can use chicken stock, or vegetable stock! Or you could even use water! Easy right? Just cook it until it’s tender and then you get to mix in whatever you want. In this case it’s corn, cut fresh off the cob, but you could also do sautéed greens, roasted mushrooms, charred peas… the sky’s the limit!
We could stop there, but why?? More is more! Salsa Verde comes next and it’s basically a spin on a pesto that just gets dolloped on top of the risotto and gives it a pop of corn and a burst of fresh herbs when you get the perfect bite!
And last but certainly not least is some sautéed shrimp. It’s cooked in a butter and olive oil mixture to get the best of both worlds, seasoned with tons of garlic, cooked with a touch of white wine and then finished with some fresh lemon juice and parsley. Ugh, I’m OBSESSED.
Put everything together and throw it in a bowl with a glass of wine and call it a dinner party!!
Check out some of my favorite Shrimp Recipes here:
Creamy Goat Cheese and Shrimp Pasta
How to Cook Perfect Shrimp Every Time!
Arugula Pesto Pasta with Garlic Shrimp
Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro Pesto
The Ultimate Garlic Shrimp Scampi
Summer Corn Risotto with Shrimp
Ingredients
For the Risotto
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 leek white and light green parts only, finely chopped
- 1 shallot sliced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup arborio rice
- ¾ cup Edna Valley Vineyard Chardonnay
- 3 cups chicken stock plus more as needed
- 1 ½ cups raw corn kernels from about 2 ears corn
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese
For the Salsa Verde
- 2 cups mixed herbs (basil, parsley, and cilantro)
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons capers rinsed and drained
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
For the Shrimp
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 garlic cloves finely chopped
- ½ cup Edna Valley Vineyard Chardonnay
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes more as needed
- 1 pound large shrimp cleaned, de-veined and shelled
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- 1 lemon juiced, plus more as needed
Instructions
For the Salsa Verde:
- In a food processor, combine herbs, garlic, and vinegar and capers. Pulse until coarsely chopped, 20 seconds. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper
For the Risotto
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a wide sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add leek and shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add rice and cook, stirring, until grains look slightly translucent.
- Pour in wine and cook, stirring, until it has all been absorbed, about 2 minutes.
- Add a ½ cup of stock to the rice mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until rice has absorbed all of the stock. Continue cooking, adding cups of stock whenever rice mixture looks dry and stirring continuously. When half the stock has been added, stir in corn. Continue cooking until all of the stock is incorporated, corn is tender and rice is creamy and tender, about 30 to 40 minutes total.
- Remove risotto from heat and stir in Parmesan and remaining tablespoon of butter. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Uncover risotto, stir and season to taste with salt and pepper. Immediately before serving, stir in the mascarpone cheese. Top with shrimp and a spoonful of salsa verde.
For the Shrimp
- In a large skillet, melt butter and olive oil. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add wine, a pinch of salt, red pepper flakes and plenty of black pepper and bring to a simmer. Let wine cook down for about 2 minutes.
- Add shrimp and sauté until they just turn pink, 3 to 4 minutes depending upon their size. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice and add cooked risotto. Toss to combine. Serve with additional lemon wedges
Notes
Nutrition Information
Photography by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
Excellent flavor. L
This is literally the best risotto recipe ever. Wow...thank you for sharing.
This was amazing!! Restaurant quality! My only adjustment was that I didn’t need all 6 cups of stock I ended up using about 4.
This combines so many of my favorite things. I wouldn't change a thing! We are currently overseas and corn and fresh shrimp are a little hard to find so we had to use frozen for both but the recipe is perfect. I would love to use that salsa verde in other dishes because of how good it was, as well!
This recipe was so delicious! I have never made risotto before and would definitely make it again. The only down side is that it took over 2.5 hours to make, but that could be user error. lol
whoa! risotto shouldn't take more than 30-40 minutes to make once you've got the rice on the stove! what did you find took the longest amount of time?
Made this tonight, a new favorite for sure!!!
Made it on a whim and yes. It was a hit. LOVE it.
I can't wait to make this tomorrow!!! Can I use shrimp that are already cooked though or is it super important to buy raw? How would that change the recipe? Thank you!
I prefer them raw since I can infuse more flavor!!
30-40 minutes was wellllll short of how long it took to absorb the stock...think at least double that time. Completely worth it, but prepare so you're not eating at midnight. Although if you have enough Chardonnay is that really a problem?
Can I please come over for dinner? This looks sensational and I love the idea of pairing summer corn with shrimp!
We are absolutely obsessed with Risotto and this one... holy YUM, Gaby! Can't wait to give this one a try!
Hope you've had a wonderful summer, sweet lady! <3