Sartù di Riso

Rice cooked in ragù and packed into a ring mould around meatballs and peas.

Beef, Egg. Not vegetarian — contains beef, meat the source does not name, mozzarella whose rennet the source does not name, parmesan whose rennet the source does not name.

Ingredients

• 500 g risotto rice
• 1 litre meat ragù, loose
• 300 g minced beef, for the meatballs
• 1 egg and 40 g parmesan, for the meatballs
• 250 g mozzarella, diced and drained
• 200 g peas, cooked
• 200 g mushrooms, sliced and fried
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
• 80 g breadcrumbs, for the mould
• 60 g butter
• 80 g parmesan, grated
• 2 teaspoons salt

Method

1. COOK THE RICE IN THE RAGU, not in stock. Start it in water for 8 minutes, drain, then finish it in the ragù for 6 more so it takes the colour right through. The rice must be underdone — it has an hour in the oven still to come.
2. Spread it on a tray to cool completely.
3. Roll small meatballs from the beef, egg and parmesan and fry them.
4. BUTTER A RING MOULD HEAVILY AND LINE IT WITH BREADCRUMBS, turning it to coat the sides and the funnel. The crumbs are what lets it come out whole; a mould lined with butter alone will not release.
5. Press two thirds of the rice over the base and up the walls to make a shell, then fill with the meatballs, mozzarella, peas, mushrooms and egg slices.
6. Close with the remaining rice, press it down firmly, and finish with crumbs and butter.
7. Bake at 180C for 50 minutes. REST IT 20 MINUTES, THEN TURN IT OUT. Straight from the oven it slumps; cold it will not leave the mould at all.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Italy · All recipes