You know that cozy Fall sweater that’s soft enough to cuddle on the couch, but dressy enough for a date night? That’s the vibe my One Pan Butternut Squash and Bacon Risotto brings to the table. It’s warm and comforting for a night in with a good book or movie, but also looks impressive on the dinner table. Dare I say, the Thanksgiving table? This recipe also keeps with a common HIH theme, easy clean up. I may have fibbed a bit on the one pan. You do have need a second sauce pan to heat the chicken stock, but I can hardly call that a dirty pan when clean up only involves a good rinse and dry. I hope you’ll forgive me.
Most butternut squash risotto recipes you’ll find call for first roasting the squash in the oven and incorporating at the end of cooking. In this recipe the squash cooks with the onion and caramelizes in the bacon fat left behind from rendering the bacon bits. With all the stirring required for a proper risotto, the butternut squash starts to breakdown just enough to become part of the creamy risotto instead of just just being stirred in at the end. The depth of flavor is incredible and of the flavors just meld together in the best way.
Risotto 101
The Italian cooking often centers on a specific process to take simple ingredients and turn them into extra special dishes. Last week’s carbonara recipe is a prime example and risotto is no different. Creamy without the addition of cream, the starches from rice develops through the process of adding liquid in stages and stirring constantly to create a rich creamy dish.
The basic equation for risotto is simply Arborio rice + onion or shallot + white wine + broth or stock. It doesn’t get much simpler than that! The rice to liquid ratio is usually 1:4. You could replace the white wine with additional stock or broth if you don’t have or prefer not to cook with wine. The process of combining these simple ingredients is what makes this dish extra special. It definitely sends a “made with love” message.
Risotto is a canvas for an incredible range of flavors. It also easily spans all seasons and can be a main or side dish. The versatility of risotto is impressive to say the least! You’d have a winning bet on more risotto recipes coming to HIH.
Basic and Perfect Risotto
- Patience – risotto is a process! You’re going to need to give your pan of risotto your attention for about 25-30 minutes. Constant stirring is what coaxes the starch out of the rice to create the creamy texture. For me, the constant stirring is almost therapeutic!
- Arborio rice – a short grain rice has the right starch content, other rice varieties will not yield the same result.
- Use hot broth/stock – by adding hot broth or stock, the cooking process continues without a reduction in temperature. Hot broth or stock will ensure your risotto comes together as quickly as possible
- Reheat with the stove, not the microwave – this is really only important if you’ll be serving to guests. In a similar pan to what you cooked the risotto in originally, add about a 1/2 cup of stock or broth followed by the risotto and heat over medium heat stirring until warmed. If you’re enjoying leftovers on the couch, go for the microwave with a little extra liquid to loosen it up.
- Pan choice is important – you want a pan with plenty of surface area so your risotto cooks evenly, but has high enough sides you won’t splash and make a mess on your stove. I’ve linked the save and the splurge pans I have and use for risotto below. If you’re on the fence, the splurge is totally worth it.
- Splurge – Le Creuset 5 qt. Braiser
- Save – Cuisinart 12″ Everyday Pan
- When is it done? – Risotto should be cooked to al dente meaning it should be soft, but should still have a bite to it. Once you’ve reached the last cup of stock or broth, taste the risotto several times to keep up with how
Keys to Success – Butternut Squash and Bacon Risotto
- Go with thick sliced bacon – the bacon bits needs to be substantial enough to stand up to the rest of the dish. If you use thin or regular thickness bacon, you could lose the textural component the bacon adds to the dish.
- Make sure there is enough fat to coat all of the rice kernels – rendered bacon can yield differing amounts of fat and while I’ve found that 4 slices of thick cut bacon yield the perfect about almost every time I’ve made this recipe. Occasionally, I find the need to add a tablespoon or so of fat before adding my rice so every kernel is can be coated in fat. If you’ve missed my blog post on perfectly rendered bacon, you can find it here.
- Fresh vs. dried sage – dried herbs are more concentrated than fresh herbs so keep in mind you’ll need to 1/2 the amount of sage if you go with dried. This is noted in the recipe. If you’re not a fan of sage, thyme would also be wonderful in this recipe.
- Use pre-prepped squash – we all know peeling and prepping butternut squash is a task! Most markets and grocery stores have a pre-prepped produce section where you can find diced butternut squash, especially this time of year. Fresh is best, but we’ve all got things to do and since risotto can be time consuming, you have full permission to use the pre-prepped squash.
- This recipe is best served immediately -if you must reheat, follow the advice in the section above.
One Pan Butternut Squash and Bacon Risotto
Equipment
- large high sided skillet, "everyday pan" or braiser style dutch oven
- Wooden spoon
- slotted spoon or spatula
- Medium sauce pan
- ladle
- Measuring cups and spoons
- vegetable peeler if using fresh butternut squash
- sharp chef's knife
Ingredients
- 4 slices thick cut bacon, diced and rendered until crisp do not discard the bacon fat
- 1 cup Arborio rice
- ½ diced small yellow onion, approx 1/2 cup dice should mimic the size of the rice kernels
- 1 ½ cups butternut squash, peeled and diced to 1"
- ¾ cup shredded parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth or stock
- 1½ teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage ¾ teaspoon if using dried sage
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In your large high sided skillet, "everyday pan" or braiser style dutch oven, render the 4 slices of bacon. Once crisp, scoop out using a slotted spoon or spatula and drain on a paper towel. Keep pan on medium heat.
- Evaluate the amount of fat rendered from the bacon, you'll want enough fat in the pan to cover the surface of the pan. Add butter or olive oil if necessary or spoon out excess bacon fat.
- Add the chicken stock to the sauce pan and begin to heat over medium heat.
- Add the onion to the hot bacon fat and cook for approximately 2 minutes followed by the butternut squash, sage, and approx ½ teaspoon each, salt and pepper. Cook the squash until the edges just start to caramelize. Approximately 6 minutes. There pan should not look dry, if it does add another tablespoon of bacon fat, butter or olive oil.
- Using a wooden spoon, stir in the rice to coat with the remaining fat until the kernels start to look translucent around the edges and there's a toasty smell coming from your pan. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, stirring until the rice has absorbed about ¾ of the wine.
- One ladle, ½-¾ of a cup, at a time, begin adding the hot chicken broth or stock to the rice mixture, stirring continuously until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. Repeat until about 1 cup of chicken broth or stock remains.
- Add the parmesan cheese and bacon, stir until the cheese has melted and evaluate the consistency. If the risotto seems too tight, repeat the above step with the remaining broth or stock until the desired consistency is achieved. Taste and add salt and/or pepper if necessary.
- Serve immediately garnished with more bacon, sage, and parmesan cheese or store in the fridge and reheat over low heat adding about a ½ cup of additional chicken broth or stock and stirring until warm and smooth.
Notes
Fall vibes and the “made with love” message this butternut squash and bacon risotto sends make this recipe the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving table. It checks so many boxes when it comes to the perfect addition to a Thanksgiving, or even a Friendsgiving menu. I hope it will find it’s way onto yours.
Happy cooking,
Alden
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