Delicious Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto with Asparagus makes wonderful seasonal dinner ready in 30 minutes. You'll love this marriage of two distinct flavours. Keep it veggie or add some pan fried chorizo slices for that extra something!
This Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto with Asparagus is simply too good not to try. It marries two distinct flavours of sun-dried tomatoes and asparagus really well. Initially I thought that sun-dried tomatoes might be a bit overpowering and yes their flavour is definitely quite a dominant one. However, lovely chunks of asparagus thrown in definitely hold their own. Addition of lemon zest as garnish is pretty cleansing and helps to enjoy this dish as a whole.
I hope I managed to paint quite a nice picture for you there and you'll want to try this lovely risotto for yourself!
Dietary Substitutes
This dish contains fair bit of butter and parmesan. Even though not too good for the waistline, in my opinion they are essential ingredients for making risotto what it should be... Creamy and smooth loveliness on a plate.
If you are vegetarian simply substitute parmesan for its veggie version.
To cater for vegan diet I would recommend skipping butter altogether and using rapeseed oil alone and finishing the dish with vegan parmesan.
For carnivores I have included slices of pan fried chorizo as optional addition/garnish. Feel free to go with it or not, it's entirely up to you.
I love using homemade chicken stock in my risottos! If you are not vegetarian or vegan feel free to check out my guide on How To Make Chicken Stock in Instant Pot (with instructions for hob/stovetop users too). You will never look back!
Can I make this risotto in my Instant Pot?
Of course you can! I have been using my Instant Pot to make risottos for a while now and it works a treat! Check out my Instant Pot Fennel & Leek Risotto.
- You will still need to prepare your asparagus separately! You will also need to reduce the amount of stock to 1 litre (4 cups).
- Heat up oil and butter (if using) in your Instant Pot using sauté function (it should be set on High, 30min) and fry the onion and sun dried tomatoes until softened but not coloured approx. 5 min. Turn the pot off by pressing Keep Warm/Cancel button.
- Add rice and mix it in to coat it well in oil and butter.
- Pour in a little bit of stock at first to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Give it a good scrape with the wooden spoon to make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom. Add all of the remaining stock and stir well.
- Put on the lid and lock it in place making sure that the black, steam releasing valve is pointing to "Sealing". Set your Instant Pot to "Manual" on High setting for 7 min.
- When the time is up turn the pot off by pressing Keep Warm/Cancel button and move the black, steam releasing valve to "Venting" which will release the pressure straight away (QPR - Quick Pressure Release). Take care not to scald yourself with hot steam when moving the valve.
- Take off the lid and proceed as you would if cooking your risotto on the hob/stovetop. If there is fair amount of liquid you can turn on the sauté function back for a minute or two to get rid of some moisture.
Storing and reheating Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto
If you happen to have any leftovers they can be cooled and kept in the fridge for up to 3 days. You will notice that risotto will thicken in the fridge. The best way to reheat it would be in a small pan to the hob/stovetop adding a little bit of stock to adjust consistency to similar when the risotto was first cooked.
Risotto is not suitable for freezing.
📋 Recipe
Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto with Asparagus
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon rapeseed oil or oil from sun-dried tomatoes
- 25 g unsalted butter
- 280 g asparagus (1 bunch)
- 1.2 ltr hot veggie/chicken stock cube is fine (only 1 ltr/4 cups if using Instant Pot)
- 1 onion finely diced
- 8 sun-dried tomatoes in oil finely sliced
- 300 g short grain risotto rice
- 85 g freshly grated parmesan or vegetarian/vegan alternative
To finish off
- 15 g unsalted butter
- salt and pepper
- lemon zest to garnish
- 100 g of pan fried chorizo slices optional extra for non veggies
Instructions
Hob/Stovetop
- Prepare your asparagus by snapping off the woody ends and cook it in salted, boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Make sure it stays slightly al-dente. Cut into pieces, saving tips for final garnish.
- Melt butter with oil in a pan and add chopped onion together with sliced sun-dried tomatoes. Cook until softened but not coloured, approx. 5 min.
- Add the rice and mix to coat in oil and butter.
- Slowly start adding your stock (ladle at a time) for approx 16-20 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed. You want the rice to have slight bite to it. Season to taste.
- Add chopped asparagus stalks and stir for couple minutes longer, then remove from the heat.
- Add additional 15g of butter, freshly grated parmesan and stir until they melt.
- Garnish with saved asparagus spears and lemon zest and perhaps some pan fried chorizo if you are a carnivore.
- Enjoy.
Instant Pot
- You will need to prepare your asparagus separately as per above! You will also need to reduce the amount of stock to 1 litre (4 cups).
- Heat up oil and butter (if using) in your Instant Pot using sauté function (it should be set on High, 30min) and fry the onion and sun dried tomatoes until softened but not coloured approx. 5 min. Turn the pot off by pressing Keep Warm/Cancel button.
- Add rice and mix it in to coat it well in oil and butter. Pour in a little bit of stock at first to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Give it a good scrape with the wooden spoon to make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom. Add all of the remaining stock and stir well.
- Put on the lid and lock it in place making sure that the black, steam releasing valve is pointing to “Sealing”. Set your Instant Pot to “Manual” on High setting for 7 min. When the time is up turn the pot off by pressing Keep Warm/Cancel button and move the black, steam releasing valve to “Venting” which will release the pressure straight away (QPR – Quick Pressure Release). Take care not to scald yourself with hot steam when moving the valve.
- Take off the lid and proceed as you would if cooking your risotto on the hob/stovetop. If there is fair amount of liquid you can turn on the sauté function back for a minute or two to get rid of some moisture.
Notes
- Nutritional value is approximate, without optional chorizo garnish, per serving and should be treated as a guideline only.
- Not suitable for freezing. Any leftovers should be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheated gently on the hob/stovetop with a bit of extra stock to loosen it up.
Nutrition
Update Notes: This post was originally published on 14 May 2017 and updated in May 2019 with updated recipe card and Instant Pot instructions plus more helpful info.
Some more asparagus recipes you might enjoy
Spring Pea and Asparagus Risotto (Vegan)
Warm Potato Asparagus Salad with Lentils
Spring Lemon and Dill Salmon Pasta with Asparagus and Peas
Asparagus Puff Pastry Twists with Parma Ham & Pesto
Pancetta Wrapped Asparagus Soldiers with Fried Egg
If you are interested in some insight regarding growing your own asparagus, then you might want to pop in to lovely Midge's blog and have a little read. I learnt a lot. There are some more asparagus related recipes too Top tips for growing and cooking asparagus.
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Linkies
Cook Blog Share hosted by Eb at Easy Peasy Foodie and Jacqui at Recipes Made Easy
Simple and in Season hosted by Katie at Feeding Boys
Kelly Anthony says
I really like your idea of adding some pan fried chorizo to this dish. I bet that adds some serious flavor to this already yummy dish.
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Kelly! 🙂 Chorizo works really well here. My boys always demand some on their portions and I do oblige 🙂
Noelle says
This was the perfect comfort meal this evening as it got a little chilly! Thank you, will be making this one again!!
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you for letting me know! I'm so pleased you liked it! 🙂
Matt Ivan says
I’ve never made risotto but feel like I have to finally give it a try!
joskitchenlarder says
I love risottos as they can be prepared with minimal ingredients so perfect when cupboards are bare before the weekly shop. Give it a go Matt, hopefully you will like it! 🙂
adriana says
I have never prepared risotto but I love it you make it seem so easy to cook I will try your recipe and will be back to let you know how it went.
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Adriana! Look forward to hearing from you again once you've made it! I hope you like it!
Amy says
I love risotto and had no idea you could make it in an Instant Pot. I'd definitely try this in the near future.
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Amy! 🙂 Instant Pot risotto is fab and it saves you all the stirring! 🙂
DANIELLE VEDMORE says
I love asparargus! Looks delicious - I bet the chorizo would go lovely with it as well. Pinned,
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Danielle! Chorizo is my guilty pleasure and as entire family love it, we add it to a lot of things! It does work beautifully with this risotto. Thanks for stopping by. x
Katie Bryson says
Ooooh yes the perfect comfort food for summer... LOVING this! I'd definitely be partial to a bit of chorizo with this too... yum! Thanks for joining us again for Simple and in Season.
Alison's Allspice says
I love risotto that is packed with flavors like this one, and it's a wonderful use for spring time asparagus! Pinned for later, Thanks!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Alison! Really pleased you like the vibe of my risotto 🙂 Please come back and let me know if you decide to make it! 🙂
Eb Gargano | Easy Peasy Foodie says
Ooh yum - I love the idea of this...sun dried tomatoes, chorizo and asparagus are 3 of my favourite things and I can just imagine how they would go well together in a risotto! Thanks for linking it up to #CookBlogShare 🙂 Eb x
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Eb! Sun dried tomatoes and chorizo are my staples to the point that I never run out of them... 🙂 Added asparagus for seasonal good measure made lovely risotto indeed. Always a pleasure to be a part of #CookBlogShare 🙂 x
Midge @Peachicks' Bakery says
Oooh another beautiful asparagus recipe! And risotto too - YUM! Definitely going to save this one for later - it has most of the Peachicks' favourite food groups in it (rice, sun dried tomatoes, asparagus & chorizo) so I know they would love this! And thank you for the mention too! Your soup also looks divine! #cookblogshare
joskitchenlarder says
Aw thank you lovely lady 🙂 Yes, asparagus saga continues! I really hope you like it if you decide to make it, we really enjoyed it! It was a pleasure to link to your post! As I mentioned in my comment I found it really insightful, I've learnt so much about asparagus as opposed to just how to cook it 🙂 x