Bacon & Tomato Risotto
Excerpted from Anna Cooks: 125+ Delicious & Achievable Recipes for Every Meal of the Day, by Anna Olson. Copyright © 2025 Olson Food Concepts Inc. Photography by Janis Nicolay. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited.
Ingredients
- 6 slices smoked bacon, diced
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1½ cups (315 g) arborio rice
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup (125 mL) dry white wine
- 4 cups (1 L) chicken stock
- 2 cups (500 mL) tinned crushed tomatoes
- Grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese, to taste
- Salt and black pepper
NOTES: For a vegetarian version of this risotto, skip the bacon (of course), use 2 Tbsp (30 mL) olive oil to cook the onions and rice, use vegetable stock instead of chicken and use smoked Cheddar in place of the Parmesan/Asiago.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Heat a large saucepan or pot over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring often, until crisp. Remove the bacon to a paper towel–lined tray and drain off all but 2 Tbsp (30 mL) of the bacon fat.
Step 2
Add the onions to the pot and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir for about 2 minutes, until the rice just begins to stick a little on the bottom of the pot. Stir in the garlic and then add the white wine. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir the rice continuously until the wine has been absorbed, about 2 minutes.
Step 3
Add roughly a third of the stock and stir immediately upon adding. From there, you do not have to stir non-stop, but pass by the pot often to stir it. Once the stock has been absorbed, add the remaining stock in two more additions, stirring in the same fashion. This will take about 15 minutes.
Step 4
Add the crushed tomatoes and now stir continuously until the liquid has absorbed and the rice is tender but still has a toothiness to it, about 6 minutes. Add back the cooked bacon, stir in the cheese and season to taste. Serve immediately.
