Beer and Cheddar Risotto

I love risotto, but have never made it myself. I ended up buying arborio rice for $6 at Meijer, so I thought that it better be good! I think I should have chosen a different recipe for my first time. I did not like the beer flavor in this, and I like beer! Jon thought that I didn't cook the rice long enough, but he did heat it up later. I will try risotto again, but I personally did not care for this recipe. If you like beer flavors in your food, this recipe may be for you though! FYI - I cut this recipe in half, but I will post the original.

Beer and Cheddar Risotto
Source: FayeD on the message board I frequent, as seen on Cooking This and That

It also looks a little like mush!

Ingredients:
1/2 small onion, diced (omitted)
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
2+ tablespoons olive oil
2 cups Arborio rice
12 oz. bottle of beer (preferably not light beer)
49.5 ounce can of chicken broth
5 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/3 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (omitted)

Directions:
Pour chicken broth into medium saucepan. Keep warm over low heat.

Heat large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Heat just until butter is melted. Add onion and saute for 3-5 minutes, until soft and translucent. Turn heat to medium-high and add garlic. Cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant.

Add rice and saute for 2 minutes, stirring constantly until opaque, adding more olive oil as necessary to coat the rice.

Pour in beer, turn heat up to high until it starts to simmer.

Turn heat back to medium-low and add the chicken broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until liquid dissolves. You may not need to use all of the chicken broth - risotto should be creamy and just slightly al dente. This should take 30 minutes or more.

Remove from heat and stir in the cheeses and cayenne pepper.Pin It