Herbed Risotto

Rule of thumb when making risotto: you cannot move until the rice is cooked, so have all your mise en place ready to go. Our Ma Konbu supplier, Konbu-Doi, invited us to dinner at his home in Osaka. Doi-san prepared the whole meal using konbu, and one of the courses was a risotto made with konbu dashi. I loved it so much for these reasons - it is a stellar vegetarian risotto (could be vegan if you omit the butter and cheese) and he used Japanese rice. I generally do not keep risotto rice in my pantry, but I always have Japanese rice, so it's a perfect fit for me. Feel free to use carnaroli or arborio rice if you have it; the method will not change.

Note: All rice is different, even if I buy the same brand all the time, the amount of liquid the rice might take will always vary slightly.

Ingredients
1.5 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup shallots, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup rice
1/3 cup white wine, dry
1/4 teaspoon salt
22oz konbu dashi, hot (This amount may vary)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter, unsalted
1/4 cup parmesan, grated
2 teaspoons parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon dill, chopped
1 teaspoon chives, chopped

Method
In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, cook the olive oil, shallots and 1/4 teaspoon salt until the shallots are soft with no color, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the rice and increase the heat to medium-high, stirring often until the rice starts to smell toasty.

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