This Spring Risotto with Shrimp is the prettiest dish including fresh spring vegetables and juicy shrimp.
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Spring Risotto with Shrimp
Springtime tends to be the shortest season, but the most welcome. For any Minnesotan like myself, the warming temperatures, chirping birds, and pop of green that come after a good rain are the reprieve we didn’t know we were waiting so patiently for. Or…maybe we did!
With spring comes a desire to open windows, get outside, and shift our eating habits. Rich and comforting dishes are replaced with fresh and colorful recipes, often allowing what’s in season to guide our appetites.
This Spring Risotto with Shrimp is an excellent dish to make when you’re craving something lighter and fresher. It’s a dish that has one foot in winter, and one foot in spring: slowly cooked arborio rice comes to life with asparagus, leeks, shallot, spring peas, and parmesan cheese. It’s lightened up comfort at its finest!
Read on to learn more about this fantastic string recipe.
How To Make Spring Risotto with Shrimp
- Bring the chicken or vegetable stock to a gentle simmer in a saucepan as you prepare the risotto.
- Add olive oil to a medium dutch oven set over medium heat.
- Add shallot and leek and saute until fragrant, about 7 minutes.
- Add minced garlic and season with salt and pepper. I start with about 1/4 teaspoon of each. Stir until combined and add 1/2 cup of chopped asparagus. Cook for an additional 3 minutes.
- Make a cleared area in the center of your pan and pour in the arborio rice. Stir the mixture to combine, and allow the rice to lightly toast, but not brown. Browning the rice will impede its ability to soak up liquid.
- Pour in the cold white wine, stirring to combine. Allow it to evaporate completely.
- Start ladling the warm broth to the pan in about 1 cup increments. Allow stck to completely absorb before adding the next round. Gently stirring will be important in this step – don’t distract yourself with another task! The key to deliciously creamy risotto is to keep it moving as it cooks.
- Once all the broth has been added, add 1 cup of green peas and remaining chopped asparagus.
- Add parmesan cheese and lemon zest, stirring to combine.
- Sample the dish. If it needs additional seasoning, add more salt or pepper as needed.
- Serve with sauteed lemon shrimp (recipe below!) and steamed asparagus if desired.
Ways To Make Risotto Your Own
Risotto is the type of dish that can be personalized in many ways. You can swap in different vegetables, add different shellfish, fish, or meat, and alter the aromatics used to flavor the dish.
Here are a few ingredients to consider adding if you’re looking to make your own risotto!
- Shallots
- Yellow Onion
- Garlic
- Leeks
- Ramps
- Spinach
- Rainbow Chard
- Peppers
- Mushrooms
- Broccolini
- Prosciutto
- Pancetta
- Mussels
- Scallops
- Clams
- Sausage
What To Serve With Spring Risotto
Keep with the theme of Spring by adding other seasonal ingredients to your table, like a fresh vegetable platter to serve as the “salad course”. Here are a few option to consider for your table:
- Crudites platter with peppers, radish, peapods, endive leaves, and broccolini
- Lightly dressed greens
- Sliced and toasted baguette with butter
- A chilled white wine (serve what you cooked with!); a rosé would also be lovely with this meal
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Spring Risotto with Shrimp
Equipment
- Dutch Oven
Ingredients
For the risotto:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large shallot, minced
- 1 leek, halved and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup asparagus, trimmed and chopped, divided
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 3/4 cup cold dry white wine
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock, warmed
- 1 cup shelled peas (frozen is ok!)
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 lemon, zested
For the shrimp:
- 1 lb raw shrimp, thawed if frozen
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked pepper
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
Instructions
For the risotto:
- Bring the chicken or vegetable stock to a gentle simmer in a saucepan as you prepare the risotto.
- Add olive oil to a medium dutch oven set over medium heat.
- Add shallot and leek and saute until fragrant, about 7 minutes.
- Add minced garlic and season with salt and pepper. I start with about 1/4 teaspoon of each. Stir until combined and add 1/2 cup of chopped asparagus. Cook for an additional 3 minutes.
- Make a cleared area in the center of your pan and pour in the arborio rice. Stir the mixture to combine, and allow the rice to lightly toast, but not brown. Browning the rice will impede its ability to soak up liquid.
- Pour in the cold white wine, stirring to combine. Allow it to evaporate completely.
- Start ladling the warm broth to the pan in about 1 cup increments. Allow stck to completely absorb before adding the next round. Gently stirring will be important in this step - don't distract yourself with another task! The key to deliciously creamy risotto is to keep it moving as it cooks.
- Once all the broth has been added, add 1 cup of green peas and remaining chopped asparagus.
- Add parmesan cheese and lemon zest, stirring to combine.
- Sample the dish. If it needs additional seasoning, add more salt or pepper as needed.
For the shrimp:
- Add olive oil to a large saute pan set over medium heat.
- Season both sides of the shrimp with salt and pepper. Add shrimp to the pan.
- Grate the clove of garlic directly into the pan as the shrimp cooks. Toss to combine, ensuring each shrimp has been flipped.
- Add the lemon juice, off the heat, and stir the shrimp. Shrimp are done when they have just turned pink and are opaque throughout. Take care to not overcook!
To serve:
- Plate risotto in a shallow bowl or on a plate and top with cooked shrimp and additional spears of steamed asparagus, if you like. Serve with extra grated parmesan.