½ head of celery, finely chopped (discard any tough outer sticks)
Maldon sea salt and black pepper
2 cloves or garlic, finely chopped
400g risotto rice
100ml dry white vermouth or dry white wine
70g butter
3 good handfuls fresh peas (add the pods to the stock)
455g raw prawns, peeled
1 handful fresh basil, chopped
½ handful fresh mint, chopped
juice of 1 lemon
Method
First fry the peas until tender, in some butter and a little stock, and then mash. At the same time, heat the stock. Then in a separate pan heat the olive oil, add the shallot or onion, celery and a pinch of salt, and sweat the vegetables for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and after another 2 minutes, when the vegetables have softened, add the rice. Now turn up the heat.
While stirring slowly, continuously, you are beginning to fry the rice. You don’t want any colour at this point (so if the temperature seems too high, turn it down). You must keep the rice moving. After 2 or 3 minutes, it will begin to look translucent. Add the vermouth or wine, keeping on stirring as it hits the pan.
Once the vermouth or wine seems to have cooked into the rice, add your first ladle of stock and a pinch of salt. Turn down the heat to a highish simmer. Keep adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring and allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next. This will take about 15 minutes. Taste the rice – is it cooked? Carry on adding stock until the rice is soft but with a slight bite to it. Check seasoning. Add the mashed peas and prawns and simmer for 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat and add the butter. Throw in the herbs and the lemon juice. Stir and serve immediately.
Serve it on its own or with a crisp green salad and a hunk of crusty bread.