Risotto with broad beans
For the risotto with broad beans, peas, chanterelles and gremolata by Matthias Gfrörer, wash and trim the peas and broad beans, brown the butter in a swirl pan to a nutty brown and garnish with the rinsed cottage cheese, the glazed vegetables and chanterelles.
- 100 g wachsweiche Butter
- 30 g peeled, young garlic
- 50 ml olive oil
- 1 bunch of finely chopped, flat-leaf parsley
- 1 teaspoon of caraway seeds crushed in a mortar
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp lemon pepper
- Zest of half an organic lemon
- 100 ml warm vegetable stock
- 100g fresh peas
- 200 g shelled broad beans (equivalent to about 1 kg in the pod)
- 1 small bunch of mountain savory
- 5 sprigs of chickweed, or alternatively chervil
- 150 g bush beans
- Salt
- 300g small chanterelles
- 100 g Butter
- 100g rinsed cottage cheese
- 3 peeled, finely diced shallots
- 1 clove of garlic
- 100 ml rapeseed oil
- 300 g Risottoreis (e.g. Arborio)
- 100 ml white wine
- 800 ml mushroom or vegetable stock
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp raw cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 g cold butter
- For the gremolata, blend all ingredients in a food processor until you have a light green spiced buttercream. Use the warm broth to keep the butter pliable while blending until everything is finely chopped.
- Then pour into 1-2 glasses and place in the refrigerator.
- For the vegetables: Wash and trim the peas and broad beans, wash and pick the herbs. Blanch the broad beans in boiling water for 1 minute, then plunge them into ice water and remove the beans from their skins.
- Blanch the bush beans in rapidly boiling salted water for 4–6 minutes, then rinse them with cold water.
- Clean the chanterelles and wash them briefly. Then drain them well on a kitchen towel (ideally overnight in the refrigerator).
- Quickly brown the butter in a swirl pan to a nutty brown color, then roast the chanterelles in it for 3-4 minutes.
- Then sauté the blanched green beans, peas and broad bean kernels for 2 minutes, glaze everything with 2 large tablespoons of gremolata.
- For the risotto, sauté the diced shallots and garlic clove in rapeseed oil. Gradually add the risotto rice and sauté briefly. Deglaze with white wine and allow it to evaporate, stirring regularly. Then gradually add hot mushroom or vegetable stock. Season generously with sea salt, raw cane sugar, and pepper, and simmer with 2 fresh bay leaves.
- Once the risotto has absorbed the liquid and is al dente, stir in 100g of herbed pea purée, cold butter, and Parmesan cheese. Season to taste and set aside on the stovetop to serve. Important: Do not let it boil again!
- To serve, garnish with the rinsed cottage cheese, the glazed vegetables and chanterelle mushrooms.
Kitchen tips from Matthias Gfrörer
The broad bean, also known as fava bean, belongs to the vetch genus and has been cultivated in the Mediterranean region for millennia. The more familiar green bean (genus Phaseolus), on the other hand, was only introduced from America in the 16th century.
Be sure to shell the broad beans twice – after removing them from the pod, blanch the beans and then squeeze them out of the thin skin, otherwise they will taste too mealy. When buying them, make sure they have yellow sprouts – these will make them taste dry and bitter, not sweet.
Fresh broad beans are only available until the beginning of September – if you've missed the season, the easiest way to enjoy them is to buy pre-cooked beans in jars, for example, organic ones. They taste great in salads (Mediterranean style with fennel and tomatoes), also puréed, or as a vegan spread (with olive oil and lemon).
The Wulksfelde organic estate north of Hamburg combines organic farming with a farm shop and the Gutsküche restaurant, complete with a deli and conference rooms. Matthias Gfrörer is the head chef, while his wife Rebecca manages the service and enthusiastically guides guests through the wine list, which, with 160 selections primarily from Germany and France, is perfectly matched to the creative country-style cuisine. Both worked for ten years in top restaurants in Berlin, New York, and Dubai.
