Fire Roasted Tomato and Basil Parmesan Risotto are a creamy, cheesy, and delicious Italian recipe where we cook arborio rice with tomato puree, white wine, and vegetable stock and then top it off with some garlic butter breadcrumbs. Also Read - Tomato Basil Pasta Recipe
Let’s talk taste
This creamy, cheesy, tomatoey recipe tastes soooo good. The sweetness of crushed basil and the softness of Arborio rice mixed with that tangy tomato creates a blast of flavors in your mouth. Moreover, the cheesiness of Parmesan the creaminess of fresh cream gives this dish a nice edge. And lastly, the topping of garlic butter breadcrumbs creates a crunchy top for our risotto. This crunch goes extremely well with our creamy, cheesy risotto base and makes it taste incredibly awesome.
Also Read: Creamy Mushroom Garlic Risotto
I have always been a fan of Italian cuisines. What I love about them is the combination of tomato, along with basil and garlic. These three things are like a match made in heaven. Whenever I am having them I feel like I am walking along the green meadows of Tuscany.
Tomato Basil Risotto will always be a recipe that will remain on the top of my favorite recipes. Why? Its because it has that extraordinary level of taste that sticks with your forever.
Today I will be teaching you to make a creamy, cheesy, crunchy Tomato basil risotto that will create a beautiful food memory in your life.
Heads up: This recipe takes time. And, a loooot of energy. We need to keep stirring the arborio rice.
How to Make Tomato Basil Risotto from Scratch?
A VIDEO TUTORIAL FOR YOU 🙂
Like all good recipes, we start with sautéing the Onions and garlic. In this, we add our Arborio Rice and try to coat the oil with rice. Now’s the time when we add our white wine and stir for a while.
Next, I like the charr my tomatoes and then make a puree of them. I have seen that charred tomatoes creates beautiful texture in my risotto and improves the taste significantly. Therefore I highly recommend that you charr your tomatoes before you make the puree.
Once we have our puree we mix it in our arborio rice and stir it by adding the white wine.
Next add the water and keep stirring. I am telling you that this needs a lot of water. You got to keep adding water or vegetable stock until the rice is slightly chewy and mostly soft. Once it's half done add the Heavy cream and mix well.
For the last bit, I like to give my breadcrumbs a slight golden brown color and a buttery, garlicky kind of taste. So, I stir it in some butter and garlic until it gets sort of brownish the smells good.
Now, Risotto is not complete without basil leaves. So crush them and add them to the top. Also, add your parmesan cheese and the garlicky buttery breadcrumbs. And of course balance out the Salt and pepper as per your choice.
How is my Tomato Basil Risotto Different from the rest?
- I always charr my tomatoes before making my risotto. Fire Roasted tomatoes have a nice burnt taste which makes it taste so much better.
- I always add a little sweet paprika. I believe that our taste buds taste things in combination. So here I think just a tad bit of sweet paprika will bring out the sourness of tomatoes much more.
- To make it cheesier, I always add a little shredded Monterey Jack Cheese along with Parmesan cheese. I know this is not how they make it typically. But I just love the taste of Monterey Jack. And, who doesn’t right?
- I always add a little fresh cream or heavy cream to make it taste creamier and smooth.
- Lastly, before we finish things off, I always recommend adding some lime juice. I have seen that lime juice brings out the flavors of the risotto much more.
Tomato Basil Risotto Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- ¼ Cup Onions red/white
- 6-7 cloves Garlic chopped
- 1 Cup Arborio Rice
- 4 Cup Vegetable stock
- 3 Large Tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Paste
- 3 tablespoon Heavy Cream
- ½ Cup Parmesan Cheese shredded
- 3 tablespoon Crushed Basil
- 1 tablespoon Salt or as per taste
- 1 tablespoon Pepper or as per taste
- 2 tablespoon Paprika
- 2 tablespoon Lime Juice
- 1/4 cup White Wine
For Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs
- 1 Cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- ¼ Cup Butter
- 6-7 cloves Garlic chopped
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a pan pour some oil and sautee Onions and garlic until slightly brown. Add Arborio rice and stir until the oil coats the rice.
- Add white wine and stir well.
- Charr the sliced tomatoes on fire from all sides. Cool them down and make a paste. Add some vegetable stock and tomato paste in it. Mix well.
- Add the tomato mixture in the pan with rice. Mix well. Keep adding vegetable stock when the rice soaks up the tomato mixture. Cook the rice on low flame for about 20-25 minutes. Cook the rice until it is slightly chewy and most soft.
- In the meantime, take a separate pan and add some butter along with some garlic. When the garlic starts to change color add breadcrumbs. Stir the breadcrumbs until golden brown. Turn off the heat and add Parmesan cheese and crushed basil if you want
- Add salt and pepper as per your taste. Add some fresh cream and stir lightly. Turn off the heat. Drizzle some freshly squeezed lime juice. Top it with some parmesan cheese and some crushed basil leaves. Add the garlicky buttery breadcrumb mixture that you've prepared over your Tomato Basil Risotto.
Video
Notes
- Add some Monterey Jack cheese at last if you want along with Parmesan.

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