Risotto is something that you eat in fancy restaurants, with fancy ingredients like truffle oil and scallops. It’s not a dish you make at home, and is certainly not something you make without hours at the stove, right?

Wrong. You can make it at home, and you can make it casual, nutritious, and so delicious that even your kids will eat it.

The key is short grain brown rice, a good seasoning blend, and a hefty dose of grated cheddar. You’ll stir a bit, but most of the cooking is hands off time. A bit of sour cream at the end adds creaminess, which balances out the slight heat of the Blackened Fish seasoning.

This makes a meal on its own, but feel free to add shrimp (or dare I say scallops?) to ramp it up a bit and add some protein.

Serves 4-6

Prep time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons Ava Jane’s Kitchen Avocado Oil

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons Blackened Fish Seasoning

1 1/2 cups short grain brown rice

3 cups broth

1 cup shredded cheddar

Sour cream, chives, green onions, for serving

Directions:

Add the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook. Add garlic.

Add seasoning. Stir and cook.

Add rice. Stir and cook.

Add broth. Bring to a boil.

Cover and reduce heat to low and cook for 55 minutes.

Spoon into serving dishes and top with toppings of your choice.

Easy to download PDF: Cajun Cheddar Brown Rice Risotto