Red cabbage risotto

The most popular risotto this season in my house...

Recipe be Gray Apron
time: 40 minutes

 ingredients 
2 cups brown rice, pre-soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
500 g (about 1 lb) red cabbage (1/2 medium head), loose leaves removed
1 3/4 teaspoons salt, quantity divided
1 1/2 l (about 6 cups) water, quantity divided 
1/2 teaspoon dry rosemary
1 medium onion, chopped
5 Tablespoon olive oil, quantity divided 
50 g (about 2 oz) Parmesan, grated
50 g  (about 3 Tablespoons) butter, diced
zest from 1/2 medium lemon, grated

 instructions 

Prepare cabbage: split cabbage in two halves, remove core and using a big knife, shred it as thin as you can. On a large skillet, heat oil on medium/high. Add 2-3 Tablespoons olive oil, add cabbage and rosemary. Cook for about 30 minutes on medium heat, mixing occasionally and adding hot water if it becomes too dry, till cabbage is tender but not overcooked. Half way through cooking, add 3/4 teaspoon salt. 

Meanwhile...prepare rice/risotto: In a medium pot, bring water to boil and add a teaspoon of salt. In a large skillet or pot, heat 2 Tablespoons oil on medium heat. Add onions and sauté for about 10 minutes (not allowing any color change). Add rice and toast it for about 5 minutes, mixing constantly. Add a cup of boiling, salted water. Let the rice absorb all the liquid, add more water (about 1/2 cup each time)...and so on, mixing the rice quite often.

After about 30 minutes (the rice should be about 5-10 minutes before being ready), add in cooked cabbage. Keep stirring, adding more hot water if risotto becomes too dry, for another 5-10 minutes. Take if off the heat, mix in Parmesan, butter and lemon zest. Adjust seasoning and serve.

NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES 

• I've tried different methods of preparing this risotto; cooking cabbage and rice separately worked the best;
• I get more control over the timing of the ingredients;
• only lately, I've been making risottos with brown rice; 
• by itself, brown rice is not favorite thing, but here, it didn't really bother me;
• it did require a little more cooking, but pre-soaking it cut that time significantly (from 50 to 35 minutes);
• red cabbage...if you haven't tried it before...it taste nothing like the white one, which can be quite annoying;
• after cooking (not overcooking), the red one stays tasty and pleasantly sweet;
• lemon zest and rosemary perfectly complemented the sweetness of the vegetable;
• I thought about adding raisins...but Julian and Hania were against it.