Italian risotto can be a tricky dish to master, so we have shown you how to make this easy mixed seafood risotto recipe with simple steps.
Arborio risotto rice cooked in butter, oil, with fish stock added slowly. Seafood mix of squid, mussels and prawns added and seasoned with oregano salt and pepper. Parmesan added to make the best creamy risotto.
How to make mixed seafood risotto?
Seafood Risotto, cooked in butter and oil, before adding fish stock slowly, a bit at a time until perfectly creamy.
The rice releases starches and soaks up most of the stock leaving it thick but not mushy, add prawns, squid and mussels, oregano and parmesan cheese to add flavour.
A great no-prep recipe idea using fresh or frozen mixed seafood. Measurements given in UK grams and millilitres, as well as US cups.
All the tips and FAQ's to make seafood risotto can be found on this page have a read through, before you jump straight to the recipe for this amazing simple seafood risotto.
Jump to RecipeIngredients for Risotto
We go into a bit more detail for ingredients to use for the best risotto, you can find more about the history of risotto on wiki.
Risotto Rice
First things first make sure you buy the right rice, we used Arborio Risotto Rice for this recipe. If using Carnaroli Risotto Rice you may need to cook for a bit longer.
You can not use basmati or long-grain rice for this recipe.
It is true, most rice should be rinsed before cooking, but with risotto rice you should not rinse it first. The starch is key for making a creamy risotto, do not rinse it!
Simply melt the butter in oil before adding garlic, stir through then add risotto rice, stir to coat with oil and butter for couple of minutes before adding stock one ladle at a time.
Stock
Fish stock, Chicken Stock, Vegetable stock any will do, more importantly...... make sure you use hot stock when making risotto, I keep it covered between each ladle full.
If you add lukewarm or cold stock it slows the cooking process down every time you add a ladleful.
It is important to only add one ladle at a time you will not get the correct texture if you throw it all in at once.
After about 20 minutes the rice should have absorbed all the liquid, now you can add fresh/dried herbs and season with salt and pepper.
Herbs
It is best to use fresh oregano for this mixed seafood risotto. However, we couldn't get hold of it for this photo session so used dried oregano instead.
If you do substitute dried herbs for fresh, remember to only use about ½ of the amount. Dried have a more pungent taste and using too much can ruin the taste.
You could also substitute oregano for equal amount of mixed herbs or Italian herbs instead?
Seafood mix
Next, add your seafood, we use the frozen seafood selection, they sell in most UK supermarkets. Usually contains (shrimp) prawns, squid and mussels already cooked and ready to add.
We always have a bag in our freezer handy, perfect for mixed seafood recipes!
You can buy fresh seafood mix instead, or sometimes we just use prawns (shrimp).
Either way, it is best to buy already cooked seafood, so it can easily be added and just warmed through in the risotto.
It should only take about 4 minutes to warm through.
Turn heat off, the final and very important step is to add Parmesan or Grana Padano to make it even creamier. Stir through and you are ready to serve up your mixed seafood risotto!
Serve
Add a little extra grated Parmesan and some fresh herbs once served up! Enjoy 🙂 Great served with Focaccia Bread.
I have added some frequently asked questions below the recipe card.
Mixed Seafood Risotto
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 50 g Butter (⅓ cup)
- 4 cloves Garlic minced
- 350 g Arborio Risotto Rice (1 ¾ cup)
- 1.3 litre fish stock (5 ½ cups) or chicken/vegetable stock
- 300 g Cooked seafood mix (seafood selection of mussels, squid and prawns) If using frozen mixed seafood, defrost first
- 2 tbsp Fresh Oregano chopped or 1 tbsp dried Oregano
- 60 g Parmesan (⅔ cup) grated + extra to serve
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- On a low heat, add oil and butter in a pan, until butter has melted.Stir through garlic.
- Add rice and mix in to oil, butter and garlic for 2 minutes.
- Turn up to medium-high heat.Make sure stock is hot, add one ladle (cup) of stock.Stir once every 30 seconds until the stock has been absorbed into the rice.
- Repeat with another ladleful (cup) of stock.Continue this process, only adding more stock, once the previous stock has been absorbed.Stirring every 30 seconds to prevent sticking.When done correctly, it will take about 20 minutes ( about 3-4 minutes for each addition)
- Turn heat to medium-low.Add the cooked seafood selection and oregano, stir to heat through for 3-4 minutes.If using raw seafood mix cook for about 8 minutes.
- Turn heat off.Add salt & pepper and parmesan cheese, stir through until it melts.
- Serve, garnished with some extra oregano and a sprinkle of Parmesan.
Video
Nutrition
This post was originally published on 10/04/2020 and has been modified on 18/05/2021 with updated simple step by steps, new video and FAQ's for creating this easy seafood mix risotto recipe
Frequently asked questions?
The rice needed for cooking risotto, is a short-grain rice that is high in starch, the most commonly used is Arborio rice or Carnaroli rice. They soak up a lot of stock without becoming mushy.
No, they will not create the same texture you need for risotto.
NO do not rinse rice first, you need the starch to create a creamy risotto.
Risotto rice can not be left to cook like normal rice. At the same time, stirring too much is not good either! Give a quick swish about every 30 seconds to prevent over stirring.
I suggest using cooked seafood mix, as you will only be warming them through in the risotto and they would need longer to cook from raw.
If you want to use raw, fry off in a separate pan before adding to the risotto.
You can use frozen seafood, but it is best to defrost and drain the seafood mix first.
The extra liquid when cooking directly from frozen will ruin the risotto texture.
Simply leave to defrost in the fridge overnight. Or for a quicker way, place the seafood mix in a sieve and run under the cold tap water rinse for 3-4 minutes until defrosted.
Yes, risotto can be made ahead, but only cook up to the point before adding the seafood. You do not want to add the seafood ahead of time.
Store the prepared risotto in the fridge for up to 2 days. It will thicken up when cooled, so will need to be warmed back up in a pan with some added water. Then add the seafood and cheese.
You can freeze the risotto before the seafood is added and defrost before warming back up as stated above. However it is best to make risotto fresh.
I'm sure you will love this Mixed Seafood Risotto as much as we do. We are big fans of Risotto and will be sharing other great versions soon.
If you like seafood why not try out our King Prawn Masala Curry for something different. Or for another take on rice, try our Jambalaya.
Can you use basil or dried herbs instead of oregano please?
Excellent Risotto, tweaked it a bit by adding a good large glass of wine white before adding the stock and a tablespoon of cream at the end for extra creaminess, Great recipe, love it and love that it can be adapted too.
Thank you so much Clare for that great comment and rating 🙂
You can't beat a good risotto and the way you adapted the dish sounds delicious!!
Did you cut down the stock volume as you added the wine?I thought the rice may not absorb.
I absolutely love risotto! And I love the idea of adding seafood to it! I can't wait to make this for dinner this week!
Hi Jessica
Hope you like our seafood risotto, let us know your thoughts?
Enjoy!!
OMG this was so yummy. I made it tonight and even my picky husband enjoyed it.
Hi Roxe
Thank you for the comment, so glad you liked the seafood risotto, always a pleasure to hear good feedback 🙂
Enjoy!!
Looks great but 1300 litres of fish stock? Seems a lot lol.
Yum! This is making me hungry!
I've been looking for a good risotto recipe to try and since yours has seafood, I'm all in! I hope mine looks as good as your pictures!
This risotto is unique! seafood in the risotto is new to me. I love the idea
I love this recipe. I don't often have a proteins in my risotto and end up cooking something else separately, but this saves me the step. 🙂
This is such a great dinner recipe. What's not to love?
Made this for my husband last night, he was so shocked that I made it, was just like what they serve in Italian restaurants!
The Mixed Seafood Risotto looks delicious, Thanks for sharing nice recipe.