Chef Fabrizio Aielli shares a taste of his Venice childhood

Some chefs keep a few recipes just for home — not their restaurants. Chef Fabrizio Aielli shares a risotto recipe that epitomizes the Venice of his childhood and always thrills his family and friends.

Fabrizio Aielli

Chef/Co-Owner, The Aielli Group

Sea Salt, Barbatella, Grappino, Bakery at Grappino Naples

When Chef Fabrizio Aielli — then operating the famed Teatro Goldoni in Washington, D.C. — appeared as a celebrity chef at the Naples Winter Wine Festival in 2005, neither he nor his wife, Ingrid, could have predicted that within two years they would be moving to Naples, nor that within three years they would be opening their first restaurant in the city.

Their love for Naples started on their first vacation to the Paradise Coast in 2001. By the time he appeared at the NWWF four years later, the couple knew they had found their personal and professional home and moved here in 2007.

The company they co-founded, The Aielli Group, now includes four of Naples’ most popular dining destinations: Sea Salt, Barbatella, Grappino and Bakery at Grappino, employing about 200 people across all four establishments.

For Chef Aielli, his love for food started as a child growing up in Venice, Italy, influenced by his mother, grandmother and aunt who saw cooking as an expression of love.

He said his aunt dedicated much of her life to cooking for family and friends, raising her own rabbits, chickens, pigs and cows, and using only fresh vegetables and herbs from her garden.

“She was not involved in a restaurant; she just had a deep passion,” he recalls. “I think I learned from her to really respect all types of food, all the ingredients and how they were grown.”

That philosophy influences his restaurants today, Aielli said, noting that his greatest satisfaction as a chef has always been creating meals that make people happy, whether at work or at home.

He said he makes it a point to cook at home at least once a week, often preparing risotto with zucchini and shrimp, which reminds him of his childhood because of the sweet zucchini grown in the sandy soil of the island of Sant’Erasmo in Venice.

“The zucchini from Sant’Erasmo is very, very sweet,” he says. “They are almost like sugar. When people eat it, they think, ‘Oh, you added sugar.’ But no; it’s just Mother Nature.”

Aielli knows that some are intimidated by risotto, but he encourages them to enjoy the process — which he said takes both attention and patience — by talking to dinner guests and sharing a glass of wine during the continual stirring.

He said each person brings something different to any recipe: “We are all our own chef,” and the home chef shouldn’t worry about perfection.

“When you cook, you cannot get stressed,” he emphasizes. “You’ve got to do it because you love it.”

Chef Aielli’s Risotto Gamberi e Zucchine

Serves: 4 to 6

Difficulty: Intermediate

Prep & cook time: 20 to 25 minutes prep/20 to 25 minutes stirring

Ingredients

For risotto

2 cups Carnaroli Acquerello rice

1/2 cup white wine

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped

1/4 cup butter

8 to 12 white shrimp, head and tail off, butterflied and chopped into medium-sized pieces

1 cup cooked zucchini (see below)

1/2 cup grated parmesan

Juice of 1 lemon

2 quarts chicken broth, homemade or store bought

Salt and pepper to taste

For zucchini

5 small zucchini

1/8 cup (2 tbsp.) olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation for zucchini

Slice and chop 5 small zucchini into medium-sized pieces.

In a large saute pan, cook with olive oil; season with salt and pepper.

Cook until soft and zucchini start to caramelize.

Preparation for risotto

In a heavy-bottomed pot, warm the olive oil, then add the rice.

Cook (toast) the rice, stirring, for about two minutes.

Add the white wine and stir constantly until the wine is completely evaporated.

Add the cooked zucchini, stirring for another minute.

Add the chicken broth about a half-cup at a time, stirring constantly.

Continue adding a half-cup of broth at a time once the broth in the pot has been absorbed.

After 15 minutes, begin to add the shrimp, and remember to stir!

Let the mixture cook for another four minutes, then add the butter, Italian parsley, remaining olive oil, lemon juice, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper to taste.

Stir to ensure everything is well combined.

To finish

Serve warm. Divide evenly among 4-6 plates. When eating the risotto, eat from the outside of the plate in, allowing it to slightly cool.

Notes & Chef’s Tips

Add more chicken broth if needed; how quickly it evaporates will depend on the brand of rice. Chef Aielli recommends using Carnaroli Acquerello rice, which he said makes for a creamier risotto because the grains are more uniformly intact and not cracked.

For a wine pairing, Chef Aielli said that as a “patriotic Venetian” he recommends a Soave.

“I think a Soave is going to be absolutely perfect for this dish, because Soave is very light, and the zucchini and shrimp are very delicate.”