Pea and Bacon Risotto
Discover a comforting bowl of Pea and Bacon Risotto with Hellers’ bacon. Creamy arborio rice blends with succulent bacon, fresh peas, and a hint of lemon, creating a rich, savoury dish perfect for any occasion.

Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil plus a knob of butter
- 1 onion or a leek finely chopped
- 2 - 3 celery, finely chopped
- 200g Hellers bacon, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 300g arborio rice
- 6 - 7 cups hot chicken stock
- 2 cup frozen baby peas, thawed
- 1 cup baby spinach
- salt and pepper
- knob of butter
- 75 - 100g grated parmesan
- 1 small lemon, zested and juiced
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Sauté the onion, celery, <a href="/product/nz-free-farmed-streaky-bacon">bacon</a>, garlic with the olive oil and butter until soft.
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Add in the rice and stir to coat and lightly toast.
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Add in stock in 3 batches, stirring to absorb the stock in-between, before adding more in. You want a medium to high heat so it doesn’t take forever. Just keep stirring so the risotto doesn’t stick.
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Save the last cup of stock and add to a blender with half a cup of peas and the cup of baby spinach, blend until bright green.
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When the rice is just about cooked, add in the last green cup of stock from the blender, and cook for a minute or two.
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Taste and season, also check the rice is cooked. Remove from the heat, add in a knob of butter, the parmesan and the peas, lemon juice and zest.
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Cover and rest for 5 minutes while you set the table.
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Serve with extra shaved Parmesan if you like.