Whether you’re preparing a Sunday lunch or just a dinner made from leftovers, baked rice is perfect for an easy and rustic dish. If you’ve ever cooked pasta au gratin, then the idea is the same. Baked rice is based on risotto, which can be the one prepared the day before and didn’t get finished, or even a risotto that didn’t come out well and needs to be rescued. Or, you can use a simple boiled rice that still needs to be seasoned. The possibilities are endless, but let’s start from the basic recipe of baked rice with tomato and basil.
How to Bake Leftover Risotto
Ingredients for 4 people
10 oz of leftover or boiled rice (choose the type of rice for risottos), 3 cups of tomato purée, 1 onion, 2 mozzarellas, parmesan cheese (as much at you like), extra-virgin olive oil, salt, basil leaves
How to make it
Prepare the tomato sauce by cutting the onion thinly and frying it in the extra- virgin olive oil. When it’s golden brown, add the tomato purée, then salt and let it cook until it has set.
If you have to cook the rice, put a pot on the stove with salted water. When it starts to boil, throw in the rice and let it cook until it’s ready. Don’t cook it too much, because it will get even softer in the oven.
In the meantime, squeeze out the mozzarellas and cut them into cubes. Add the tomato sauce to the boiled rice (or leftover rice) and transfer it to a baking sheet. Spread the mozzarella, sprinkle with the parmesan cheese and add the basil leaves.
Put everything in the oven preheated to 350°F for about 20 minutes. If you want to get a crust on the surface you can activate the grill for the last 3 minutes.