Make this easy Oven Baked Risotto recipe with store cupboard ingredients. No stirring needed! A family dinner favourite.
This post was originally published on June 7, 2016 and updated June 17, 2020.
There’s nothing quite like the comforting carb-fest of a bowl of risotto. Something about that welcoming bowl of creamy rice, just says “all is okay with the world”.
BUT I hardly ever have the time to spend twenty minutes stirring to make it. So here’s my own really simple cheat’s Oven Baked Risotto. No stirring required 🙌🏼
It’s not quite what you’ll get from giving it twenty minutes of TLC like a traditional risotto, but I’ll forgive it that for the lack of effort involved.
This is a perfect, midweek family meal. On the table in less than half an hour, from simple ingredients.
You’ll love this Oven Baked Risotto recipe because:
✅ Made in under 30 minutes.
✅ Uses store cupboard and freezer ingredients.
✅ Easy comfort food 😍
Some top tips for making the Oven Baked Risotto recipe:
- Check the risotto when it’s been in the oven for 15 minutes. If the liquid has all been absorbed, add a little more stock.
- Serve before ALL of the liquid has been absorbed. You want it to be a little bit saucy.
- Try it with chorizo or pancetta instead of bacon, or leave it out all together to make this a vegetarian dish.
Can I make this with regular rice?
Yes you can, but it won’t have the same creamy, saucy (technical term) texture. You may also need to adjust the cooking time a little.
Can I save leftovers of the Baked Risotto?
Yes! Just be sure to follow cooked rice food safety guidelines (i.e. do not leave it hanging about at room temperature, cool it very quickly and then reheat fully before serving).
Fancy some other 30 Minute meal inspiration?
- One Pan Sausage Pasta – SO tasty and all cooked in one pan.
- Teriyaki Chicken with Sticky Sauce – Perfect fast fake away.
- Grilled Halloumi Cheese Bake – The BEST squeaky cheese make.
Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. I’d love to know how you got on and what you thought of it if you make this Easy Oven Baked Risotto recipe. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ by the recipe.
Also, if you’d like to show me a photo by tagging me on Instagram (@tamingtwins) I LOVE to see your creations.
Oven Baked Risotto with Bacon and Cheese
An easy oven baked risotto recipe, no stirring and super tasting, created using store cupboard staples. A brilliant family dinner favourite.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Olive oil
- 1 Large onion Chopped (See Note 1)
- 2 Cloves Garlic Peeled and crushed
- 200 g Smoked bacon Cut into small pieces (See Note 2)
- 300 g Arborio Rice
- 1 litre Vegetable stock From a cube is fine
- 1 Tinned tomatoes
- A handful of fresh thyme leaves Take the leaves off the stalks (See Note 3)
- 200 g Petit pois or peas Frozen is fine
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
To serve:
- 50 g Butter Optional (See Note 4)
- 75 g Parmesan cheese Grated (See Note 5)
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 180C.
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Heat the olive oil in a heavy, oven proof/hob proof saucepan (which has a lid).
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Fry off the onion, garlic and chopped bacon until the onion is soft and the bacon has started to brown.
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Add in the rice and stir everything together until the rice is well coated.
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Allow to cook for a couple of minutes, stirring, until the rice starts to look shiny.
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Add in the stock, the tomatoes and the handful of thyme, along with some ground black pepper.
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Stir well and put on a well fitting lid.
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Pop into the oven for 20 minutes.
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Take out of the oven, add the peas and the butter if you're using, check for seasoning and add salt only if needed (this will depend on the bacon you used). Give everything a good stir and pop the lid back on for a couple of minutes until the heat of the risotto has warmed the peas through.
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You can then either stir through the cheese or serve with the cheese sprinkled on top.
Recipe Notes
Note 1 - Onion
I always try to use pre prepared frozen chopped onions. If you do use these they may take a little longer to fry (to get the liquid out).
Note 2 - Bacon
Smoked bacon will give you the best flavour. You could use streaky if you prefer. Or whatever you have. I like to chop it finely. You can do this with scissors if you like. Chorizo would also work well here.
Note 3 - Thyme
If you don't have fresh thyme, you could use dried thyme or Italian mixed herbs.
Note 4 - Butter
This is optional, but makes the risotto deliciously creamy just stirred through at the very end.
Note 5 - Parmesan Cheese
You can stir this in or sprinkle on top, or double the amount and do both 🙌🏼😆
Made this last night but used chorizo instead of bacon. It was really lovely, and so easy. There are just two of us so I halved most of the recipe but still put in the whole can of tomatoes (drained a bit through a sieve), and it was fine. Thanks so much for the recipe, I’ve written it down so that I can make it regularly, although its so easy I don’t think I’ll need to refer to the note for long.
Very tasty and so handy 😋😋
A sure fire winner for an lovely tasty fuss free dinner! I’ve made this a few times already and never any complaints. An easy make risotto with none of the continuous stirring!!
Made this last night ,had the leftovers for lunch today . I will definitely make again it was delicious.
Amazing and just so easy
A family Favourite
Another winner – so tasty and easy to make
Super simple recipe and bake but mine was a bit watery, I assume I should just cool for longer!
Made this twice now and always goes down well. I left the bacon out the second time as two vegetarians were having it-cooked it separately and then stirred in at the end to the two meat eaters portions.
I absolutely love this , I had leftovers for supper the next day was delish. I did have to cook mine for over an hour for some reason, but worth the wait.
I have never made risotto (I’m 57!!)
This was so easy to make, everyone loved it & there was absolutely none spare for lunch the day after! I will definately be doing this again. Thank you.
Can’t wait to try this. So you think you could use passata instead of tinned tomatoes?
Yes!
Love this recipe! Can you freeze it though? Thanks.
This was delicious! Came out perfectly, so easy to make and very tasty and filling. It was a hit with my family. Will definitely be adding this to our regular dinner rota!
Add it with chorizo – so quick and handy to pop in oven! Another fab recipe! Thank you
OMG where has this risotto been all my life?! It is absolutely GORGEOUS, my 8yo cheered when I said we could have it again & even my 13yo (begrudgingly) ate it & then had a second helping (there’s 4 of us &, following the recipe, we could have easily fed another person if not 2….but it was too nice so we ate it all. It’s certainly not ready in 30 minutes with prep & cooking, closer to 45-50 minutes (and my husband is a confident & competent cook), it is super easy though!