Best-of-the-best risotto alla milanese

Method

1. Pour the stock into a saucepan over a low-medium heat and warm through until steaming. Add the saffron to a large, high-sided frying pan or saucier pan over a low heat and gently toast the strands for a minute, then tip them into a bowl. Add a ladleful of the warm stock to the saffron and leave it to steep and release its flavour.
2. Put the frying/saucier pan back over a medium heat. Add 2 tbsp of the butter and the bone marrow. Once the butter has melted and the bone marrow has rendered its fat, add the onion with a pinch of salt and gently cook for about 8 minutes or until softened and translucent (not coloured).
3. Tip in the rice and stir for a couple of minutes to toast – the grains should start turning translucent at the edges. Pour in the wine and turn up the heat to medium, then let it bubble away, stirring, until almost completely absorbed by the rice.
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4. Pour in a large ladle of the warm stock – it should be enough to just cover the rice, so you might need a little more, depending on the size of your ladle. Stir until absorbed, then repeat the process a ladle at a time until the rice is cooked al dente (soft but still with a slight bite). You may not need all the stock, and this could take 20-30 minutes, so be sure to taste the grains regularly.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the saffron-infused stock, then vigorously beat in the remaining butter and the parmesan. Cover and leave for 1 minute, then season to taste with salt (how salty your stock is will determine how much you need to add) and serve with a crack of black pepper and extra parmesan.