Traditional crni rižot: Dalmatia's black squid risotto with ink and white wine

In Dalmatia, the Croatian coast that was Venetian for centuries, risotto arrived with the Italians and took on the color of the Adriatic at night. Crni rižot, black risotto, is made with squid or cuttlefish and the ink they carry in a sac beside the innards, and it is served in every konoba, the stone taverns of Split, Dubrovnik and the islands.

The ink does not taste fishy: it is salty, mild and slightly sweet, and it colors everything a glossy black. The rest is a simple risotto, no cream, with onion, garlic, white wine and broth, and a handful of grated hard cheese at the end, which in Dalmatia is the sheep's cheese from the island of Pag.

Whole fresh squid give both the ink and the flavor; cuttlefish ink in sachets, sold at fishmongers and Mediterranean grocers, solves it when the squid comes cleaned. Your mouth stays black for a while, and that is part of the experience.

Recipe card

• Origin: Dalmatia, Croatia
• Category: Main course, seafood risotto
• Difficulty: Medium
• Preparation time: 30 minutes
• Cooking time: 40 minutes
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 700 g whole fresh squid or cuttlefish (or 500 g cleaned plus 2 sachets of 4 g ink)
• 320 g arborio or carnaroli rice
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 liter hot fish or vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 50 g hard sheep's cheese or parmesan, grated
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Method

1. Clean the squid: pull the head with the tentacles, carefully remove the ink sac (the silvery pouch beside the innards) and set it aside in a cup with a spoonful of water. Remove the transparent cartilage and the skin and wash the tubes.
2. Cut the tubes into rings or strips and the tentacles into pieces.
3. Heat the olive oil in a wide pan and sauté the onion on low for 8 minutes, until translucent.
4. Add the garlic and half the parsley, sauté for 1 minute and add the squid. Cook on medium for 10 minutes, until the water it releases evaporates.
5. Add the rice and toast for 2 minutes, stirring.
6. Pour in the wine and let it evaporate.
7. Add the diluted ink (squeeze the sachets, if from the fishmonger) and mix well until the rice is black.
8. Add the hot broth ladle by ladle, stirring, for about 18 minutes, until the rice is al dente and creamy.
9. Turn off the heat, add the lemon, the rest of the parsley, the cheese and pepper, mix and adjust the salt. Serve immediately.

Tips and variations

• Cuttlefish gives more ink and a stronger flavor than squid; both work.
• Do not overcook the squid: 10 minutes in the sauté plus the rice's cooking time are enough to make it tender.
• A glass of Dalmatian white wine, such as pošip, is the natural match.
• The Venetian version, risotto al nero di seppia, is almost identical and without cheese.
• Leftovers become fried black rice balls, a beautiful appetizer.
• Do not freeze: the squid turns rubbery.
• Lemon on the table for anyone who wants to cut the saltiness of the ink.

A plate of glossy black risotto with a view of the Adriatic is an image nobody who has visited Croatia forgets. At home, the sea is left to the imagination, but the flavor is the same.