This Chicken and Bacon Risotto recipe is so simple and satisfying to make and is ready in under 40 minutes. Risotto is an Italian classic, and this version is lower in fat.
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Chicken and Bacon Risotto
This Chicken and Bacon Risotto recipe has been adapted from an old official SW magazine.
I have a cooking confession. I have never cooked risotto in my whole life…
After making this lower-fat version of this classic Italian dish, I don’t know why I waited so long!
Risotto is a northern Italian rice dish cooked with broth until it reaches a creamy consistency. The broth can be derived from meat, fish, or vegetables. Many types of risotto contain butter, onion, white wine, and parmesan cheese. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. Saffron was originally used for flavour and its signature yellow colour.
Wikipedia
Risotto, unlike other rice dishes, requires a lot of care and attention when making it.
A ladleful of stock is added to the pan with rice and stirred until absorbed before adding more stock.
You have to use short-grain rice (such as Arborio) which has the ability to absorb more liquid, release more starch, and be more sticky than long-grain rice.
This type of rice also helps provide risotto with its creamy consistency.
This might sound like a bit of a pain to make as you have to be at the stovetop and constantly stirring. But trust me, the end result of this SW risotto is so worth it.
I couldn’t believe how creamy and rich it tasted – all without the usual butter, wine and Parmesan!
This risotto uses cooked chicken, so it is great to make when you have leftovers after a Sunday roast.
Or if you’re cooking chicken breasts for another recipe, throw in a few more to cook as leftovers.
Instead of onions, this recipe uses leeks that have less punch than onions and work so well in this dish.
The original recipe did call for saffron, which is a herb (or is it a spice?) that I am not a fan of at all, so we left it out. But I will include it in the recipe if you would like to use it.
And one more thing, Parmesan isn’t included in the recipe card, but 30g fresh Parmesan is a Healthy Extra A choice (at the time of writing), so if you have Syns available to you, feel free to top off your risotto with a sprinkling of cheese.
This recipe for Chicken & Bacon Risotto serves 4 and is FREE when Food Optimising.
I’ve got lots of great Slimming World Recipes including more Slimming World Chicken Recipes for you to enjoy – right-click and open these other recipes in a new tab so that you can read them after this one.
Slimming World Food Diary Printable
If you follow Slimming World, you will know that one of the crucial things to your success is keeping a Slimming World Food Diary.
Tracking what you eat at each meal, along with your Healthy Extras, and Syns means you can monitor when things go well – and when they don’t – so can figure out how to improve next time.
I’ve got a free printable which now includes a diary for Extra Easy SP.
More Slimming World-Friendly Recipes
Want a few Slimming World recipes to try next? Here are some of my favourites:
- Youvetsi – Greek Lamb Orzo with Feta
- Slimming World Fish Pie
Chicken & Bacon Risotto Recipe Tips
- You will need short-grain rice such as Arborio to make risotto. You may also see “risotto” rice sold in supermarkets which is fine to use.
- Stock pots, liquid stock, bouillon powder, and stock cubes are all FREE on Slimming World (check your Food Optimising book or online for the most up-to-date info) so use whichever kind of stock is suitable. I made mine with chicken OXO cubes.
- It is important to add hot stock to the rice as you are cooking it, so pour it into a saucepan and keep it simmering on medium heat.
- This recipe uses cooked chicken (which should have all fat and skin trimmed off before cooking).
- Visible fat should also be cut away from the bacon too. The bacon is cooked before the rice and set aside.
- You can cut the leeks in two ways, into slices across the whole vegetable, or (like we did) cut in half lengthways and sliced.
- The leeks are cooked for around 10 minutes so that they soften, before stirring in the dry rice and cooked shredded chicken.
- If you are using saffron, a pinch goes in with the chicken.
- Use a ladle to transfer the stock from the simmering stockpot to the risotto pan, stirring gently so that the rice absorbs the liquid.
- This step is repeated until the rice is tender and the risotto has a creamy consistency.
- The bacon goes in last, and at this point, check for seasoning. We found that there was plenty of saltiness from the stock and the bacon and that there was no need for extra.
- Serve in warmed bowls with chopped chives on top.
- You could add 30g grated fresh Parmesan if you like – this is a Healthy Extra A choice or 6 Syns (at the time of writing).
Chicken & Bacon Risotto
Yield: 4
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
A delicious risotto made with cooked chicken, leeks, and bacon.
Ingredients
- 1¾ litres/7½ cups hot chicken stock
- Low-calorie cooking spray
- 200g/7 oz back bacon rashers, visible fat removed, roughly chopped
- 2 large leeks, halved lengthways and thinly sliced
- 300g/10½ oz dried risotto rice
- 4 cooked skinless, boneless chicken breasts, shredded
- Pinch of saffron (optional)
- Fresh chives, finely chopped, to serve
Instructions
- Pour the stock into a saucepan and keep hot over medium heat.
- Place a large saucepan over high heat and spray with cooking spray.
- Add the bacon and fry until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, cover to keep warm and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium, spray with more cooking spray and cook the leeks for 5-10 minutes or until softened.
- Add the dry rice and stir-fry for 1 minute, then add the chicken and a pinch of saffron if using.
- Add the hot chicken stock, a ladleful at a time stirring until the rice absorbs the liquid before adding more.
- Cook for 20-25 minutes or until the rice is tender and the risotto has a creamy consistency.
- Stir in the bacon and season to taste if desired.
- Divide between four warmed bowls and sprinkled with chopped chives to serve.
Notes
This recipe for Chicken & Bacon Risotto serves 4 and is FREE when Food Optimising on Slimming World.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 830Total Fat: 31gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 175mgSodium: 2057mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 1gSugar: 14gProtein: 76g
This site uses an outside source (Nutritionix) to provide estimated nutrition. If you need exact calories and macros, please do your own calculations.
Disclosure: I am not affiliated with Slimming World in any way other than being an ex-member. This recipe may have been adapted from a Slimming World magazine or book. If you are reading this blog post or printing this recipe, the chances are you already follow SW and know all the ins and outs of how it works. Please check with your consultant, in your member pack, or online at Slimming World’s website for full and up-to-date details about the plan, as it may be updated from time to time in line with the latest nutritional information. I am not a doctor or dietician or providing medical advice and hold no responsibility for the complete accuracy of calorie counts and nutritional information, and where applicable, Syns in Slimming World-friendly recipes. I advise you to check your own resources if you are using recipes to lose weight. All weight-loss programs should be followed on advice from a doctor.
