Rhys arborio

Along with Carnaroli, Arborio rice is the most popular type of these cereals for making risotto in the world and one of the most popular in its homeland - in Italy. It has been cultivated for several centuries, unlike Carnaroli rice, whose history goes back just over twenty years.

Rice Arborio is characterized by all the necessary qualities for the preparation of this traditional dish for Italy, since, creating a creamy texture, inside it retains a special cheese, which is called al dente by Italians.

Arborio rice is grown in the Po River basin on the Padan Plain, more specifically, in Piedmont. Several conflicting opinions are known about how this product got to Italy. According to some sources, it was the Arabs who brought Arborio rice to Spain and Sicily, after which only in the 14th century he came to Italy. There, in the ideal climatic conditions of the Padan Plain, rice cultivation began to develop incredibly quickly and after only a couple of centuries it became one of the main products of these places.

Until rice production mechanized, and this happened only in 1960, every May thousands of women had to leave their homes in Veneto and Emilia in order to work in rice fields. Some, by the way, for the first time being away from home and family, rejoiced at freedom, which they could not have dreamed of before.

Every day for eight hours they worked in wide straw hats barefoot in the water. They were protected from insects by long-sleeved clothing and pantaloons. Slowly, the women walked along the long rice rows and, leaning to the very ground, plucked weeds that grew in abundance in the fields with rice.

Today, on an industrial scale, Arborio rice is grown not only in Italy, but also in the United States of America. It belongs, like Carnaroli rice, to the Superfine category, and a distinctive feature of both species is the structure of the grain. So, inside the grain there is an opaque core, which scientists call a powdery spot. In this place, the structure is more loose, in connection with which rice is able to quickly absorb a large amount of liquid and greatly increase in size.

Another important property of Arborio rice is the ability to release starchy substances during cooking that bind rice grains to each other, thereby providing the dish with delicious creaminess. It is customary to cook Arborio rice quite quickly - no more than 20 minutes, otherwise it can be digested.