This Leek and Fennel Risotto is made with cassava orzo for a grain-free variation of this classic dish. It’s AIP, paleo, easy and delicious.
This dish brings together the subtle flavors of leek and fennel with fresh thyme and grain-free orzo for a simple and delicious AIP dish. You won’t miss the rice!
Here’s what you need for this Leek and Fennel Risotto:
- grain-free orzo – I use Jovial’s cassava-orzo. The texture is perfect for this dish. As noted below, cauliflower rice is a potential substitute, but it won’t be as creamy or hearty.
- fennel
- leeks
- extra virgin olive oil
- bone broth or chicken stock – ensure the ingredients are AIP compliant and unsalted, or adjust for salt accordingly.
- full fat, additive free coconut milk – ensure the ingredients are simply coconut and water
- apple cider vinegar
- fresh thyme – you can substitute for dried thyme if necessary
Risotto FAQs
Can I substitute the orzo?
The dish won’t be as hearty and I haven’t tried this substitution myself but you could try some riced cauliflower here in place of the orzo. You don’t want the cauliflower to get too mushy and the liquid will reduce a lot faster so if you try this variation, be mindful that your cooking time will be less. Readers have also had success adding a bit of arrowroot starch with this substitution to thicken the sauce!
What can I serve this with?
I absolutely love this meal with poultry such as this Crispy Chicken with Spring Veggies or Crispy and Juicy Air Fryer Chicken. For a quick side, you could also bake some bacon as the risotto simmers and crumble that on top. A light and bright salad like this Shaved Vegetable Spring Salad or Mango Arugula Salad is a great accompaniment.
Can I substitute the leeks or fennel?
You can, but I wouldn’t recommend it. These really give this dish its complexity and depth of flavor. In a pinch, you could shallots in place of leeks and mushrooms in place of the fennel, but you won’t get that lovely liquorice base that the delicious fennel provides.
If you enjoyed this Risotto you might also be interested in:
- Creamy Garlic Pork and Spinach
- Easy Paleo Pasta Salad
- AIP Pasta Carbonara
- Crispy Chicken with Spring Veggies
- Chicken Meatballs in Mushroom Cream Sauce
If you try this Leek and Fennel Risotto, I would appreciate it if you would give the recipe a star rating and short review. Also, be sure to snap a picture of the finished product and share it with me on Instagram by tagging @healmedelicious.
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Leek and Fennel Risotto (AIP, paleo, dairy-free)
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 side servings 1x
Description
This Leek and Fennel Risotto is made with cassava orzo for a grain-free variation of this classic dish. It’s AIP, paleo, easy and delicious.
Ingredients
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 3 leeks, well washed and thinly sliced
- 3 large cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 medium head of fennel, diced (fronds and stalks removed)
- 1 cup grain-free orzo
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk, additive free
- 2 cups bone broth or chicken stock, divided
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.
- Once hot, add leeks and garlic. Reduce heat slightly and sauté for 5-7 minutes until leeks soften.
- Add fennel pieces and cook another 5 minutes, stirring intermittently.
- Add in orzo, fresh thyme, sea salt and apple cider vinegar and stir together, allowing the vinegar to reduce slightly.
- Add in coconut milk and 1 cup bone broth or chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low-medium and allow to cook 10 minutes, stirring intermittently.
- Reduce heat to low, add remaining cup of bone broth and allow to cook an additional 10-12 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Taste and adjust for salt as necessary.
- Garnish with fennel fronds, if desired.
Notes
- If using cauliflower rice, you might need a lot less liquid and the cook time will be reduced.
- Leftovers will keep well covered in the fridge for 2-3 days. I recommend reheating before serving.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Sides
Keywords: aip, paleo, pasta, dairy-free, risotto, grain-free, orzo, leeks, fennel, leek and fennel risotto
OMG! Thank you so much for this recipe, Nicole! I am Hashi’s and follow AIP. I have had a really hard time liking anything with cassava (a texture thing) but I was missing risotto. I did not have fennel, but had LOTS of cremini mushrooms so I made a vegan version of your risotto. I used homemade mushroom broth instead of chicken and tossed sliced cremini into the pan in step 6. Other than that, I followed your recipe exact. I did need more broth as I stirred…. probably used about 4 cups (or double) to get that slightly oozy effect. This is SOOO YUMMY! I served it along side crispy roasted Brussels sprouts and lemon thyme chicken breast. Next time I will try with some of my bone broth but I had so much mushroom broth in the freezer. Thanks! This will be in the regular rotation for sure! (PS…. This is so filling! I did the 1x scale portioned it as 8 servings as a side dish)
★★★★★
I have everything but the coconut milk. can I use half and half?
Hi Tai, we haven’t tried this substitution, so can’t say for sure. If you can tolerate half and half you can try but it won’t be as thick or creamy, and the flavor will be different. Do let us know the results if you try it!
So happy to have tripled this recipe and to have spread it out between (cold) lunches and re-heats! My partner raved about how this recipe functioned straight from their lunch back still a little cool from the fridge. I am forever grateful for your versatile recipes, Nicole! Such a perfect springtime vibe to this one!
★★★★★
I don’t usually cook with fennel and leeks but this was a surprising filling and yummy dish!
★★★★
This Leek and Fennel Risotto is absolutely delicious, I’ll be making this recipe many more times.
★★★★★
This was delicious. Even my grain & dairy loving husband loved it and said I should make it again.
★★★★★
This was delicious ! I used cauliflower rice and just used less liquid as you stated , I added a bit of arrowroot at the end to thicken it up a bit .. loved the flavours so good ! Thank you
★★★★★
I made this for dinner tonight using cauliflower rice and it was amazing!!! Like you mention in the post and recipe, I needed way less liquid and less cooking time. I used a 340g bag of frozen cauliflower rice with 1/2 cup of bone broth and omitted the coconut milk. I mixed 1 tbsp of arrowroot starch with the broth before adding it to give it more of a starchy texture and the partially thawed cauliflower rice took about 5-8 mins to cook after adding it at the same step as the recipe calls to add the orzo. I can’t belive how flavourful it turned out with such simple ingredients. Will definitely be making again!
★★★★★
This was so creamy and flavorful even without any cheese/dairy products!! I have tried other dairy free risotto recipes and they are so flavorless. Amazing recipe and amazing ingredients for health!! ????
Had this list night, paired with the Mango Arugula Avocado salad. Absolutely delicious!
★★★★★
I’m so happy you enjoyed and thank you for leaving a review <3
I tried this yesterday and it was absolutely delicious. I’ve never cooked with fennel before, in general I hate licorice flavor. But with how it comes together with everything else it’s amazing. Now I just have to figure out how to cook the orzo just long enough to be soft but not make a whole paste with no seperate orzo left
★★★★★
I’m so happy you enjoyed Shianne! Yes, getting the temperature just right on the stove so that it cooks but isn’t mushy is sometimes tricky!