Hearty, Authentic, and Delicious: Mantovan Rice with Sausage
Mantovan Rice, or Riso alla Pilota, is a local favorite among Lambrusco winemakers.
Often, when confronted with the choice of a heart-warming Italian dish, pastas are usually the first thing that comes to mind. Sometimes, more Northern Cuisine versed foodie fans might even pick a rice based risotto. There is, however, a hidden gem of a dish coming from the North Central Italian area known as Mantova… that is Riso alla Pilota.
Riso alla Pilota (a rice with sausage dish) is a traditional dish from this area falling between Milan and Bologna. It’s name, “Pilota”, comes from the workers who prepare the rice for packaging after harvest. Traditionally, it uses the local Mantovan Salamella sausage, but for those of us in America that cannot find it, any thick, coarse grain pork sausage flavoured with salt, pepper, and garlic will work. In the Mantova area, pork is very common as it is often said that there are seven pigs to every person living in the area!
We love to pair this delicious dish with Lambrusco and other sparkling red wines, such as those of Frignano in nearby Emilia Romagna. Whether it is Sgarbato made from the rare uva tosca grape, or Scurone from Malbo Gentile, these Lambrusco inspired pet nat wines are near classic pairings with this dish. The light sparkling effect of the Lambrusco helps to cleanse the palate with the fatty sausage, and the well-balanced acidity present in the wine balances well with the starchiness of the rice.
Other fun pairing options for this Italian sausage rice recipe can be found in the realm of the barbera grape. After all, barbera in and of itself is a very food friendly grape, but here with Riso alla Pilota, it actually pairs nicely. Whether from classic appellations like a Barbera d’Alba or Nizza, or a Piemonte Barbera well-aged in oak, or super-natural 00 made Nilda and old vine Barla, barbera is a grape that lends itself well to this dish. The innate acidity of barbera has a similar effect as the sparkling effect of the previously mentioned Lambrusco.
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Riso alla Pilota - Mantovan Rice with Sausage
Procedure:
1. Bring a pot of 2 ½ cups of lightly salted water to a rolling boil. Add the rice and boil for 10-12 minutes (or until the rice has absorbed almost all the water) stirring occasionally without a lid.
2. Remove from the heat and cover with a towel, then place the lid on top of the towel to seal in the heat in order to finish cooking the rice. This allows the rice to rest and stay warm, but the towel absorbs the moisture to make sure the rice is not steamed. Leave it rest for 10 minutes.
3. While the rice rests, melt the butter in a skillet and add the garlic clove cut in half or quarters (quarters for a stronger flavor, half for a more delicate aroma). Add the sausage and begin to brown, stirring to break it into small pieces as it cooks. When cooked, remove the garlic from the sausage and remove the skillet from the heat, do not drain.
4. After the 10 minutes, uncover the rice and pour the sausage mixture (fat and all) evenly over the rice. Mix all together with half of the grated Parmesan. Taste and add salt as needed.
5. Serve immediately with the remainder of the Parmesan sprinkled on top.
Cooking Time: 30-40 minutes
Portions: Serves 4 comfortably
Ingredients:
1 & 1/3 cups Rice
9oz bulk Sausage
1 clove Garlic
¼ cup Butter
1 cup Grated Parmesan
Salt
Wines to Pair:
Frignano Sgarbato Pet Nat Uva Tosca Organic Sparkling Natural Wine
Frignano Scurone Pet Nat Lambrusco Organic Sparkling Natural Wine
Barbera Wines
Pick Up Your Pairings
Sparkling Lambrusco Red Wines
This is an ancestral method Lambrusco made primarily with the Lambrusco Grasparossa grape, and with some Malbo Gentile grape, which is local to the area of Frignano in Modena. It is a lighter red ruby color, light effervescence, a nose that has red fruit with hint of orange peel. It is fresh and fruity, with plum taste, and grippy tannins and noticeable texture.
Made from the rare Uva Tosca grape, which grows in higher altitudes in Emilia and is believed to be a descendant of Schiava Grossa, the Alto Adige red grape. Technically a rose wine, it is more like a light red, which looks and tastes like drinking cranberry juice as a sparkling wine. Refreshing and quaffable, with strawberries on the nose and a saline finish, it is great on its own or with light fare. While this grape does not impart much color, 2021 was a dry year, producing more concentrated fruit and color. It is naturally fermented and sparkling 'col fondo' ancestral, or pet nat, style wine.
This product is sold out and will not be restocked. A similar wine you can check out would be Frignano Sgarbato Pet Nat Uva Tosca Organic Sparkling Natural Wine.
Small production wines like this don’t stay long in stock! This product is sold out. Head back to the VeroShop to see what other small production wines we have available.
This is how Lambrusco wine was made in the ‘olden’ days in the Mantua province, refermented in the bottle, Pet Nat style. This organic wine made with 100% Lambrusco Salamino grapes has a deep rich purple color with ruby hue and a light effervescence. Its aromas are complex, with notes of cherry, cinnamon, milk chocolate and almond. It has a pleasant freshness, savoury taste and light tannins. Being on the lees and on the lees, aka ‘Col Fondo’, it lends itself well to aging with its aromas and taste evolving over time. Low in alcohol too!
Barbera Wines
A really good, soft and fleshy Barbera from Alba, from a single vineyard located in the Barolo designated wine region, one of the best areas for Barbera. Nice acidity and fruitiness with some spice, thanks to 14-16 month aging in new and used oak.
A very balanced and elegant wine on the nose, and a good body and structure on the palate with a pleasant and vibrant acidity. A rounded wine with fresh yet fruity notes that finish with a creamy texture thanks to the oak barrel aging.
Do you want to regularly purchase this wine? Check out the Subscribe and Save option available HERE!
Tastes Like: Pretty, ripe, dark cherries
Farming & Winemaking Highlights: Biodynamic | Native Yeast Fermentation | Single Vineyard
Fun Facts: With its aging, this Barbera d’Alba technically follows guidelines for a Barbera d’Alba Superiore, but winemaker Aldo Clerico decides to declassify it.
From the prestigious Barbera d’Asti denomination, this Barbera takes its name, Piccona, from the single vineyard where it is harvested in the Monferrato of Piedmont, Italy. A ruby red color, it has a complex bouquet of red fruits and berries. On the palate, the typical Barbera acidity comes through in a pleasant manner, balanced with the tannins and a certain robustness for an overall balanced and persistent wine.
A certified sustainable winery, Ivaldi Dario practices regenerative farming.
Just imported in first time to the US, a 00 oak aged Barbera natural wine from a vineyard in Pascomonti, in the southern part of the Langhe, in Piedmont, this red wine is the most traditional take on a Barbera red wine from the Langhe: organically farmed, unfiltered, aged in neutral oak with no sulfites added and native yeast fermentation, this is great natural wine version of a Piedmont Barbera.
It has a fruity and spicy bouquet and on the palate has a nice balance of tannins and acidity. Overall, a structured wine with a lingering pleasant finish.
Nizza is the Barolo of Barbera, made from the birthplace of Barbera, Nizza Monferrato, the home of the 4th generation winemaking family, Ivaldi, and place where this wine is grown and made. This Nizza Barbera is a delicious old world style red wine with a rich cherry taste and an incredible mouthfeel.
This Nizza DOCG is made only in the best years, always made with 100% Barbera grapes, but only the best of the best of the Barbera clusters goes into this wine, before it spends 12 months in Slavonian oak barrels then 2 years resting in the bottle.
Made with native yeast fermentation, on the skins for 15 days. it has a pretty ruby red color with garnet reflections. A fruity bouquet transforms into spicy notes as it opens, and on the palate this wine has nice tannins and acidity balanced by a robust body.
The name of this red wine, 1613, is a homage to the siege of Nizza Monferrato in 1613 by the Mantovan army, showing the strong roots the Ivaldi family has to their home town. The women gathered to pray all night, and after the siege was lifted and won by Nizza Monferrato, an oil lamp in the church spontaneously burst into flames, despite the lack of spark and oil. Known as the ‘Miracle of the Lamp’, this wine pays homage to that evening, bearing not only the year as a name, but the image of the oil lamp on the label.
A certified sustainable winery, Ivaldi Dario practices regenerative farming.
Named after Lorenzo Corino's grandmother, Nilda is Lorenzo & Guido Corino's new red wine from 20 year old vineyards in their hometown of Costigliole d'Asti. It is a field blend mainly of Barbera, along with a mix of other old varieties native to the area. It has aromas of spiced milk chocolate cookies and has a fresh, ripe dark fruit taste with an earthy funkiness and great texture. This vegan wine is made naturally, with no intervention of any kind made and no sulfites added. After a gentle crushing, fermentation starts with native yeast fermentation and wines are left with skin contact for 3-4 weeks, followed by about 12 mos of aging in wooden barrels.
You never had a Barbera like this! Made from 95 year old Barbera vineyard, with some small percentage of other varieties planted over the years in the vineyard. This all natural wine has intense aromas of brandied cherries and a richly textured, delicious dark fruit taste with right balance of fruit, acidity and tannins. Barla is the antique name of the vineyard which used to be the land of an old convent. After a gentle crushing, fermentation starts with native yeast fermentation and wines are left with skin contact for 6-7 weeks, followed by about 36 months of aging in wooden barrels, housed under Lorenzo Corino's family home.
As with all of Case Corini wines, this is a 00 wine, nothing added, nothing removed, no yeast, no sulphites added, organic, biodynamic, vegan. In other words, all natural wine.
