Italian Arancini Rice Balls Recipe With Delicious Pasta Dipping Sauce
An easy italian street food recipe that is made using leftover risotto that is stuffed with basil and cheese to create an appetizer. That is then crumb coated and fried till it golden brown. The crisp crust and soft inners make these fried rice balls absolutely delicious. Serve it as an appetizer along with marinara sauce for your parties.
The Italian Arancini Rice Balls Recipe or fried rice balls, are an easy and delicious Italian street food recipe that is flavored with cheese, basil along with cooked rice or risotto. This is a simple recipe that was inspired from an Italian restaurant in Rome. The crisp crust and soft inners make these fried rice balls absolutely delicious.
Serve the Italian Arancini Rice Balls as an appetizer for parties along with Del Monte's Pasta Sauce or along with a Spicy Marinara Sauce.
If you like this recipe, you can also try other Italian recipes such as
10 M
90 M
100 M
3 Servings
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 cup Risotto , cooked risotto (recipe below)
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese , grated
- 1/2 cup Gorgonzola cheese , cut into 1/4 inch cubes
- 4 sprig Basil leaves , finely chopped
- 2 Whole Eggs
- 2 cups Whole Wheat Bread crumbs , Italian style seasoned
- Homemade Pizza And Pasta Sauce , or Marinara Sauce for serving Ingredients for Risotto
- 1 cup Arborio rice
- 2 cups Vegetable stock , or chicken broth
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 1 Onion , finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Dry white wine
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese , grated
- Salt , to taste
- Black pepper powder , to taste
How to make Italian Arancini Rice Balls Recipe With Delicious Pasta Dipping Sauce
To begin making the Italian Arancini Rice Balls Recipe, first we will cook the Risotto.
In a saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer and allow it to stay warm on low heat.
In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, add the butter and allow it to melt. Saute the onions until lightly cooked and soft. Add the arborio rice and stir well so it combines with butter. Gradually add the wine a little at a time and simmer until almost all the wine is evaporated.
At this stage gradually add the simmering vegetable/ chicken broth and keep stirring until the rice is cooked through. The important trick here is to keep adding 1/4 cup of broth at a time, allow the broth to absorb and evaporate and then proceed to add more to cook the rice. Keep adding it until you feel the risotto is tender and the rice is creamy.
Once the rice is cooked through, finally add the parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Stir it in and saute for a couple of more minutes and turn of the heat.
Allow the risotto to cool completely before making the Arancini Rice Balls.
In a large mixing bowl, add the cooked risotto, 1 cup of breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, basil and eggs. With greased hands combine all the ingredients and mash well with your hands. Check the salt and adjust to suit your taste. Take a spoonful of the Arancini rice ball mixture and shape it into 2 inch diameter balls or smaller bite size as desired.
Before you shape it completely, place a cube of the Gorgonzola cheese in the center and then seal to make a round ball. Proceed to make the Arancini Rice balls the similar way.
Roll the balls in the remaining breadcrumbs to give it a even coating all around.
Preheat the oil for deep frying in a deep frying pan.
Once the oil is heated on medium heat; add a few Arancini Rice Balls at a time and deep fry them until golden brown. Fry them in small batches, so the oil is able to maintain the even heat. Once done, drain them in paper towels and keep aside for serving.
To serve the Arancini Rice Balls, place the Del Monte Pasta Sauce or the Spicy Marinara Sauce in a serving platter and place the rice balls over it and serve immediately.
