These Arancini balls are delicious, crispy, deep fried Italian balls of rice with a meat sauce and two cheese cheese filling and crunchy breadcrumb coating.
With a soft interior and crunchy outer, these balls are so tasty it is worth your time to make them.
These easy-to-make arancini balls are so versatile and great for party finger food, appetisers, and even as a main.
You can serve them on their own or stuff them with different fillings like chicken, shrimp, crab, or even!
These crisp, golden rounded nuggets exploding in flavour are typically served as a snack or street food throughout Sicily. This easy step-by-step arancini balls recipe shows you how to make arancini from scratch. These cheesy balls of risotto with a crunchy crumb coating make an excellent finger food or light lunch with salad. There is not as much work as it appears to be. Why not serve something green with your rice balls - such as a plate of blanched watercress, or spinach, or kale, or puha along with mashed potato or cauliflower cheese. The crunchiness of bbq grilled asparagus is an ideal accompaniment to eat with arancini balls. Why not serve some pasta with your rice balls - such as a plate of creamy savoury macaroni cheese and a side of tossed salad. Another pasta idea to serve with your rice balls is a good serve of Pasta salad with dressing along with some sliced, buttered cobb loaf or French stick. Aioli is a tasty Mediterranean sauce made from garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice and pairs well with arancini balls. Made with tomato passata, onion and garlic this sauce has is rich and full flavours which will take your arancini balls to the next level. Bolognese Sauce is a rich and hearty meat-based sauce that is made with ground beef, tomatoes, and various other ingredients. A rich and creamy dipping sauce is a wonderful accompniment for your Arancini balls. Avocado Hummus is smooth and creamy. The combination of flavours is superb accompniment for your Arancini balls. Drawn butter sauce is a luscious butter sauce that has subtle flavourings that does not not overpower any other This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something we may earn a commission. Thanks.Arancini Balls Recipe
Ingredients
Risotto
Arancini
Coating
Instructions
Risotto
Rice for this dish should be slightly sticky.
If rice is too dry or fluffy, add a tablespoon of water, and place back on low heat for a few more minutes.Cook The Meat
Combine Everything
(I use a lot of pepper, some people add a little oregano here.)
You want the mixture to be about the consistency of play dough, albeit lumpy.Mold Yor Arancini Balls
You will need to have wet hands to do this.
If you've ever made meatballs, the process is similar, but you kind of have to press the rice to make it hold together.
This is to make sure that the egg is completely cooked, and to prevent salmonella poisoning.Notes
Cooking the rice is largely unattended, and a batch normally takes me an hour, once the rice is cool.
Rice balls can be refrigerated for 3 - 4 days, re-heated in the oven and served warm.Arancini Filling Ideas
Our recipe is very versatile in the way that you can fill them with a host of fillings from mozzarella to roast vegies and various meats.
This means they can be made to suit any taste.
Here are some examples of arancini filling ideas.Mushroom Arancini
Cook in frying pan for 2-3 minutes or until softened.Chicken Arancini
Also substitute the 2 vegetable stock cubes for 1 vegetable and 1 chicken.
Cook through. Then add ½ tsp of crushed garlic plus ½ tsp dried mixed herbs and cook off for a further 2-3 minutes.Ham Arancini
Don't bother cooking, just add when combining everything.Seafood Arancini
Also add 1 Tbsp lemon juice.
Do not cook. You may want to Devein and wash though.
Then saute 1 small brown onion, let cool and add when combining everything.What To Serve With Arancini Balls
These deep fried risotto balls pair well with pretty much any Italian or Mediterranean style flavours.
They can be served as an Appetiser, Finger Food, side dish or main course and pair well with various other dishes.
Depending on what's inside them, you can serve with a dipping sauce, vegetables, salads, relish or pasta.
Here's some ideas to get you started.Blanched Greens
These easy side dishes will not only up the nutritional value but add heaps of taste.BBQ Grilled Asparagus
Add some freshly grated Parmesan cheese on the top and serve alongside cheeseburger salad and some potato salad.Macaroni Cheese
The flavours all mingle well and the smooth texture of the macaroni cheese with the crunch of the balls is awesome.Pasta Salad
Once again the flavours all mingle well and the smooth texture of the macaroni cheese with the crunch of the balls is awesome.What Sauce To Serve With Arancini Balls
The best dipping sauce for arancini balls really depends on ones individual taste preferences.
Here is our list of 6 popular sauces to serve with your arancini balls.Aioli Dipping Sauce
The aioli adds just the right amount of flavour without overwhelming the delicate flavour of the arancini.Rich Tomato Sauce
Being a popular finger food or appetiser, having a little tomato sauce on the side for dipping is very good.
One of the best to serve with them is a tasty homemade sauce like the Greek meatball sauce in this recipe.Bolognese Sauce
This sauce can be used as a dipping sauce, or you could try pouring it over the Arancini balls.
Serve your arancini balls with a side of Bolognese Sauce and some freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Use the tasty homemade sauce like the Bolognese sauce in this recipe.Creamy Cocktail Sauce
Serve your arancini balls with a side of cocktail sauce as an appetiser or finger food at your next party.
Here is the cocktail sauce recipe I suggest using.
The sauce adds a nice amount of tangy flavour without overpowering the flavours of the arancini.Avocado Hummus
Serve your arancini balls with a side of avocado Hummus as a dip for appetisers or finger foods at your next party.
Here is the avocado hummus recipe I suggest using.Butter Sauce
This sauce can be used as a dipping sauce, or you could try pouring it over the Arancini balls.
Here's the tasty homemade Drawn butter sauce.Recommended Celebrity Cookbooks
Nutrition Information
Yield 30
Serving Size 1
Amount Per ServingCalories 106Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 41mgSodium 131mgCarbohydrates 8gFibre 0gSugar 0gProtein 6g