Last Saturday I made arancini for a finger food party and they were such a hit.
For anyone wondering what I am talking about, they are crumbed and fried risotto balls.
Earlier in the week I made a pumpkin and sage risotto with a generous amount of Parmesan cheese.
The next day I rolls the risotto into balls and then flour, egg and panko crumbed them.
On the day, I fried (deep ish) the risotto balls for about 3 minutes until golden and crisp. Then oven heated just before serving.
I drizzled sage infused honey over the hot arancini and topped them with a shave of Parmesan.
I will write an exact recipe as they were so utterly delicious.
Does anyone else make arancini and if so what are you preferred flavours?

I haven't made arancini but I do like it and order it whenever I see it on the menu, mostly at an Italian restaurant.

Keen to try this, Helen. I have seen recipes and photos but have never eaten them.

Great, both Marnie and Chris have inspired me to make risotto this afternoon and arancini tomorrow, all in the name of recipe writing.
My friends will be happy that I have some in the freezer when next we do drinks.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/14/2021 04:36AM by helen.

I ate these in Sicily back in 2005, and they were delicious. I would also love a recipe so that I could make them here. The Sicilian version had melted cheese in the centre.

Karena, I have a very fond memory of the arancini sold at the canteen on the ferry between mainland Italy and Sicily. They were huge, like a scotch egg, looked slightly soggy and unattractive, but were filled with a delicious meaty Bolognaise sauce and Parmigiano Reggiano, and were totally delicious. I guess the thrill of travelling on the Strait of Messina helped, but I've never forgotten the arancini.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE arancini.
Mushroom risotto with mozarella in the centre is good, saffron risotto with a bolognese sauce centre or tomato risotto with pesto and mozarella in the centre are all classic and tasty.

I love arancini, too, but do not relish the thought of producing them myself. They are a treat for me whenever I see them on the menu when dining out. We are lucky here in Whitianga that we do have a few cafés and restaurants that endeavour to bring us delicious meals from around the world.

I'm not keen on deep-frying, so will experiment with a flatter version! Has anyone else done this?

These look lovely - I like the idea of doubling the recipe and having risotto for dinner and making the arancini the next day.

Helen, I note that you mention a leek in your recipe method - I don't see a leek in the ingredient list, so I assume it's a typo and you mean onion.

Regards,

Barbara Anne

Oops Barbara Anne yes it is meant to be onion, updated now. thank you so much for pointing it out.

Has anyone had good results baking these?

I don’t “do” deep frying, so when I make them, I bake them. I put a chunk of mozzarella in the centre, so if I leave them too long they collapse a bit, but are utterly delicious. If you have a deep fryer, it’s a game changer. They look fabulous and taste even better. I have a thermomix (two actually, but who’s counting?), so cooking risotto is one of the easiest meals ever.

How long do you bake them for, and do you drizzle oil over them to get crisp crumbs? This sounds like a good option for anyone who doesn't have a deep fryer and doesn't want to use a lot of oil to shallow fry them.

I don’t put any oil on them. I bake till golden, but I try to catch before they start to collapse as the cheese melts. Either way they are delicious (I often skip the egg and breadcrumb stage too, and just roll in panko crumbs. Not nearly as good as deep fried, but still delish, with way less calories. Haha.

I made them and they were delicious (slightly square rather than round, as I was mean with the oil) I didn't bother with the honey mix, but did roll them in flour, egg and panko crumbs, which made for a lovely crisp finish. Definitely one to make again! Interestingly one of our Nelson winery cafes were serving these yesterday - only difference that they'd used feta rather than parmesan, and they were served with beetroot relish and rocket.

I love arancini and have made them a few times. They tasted great and were a hit with friends. However after going through the process each time I swore I would never do it again - it took a long time to roll and crumb them. I just baked mine in the oven (after spraying with oil) as much easier than frying given I don't have a deep fryer.