Arancine di Riso al Ragù
Arancini, rice balls filled with ragù, peas and cheese, are a beloved Sicilian street food and snack.
Ingredients
For the Rice:
- 2-pounds Arborio rice
- 10 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup parmigiano cheese, grated
- 1 cup pecorino romano cheese, grated
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
For the Sauce:
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1-½ cups white button mushrooms, finely chopped
- ½-pound ground veal, beef or pork
- ¼ cup red or white wine
- 2 cups tomato purée
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup frozen sweet peas
For Assembling the Arancini:
- 5 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2-½ cups unseasoned bread crumbs
- ½ gallon vegetable or canola oil, for frying
Instructions
To prepare the rice:
- Bring the chicken stock to a boil and add the rice; bring to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 20 minutes or until the broth is absorbed.
- After the rice is cooked, pour into a large shallow dish or pan and allow to cool; once cooled, stir in the grated cheese and the eggs; mix well.
To prepare the sauce:
- In a large sauce pan, on medium heat, sauté the onion, garlic and mushrooms in the olive oil.
- Add the ground meat and brown; stirring frequently; add the wine and cook for 1 minute until it evaporates.
- Pour in the tomato purée and bring to a boil; lower the heat, cover loosely with the lid and simmer for 1 hour until the sauce has thickened; add salt and pepper, to taste.
- In the last 10 minutes of cooking, stir in the peas; remove from heat and set aside to cool.
To assemble the arancini:
- In a deep, heavy bottomed dutch oven large enough to contain 7 – 8 arancini, add the vegetable or canola oil.
- Prepare two bowls with the breadcrumbs in one and the beaten eggs in the other; transfer the prepared sauce to a bowl.
- Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop the rice into your hand and shape into a ball; make an indentation in the centre of the rice ball with your thumb and add a spoonful of meat sauce; close the rice mixture around the meat and shape into a ball.
- Dredge in the egg wash and then roll in the breadcrumbs; I recommend that all of the arancinis be prepared at the same time and ready for frying.
- In order to check if the oil is hot enough, if not using a deep fryer, place the handle of a wooden spoon in the pot and if the oil begins to bubble and fry around the handle, it is ready for the arancini.
- Fry 7 or 8 arancini at a time until they are golden brown; about 3 – 4 minutes.
- Transfer to a dish lined with paper towels to absorb extra oil; best if served hot.
Notes
Making arancini can be lengthy but here are some suggestions to make the task more manageable by breaking it down into various steps:
- Cook the rice the day before; cool and refrigerate.
- Prepare the meat sauce a day or two in advance and refrigerate; also sauce can be divided into portions and frozen for future use.
- The assembled arancini can be refrigerated and fried the following day.
- Leftover arancini can be refrigerated for up to 3 days and re-heated in a 350°F oven for about 15 minutes.
- Fried arancini can be frozen up to a month; thaw and warm in a 350°F oven for 15 minutes.
