Crispy arancini (Italian rice balls) with tangy homemade tomato sauce

Crispy and delicious, arancini are deep-fried balls of risotto and are perfect to serve either as a starter or light meal. Dip then in a tangy tomato sauce for a taste sensation that simply explodes in your mouth!

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Crispy arancini with homemade tomato sauce

Arancini is one of those things that I’ve always wanted to make, but never actually got round to. So when I ended up with a dish of lobster-flavoured risotto leftover from my monkfish wrapped in Serrano ham I decided to give them a try.

All I can say is that I am very disappointed that I didn’t make these sooner! Served with a bowl of tangy homemade tomato sauce for dipping, arancini taste absolutely amazing.

Arancini are made by forming risotto into balls and coating in egg and breadcrumbs. Then, they are deep-fried until they are crispy and golden. Some people like to form the risotto into balls around a cube of mozzarella cheese, but you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. There’s plenty of cheese in the risotto to more than make up for not adding the extra.

The tomato sauce is made with just 4 ingredients and is perfect for dipping. The secret is to chop shallots very finely, the same size as the rice grains, and use passata rather than fresh tomatoes. Passata is sold in cartons or bottles in any supermarket and is simply tomatoes that have been blended and then sieved to remove and pips and bits of skin.

As far as deep-frying the arancini goes, you don’t need a deep-fryer, you can use a small saucepan and fry the arancini a few at a time. Because there are no spices in the breadcrumbs you can strain any remaining oil through a sieve lined with kitchen paper and save it to use again for something else.

I made these arancini with leftover lobster-flavoured risotto (get the recipe here if you’d like to try it), but I’ve also included instructions for making a basic risotto in the recipe below.

Recipe information

You can find the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making these arancini on the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

• Prep time – 15 minutes (using leftover risotto. If you are making a fresh batch of risotto, add on another half an hour)
• Cooking time – 15 minutes
• Yield – makes 8 – 12 arancini (depending on how large you make them)
• Calories – 218 each (including dipping sauce)
• Main equipment – Deep fat fryer (or small saucepan). I don’t have a deep-fat fryer so I just use a small saucepan large enough to hold three or four arancini at once. Because I don’t want to recommend something that I don’t personally use, the link for the deep-fat fryer is to a page on Amazon listing all their deep-fat fryers, so you can select the one you fancy.

How to make Arancini

To make arancini you will need leftover risotto and an egg. One cup of risotto will make approximately 5 arancini, depending on how large you make them.

If you don’t have leftover risotto, see below for instructions on making basic risotto.

Mix the cold risotto with the egg. This will bind the risotto and make the arancini less likely to break when you fry them. You will need one egg for two cups of risotto. If you only have one cup of risotto you should use half an egg. Beat the egg first so that you can use the amount you need. Do not let the risotto/egg mixture become too wet or you will have difficulty forming it into balls.

To coat the arancini you will need:

• cornflour (known as cornstarch in the US). If you don’t have cornflour you can substitute with plain flour.
• beaten egg
• breadcrumbs. I like to use panko breadcrumbs which are larger and lighter than normal breadcrumbs and make a really crispy coating. You could also make your own breadcrumbs by grating day-old bread and toasting it in the oven. Alternatively you could buy a packet of breadcrumbs in the supermarket.
• mozzarella cubes (optional). If you want to add mozzarella into the arancini you will need mozzarella cheese, cut into 1cm (approximately half an inch) cubes.

To make the rice balls:

• Prepare the coating ingredients. You will need three bowls. Place the cornflour into one bowl, the beaten egg into the second, and the breadcrumbs into the third.
• Take a handful of risotto, about the size of a golf ball, and form it into a ball. If you want to put mozzarella in the arancini, flatten the rice mixture in your hand and then form it into a ball around the piece of cheese.
• Dip the ball first in cornflour, then in beaten egg, and finally in breadcrumbs. Pat the breadcrumbs on firmly so that they adhere to the egg. This is a messy business, and you may find it easier to use forks and a spoon to help you coat the balls.

The next step is to fry the rice balls.

• If you have a deep-fryer you can use that to fry the arancini, otherwise just use a small saucepan with about 2″ of oil.
• Heat the oil and then gently lower the arancini one at a time into the hot oil using a slotted spoon.
• Fry them a few at a time, turning often to make sure they brown on all sides.
• Once they are golden brown, remove them from the oil and allow them to drain on kitchen paper towel.
• Serve with homemade tomato sauce, for dipping.

How to make the tomato sauce

To make the tomato sauce you will only need 4 ingredients:

• shallots (sometimes known as eschalots) – these have a sweeter, milder taste than a regular onion, although you could use a small white onion instead if that’s all you have. They should be very finely chopped.
• tomato passata – this is just tomatoes that have been pureed and then sieved to remove the pips and skin. Tomato passata is widely available in supermarkets, and is sold in both cartons and bottles.
• mixed herbs – this is just mixture of dried oregano, marjoram parsley. You can substitute with Italian herbs.
• garlic – use either fresh garlic which has been finely chopped, or and equivalent amount of bottled garlic.
• olive oil (not pictured) – for frying. You could also use sunflower or other vegetable oil.
• I also like to include a teaspoon of sugar when I’m cooking with tomatoes, which I think improves the flavour.

To make the tomato sauce:

• Peel and chop the shallots and garlic. Chop the garlic as finely as possible and try to get the shallots chopped to roughly the same size as a grain of cooked rice.
• Fry the shallots and garlic gently in a splash of olive oil until they start to soften, then add the herbs and tomato passata and sugar (if using).
• Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer, cover with lid and leave for 10 minutes.
• Serve with the arancini as a dipping sauce.

How to make a basic risotto

You will need these ingredients:

• Risotto rice – this is known as arborio rice in the UK. It is a short grained rice that absorbs moisture readily and contains a large amount of starch that give the risotto its characteristic texture. Ordinary white or long-grained rice will not work for this dish.
• Shallots and celery – these provide the aromatic element. The shallots and celery should be finely diced, approximately the same size as a grain of rice. I find it easiest to chop them by hand so that you can control the size. You could use a food processor to chop them, but be careful not to over process.
• Garlic and thyme – more aromatics. The garlic should be finely minced, and the thyme leaves picked off the stalk. Use fresh thyme if possible – it is much nicer than dried thyme for this recipe. If you do use dried thyme, you will only need one-third of the amount stated in the recipe for fresh thyme. Dried herbs are much more concentrated than fresh.
• White wine – the alcohol will all cook away, leaving only the flavour of the wine. If you don’t want to use wine you could substitute with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and extra stock.
• Stock cube – dissolved in 1 and half cups of boiling water. You can use either a chicken or a vegetable stock cube. If you have fresh chicken stock you could use that instead.
• Parmesan cheese – finely grated.
• Butter – use unsalted if possible so that you can control the amount of seasoning.
• Fresh cream – you could use either double or single cream.
• Salt – this is optional and should only be added at the end of the cooking process if you think the risotto needs it.

How to make it

The secret to making risotto is to stir continuously while the stock is being absorbed into the rice. If you just add all the stock at once and leave to cook you will only be boiling the rice. It’s the act of stirring that helps the rice release its starches and form the lovely soft creamy consistency that is characteristic of risotto.

• Chop the shallot and celery finely, mince the garlic and pull the thyme leaves from the stalk.
• Melt half the butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil in a frying pan and then add the chopped vegetables, garlic and thyme. Cook them over a low heat, stirring occasionally until the onions and celery have started to soften. Keep the heat low so that the butter does not brown and the vegetables don’t start to burn.
• Now add in the rice and stir well so that each grain of rice gets coated.
• Add the wine and stir it into the rice. Keep stirring over a gentle heat until the wine has all been absorbed into the rice.
• Now add the stock. Add one ladle at a time and continue stirring until the stock has all been absorbed.
• Test the rice for doneness. It should be firm but cooked through – ie you shouldn’t feel any hard pieces in the rice when you bite into it.
• Stir in the cream and the grated cheese and continue cooking (and stirring) on a low heat until the cheese has melted. Stir in the remaining butter.
• Taste for seasoning and add salt and black pepper to your own taste if necessary.
• Allow the risotto to cool completely before using it to form into the arancini balls.

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• Creamy chicken marsala with mushrooms
• Pasta pescatore
• Seafood linguine with lobster

The recipe

I have linked this recipe to #CookBlogShare run by Sisley & Chloe which was hosted by Chloe at Feast Glorious Feast.