Homemade Sicilian arancini: A taste of Italy any day

Arancini is a Sicilian dish that can easily be made in the comfort of your own home. Its roots trace back to classic Italian cuisine, but preparing this dish is remarkably simple and yields fantastic flavours.

Arancini consist of rice balls that are coated in breadcrumbs and fried. The name of this delicacy comes from the Italian word 'arancia', meaning orange, which reflects the appearance of these rice balls—as both their colour and shape resemble the citrus fruit. Standard arancini are filled with a stuffing of meat, peas, and mozzarella, but there are many other variations. For example, you might add butter, mushrooms, aubergine, sausage, salmon, chicken, or seafood to the filling. Uniquely, you can find sweet arancini in Sicilian pastry shops once a year. They are available during St. Lucy's Day when rice balls are filled with sweet fillings and sprinkled with sugar.

A meaty vegetable filling, crispy coating, and creamy rice. Below is the simplest version that even kitchen novices can master.

Ingredients:

• 2 tomatoes,
• half an onion,
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil,
• 100 grams of ground beef and pork,
• 250 grams of frozen green peas,
• salt and pepper to taste,
• 250 grams of risotto rice,
• 3 tablespoons of butter,
• 50 grams of Parmesan cheese,
• 2 eggs,
• breadcrumbs for coating,
• oil for frying.

Preparation:

1. First, scald the tomatoes, peel them, and purée them.
2. Next, sauté the onion in heated olive oil until it turns golden.
3. Add finely chopped meat and thawed green peas to the onion. Fry everything briefly, then add tomatoes and seasonings. Simmer the mixture on low heat until the sauce thickens.
4. Cook the rice according to the package instructions, then mix it with butter, grated cheese, and egg.
5. Form balls from the prepared rice mixture and fill them with the previously prepared filling.
6. Coat each ball in breadcrumbs and fry the snacks until golden brown.