Arincini di Riso Ushering in the New Year

Put olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium high heat. Once oil is hot, add the rice. Stir rice to coat with oil and lightly toast.

Add chicken broth and white wine to the rice in 1/2 cup increments and stir continuously. As each amount of liquid is absorbed, add the next 1/2 cup of liquid until all of the liquid is absorbed and rice is creamy. The rice should be starchy and creamy, NOT fluffy and separate.

Remove rice from heat; stir in Parmesan, thyme, lemon zest and add salt and pepper to taste.

Let rice cool for at least 2 hours (preferably overnight) in the refrigerator.

Thoroughly mix 1 egg into cooled rice mixture.

Spoon 2 tablespoons of the rice mixture into your hand (using an ice cream scoop makes this job much easier). Start to form the rice into a ball. In the center of the mixture, add in the cube of Emmentaler. Continue to form the rice ball around the cheese. Once the ball is formed, set it onto a baking sheet and continue doing this until all of the mixture is used up.

Set up 2 bowls. In one bowl, beat the remaining egg and the milk. In the other bowl, add the panko bread crumbs.

In a deep pot or heavy skillet, pour canola oil to 1″-2″ deep and heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don’t have a thermometer, heat the oil until it is hot but not smoking. The oil should sizzle when a bit of the rice is dropped into it. (Using a thermometer is the best way to ensure that your fried foods come out perfectly browned and not greasy.)

While your oil is heating, dredge the rice balls in the egg and milk mixture, then roll in panko bread crumbs. After coating, set back onto the baking sheet.

Once oil has reached 350 degrees, add 3-4 rice balls to the oil (do not overload the pan as the oil temperature will drop too low and your food will take a long time to cook and will get greasy). Cook until golden on one side (approximately 2-3 minutes), then turn the Arancini over to cook the other side. The Arancini should be a rich orange/golden color. Once done cooking, remove to drain on paper towels.

If you want to keep all of your Arancini warm for serving, you can put these in a 300-degree oven (on a baking sheet) as you finish them.

Note: you can also use small meatballs or vegetables for the centers.