Crisp golden arancini in just minutes — learn how to make authentic Sicilian rice balls step-by-step! This 4-minute YouTube Shorts (9:16) breaks down each stage: cooling risotto, shaping and stuffing with ragù & mozzarella, breading, and frying to perfect crunch. Perfect for beginners and busy cooks looking for an easy arancini recipe, arancine tutorial, or Italian street food at home. Use leftover risotto or follow our quick risotto tip for best results. Like and share if you try this recipe — tag us with your creations! Keywords: Sicilian rice balls, arancini recipe, how to make arancini, arancine, easy Italian recipes.
Fantastico. Today we are going to Sicily. Not on a plane, but in our kitchens. We are making aransini. These are beautiful golden balls of rice. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, full of delicious things. Think of a wonderful surprise. Bite through the crunchy shell. Find a warm gooey center, rich meat sauce, ragu, melted mozzarella, and ham. This is the food of my homeland. Simple, honest, full of love and passion. Why do people love Aransini so much? It is simple, perfect street food. Eat them with your hands in a beautiful Italian piaza. A fantastic starter for a big family meal or a snack when you’re a little hungry. Little balls of sunshine, my friends. A taste of the warm Sicilian sun. They bring people together. From the nona, the grandmother to the bambini, the children. Impossible not to smile at a perfect arcini. Making them at home might sound difficult. You might think, Gino, I cannot do this. But I am here to tell you, yes, you can. easier than you believe. Forget what you have heard. We’ll do this together step by step. I’ll show you my little secrets. I’ll make it simple for you. We will take our time. No rush in an Italian kitchen. Simple rice. A few beautiful ingredients turned into something truly special. First things first, the rice. The rice is the star of the show. It must be perfect. You cannot use any old rice you have in the cupboard. No, no, no. For beautiful aransini, you need a proper risoto rice. My favorite is our boreo rice. It is short. It is fat. It has lots of starch. This starch is the magic ingredient. It makes the rice sticky and creamy. The stickiness helps us to shape the balls later. If the rice is not sticky, your aransini will fall apart. So remember, aroreo rice. Now let’s cook it. You will need some good quality vegetable stock or chicken stock and a little pinch of saffron. The saffron gives the rice its beautiful golden color and delicate flavor. Cook the rice with the stock a little bit at a time, stirring gently. We want the rice cooked through but still firm, not mushy. Let it absorb the liquid until it is nice and thick. Top tip from Gino. Once the rice is cooked, cool it down. Do not put it in the fridge straight away. Spread the cooked rice onto a large baking tray. Spread it out into a thin, even layer. Let the steam escape and cool completely to room temp. If the rice is warm when you shape the aransini, it will be too soft and sticky. While the rice is cooling, add extra flavor. Stir in finely grated parigano reano. Add a little butter for richness. Mix gently. Now your rice is cool, sticky, and full of flavor. Bellisimo. Now for the fun part. We get to fill and shape our beautiful aransini. This is where you can be creative. The classic filling is a rich meat ragu. Beef pork, a little bit of tomato. You can make this the day before. The flavor is always better the next day. Another classic is with mozzarella cheese and cooked ham. When you bite into it, the cheese stretches. Mama mia, it is incredible. You can also use spinach and ricotta mushrooms. The choice is yours. Just make sure your filling is not too wet. Let’s shape them. First, get a small bowl of water. Wet your hands a little bit. This is a fantastic tip to stop the rice from sticking to your palms. Take a good handful of your cooled rice about the size of a small orange. Flatten it in the palm of your hand to make a small cup or a nest. Don’t make the base too thin or the filling will leak out. You need to create a little hollow in the middle. This is where the delicious surprise will go. It is like you are hiding a little treasure inside the rice. Now add the filling. Take a small spoonful of your ragu. Take a cube of mozzarella cheese. Place it right in the center of the rice cup. Don’t be too generous. If you overfill it, it will be very difficult to close. A little goes a long way. Now, we need to close the bowl. This requires a gentle touch. Carefully bring the edges of the rice up and over the filling. Press and mold the rice around the center until it is completely sealed. Make sure there are no gaps or cracks. We want to keep all that beautiful filling inside. Once the filling is sealed, gently roll the rice between the palms of your hands. We want to make a smooth, compact ball. Some people in Sicily make them in a cone shape like a little volcano, but for beginners, a round ball is much easier. Make sure it is nice and firm. This will help it to keep its shape when we fry it. Place the finished ball on a tray and continue with the rest of the rice and filling. Look at them. A tray of beautiful, perfect arancini ready for the next step. You are doing a fantastic job. We are almost there, my friends. Now we need to give our arenini their crispy golden jackets. This is the final touch, the breading. It is a simple three-step process. You need three shallow dishes. In the first dish, put some plain flour. In the second dish, be two or three eggs with a fork. In the third dish, put plenty of breadrumbs. I like to use fine breadrumbs for a really crispy coating. This is your breading station. Everything should be in a line to make it easy. Flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs. Take one of your beautiful rice balls. First, roll it gently in the flour. Make sure it is completely covered. Tap off any excess flour. We just want a very light coating. Next, dip the flowered bowl into the beaten egg. Turn it over a few times to make sure it is completely wet. Let any excess egg drip off back into the bowl. We do not want it to be too soggy. This is a very important part of the process for a crispy finish. Finally, roll the egg coated bowl in the breadrumbs. Be generous. Press the breadcrumbs on gently with your hands to make sure they stick all over. We want a nice thick even coating. Place the breaded aransino back on the tray and repeat with all the other balls. Look at them. They are ready for their hot oil bath. Now for the grand finale frying. Heat some vegetable or sunflower oil in a deep pan. The oil should be hot but not smoking. A great tip is to drop a small breadcrumb into the oil. If it sizzles and turns golden straight away, the oil is ready. Carefully using a slotted spoon, lower a few arenini into the hot oil. Do not overcrowd the pan. Fry them in batches. Turn them gently until they are golden brown and crispy all over. This should take about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove them with the slotted spoon and let them drain on a wire rack or some kitchen paper. Serve them warm just as they are. My final tasty tip, a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice over the top just before you eat. Mama mia, perfection. With a bit of guidance, anyone can bring Sicily home. Fantastical.
Dining and Cooking