A celebratory dish to ring in the new year: arancini with calabrian chili aioli. Arancini are fried balls of risotto, a classic Italian appetizer. This risotto is flavored with tomato, basil, and parmesan cheese. It’s stuffed with mozzarella, rolled into balls, and fried until golden. Served with the spicy aioli for dipping!
This post is sponsored by DeLallo.
arancini with calabrian chili aioli – the details
Arancini is a staple Italian dish originating from Sicily. This version is inspired by a restaurant here in Chicago, Alla Vita. They serve their arancini with an aioli, which is a departure from marinara, the more traditional dipping sauce. I loved the extra richness that the aioli gave to the arancini.
They flavored theirs with ‘nduja (a pork spread that gets heat from calabrian chili peppers). Riffing on that, I went with just calabrian chili peppers for this recipe. These peppers are bright and flavorful, and extra spicy. Balanced with garlic and lemon, this aioli is quite addicting when paired with the arancini.
While you can make arancini out of leftover risotto, this recipe starts by making the risotto fresh. It’s flavored with tomato paste, parmesan cheese, fresh basil, and lemon zest. These flavors work really nicely with the calabrian chili aioli.
I’m using DeLallo Arborio Rice for the risotto, which comes from Italy and has such a great texture. The starchiness of this rice is precisely what contributes to the finished texture of the risotto. As it slowly cooks in hot stock, all of that starch releases and thickens.
Once cooked, you’ll want to quickly cool the risotto down by spreading it into a thin layer on a sheet pan and sticking it in the fridge. This will help stop the cooking process and prepare the risotto to be rolled into balls.
The process of turning your risotto into arancini is a little messy and requires a bit of patience, but it’s well worth it. You’ll first portion the risotto. I like using an ice cream scoop to do this. Then, you’ll flatten each mound of risotto so that you can add a piece of mozzarella cheese to the center. Lastly, you’ll enclose the cheese, forming each one into a tight ball.
These balls go through a standard breading process – flour, egg, then breadcrumbs. Finally, they’re ready to fry. The finished result is a crunchy, deeply golden exterior, extra creamy risotto on the inside, and a center of melted mozzarella.
Absolutely delicious – a great recipe for a dinner party, when you want to make something really special for your guests. Enjoy!
PrintArancini with Calabrian Chili Aioli
arancini (fried balls of risotto) flavored with tomato & basil, stuffed with mozzarella, and served with calabrian chili aioli for dipping
yield: 12 arancini
Ingredients
Calabrian Chili Aioli
- ¾ cup olive oil
- ½ cup neutral oil
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp cold water
- 2 tbsp DeLallo Chopped Calabrian Chili Peppers
- kosher salt
Arancini
- 1 qt chicken (or vegetable) stock
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- kosher salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 cup DeLallo Arborio Rice
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ cup torn fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- ¼ lb whole milk mozzarella cheese, cut into 12 small cubes
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cups fine, plain breadcrumbs
- neutral oil, for frying
Instructions
Calabrian Chili Aioli
- Add both oils and the garlic cloves to a small saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil starts to gently bubble, turn the heat all the way low. Cook on low for 5 minutes, until the garlic is golden. Turn off the heat and cool for 20 minutes. Transfer the oil and garlic to a bowl and chill in the fridge for another 20 minutes or so.
- Retrieve the garlic and add it to a food processor (reserve the oil), along with the egg yolks and lemon juice. Blend for 30 seconds. With the processor still running, very slowly start to pour in the oil.
- Halfway through the oil, stop pouring and add a teaspoon of cold water. Finish adding the remaining oil and then the remaining teaspoon of cold water.
- Mix in the calabrian chili peppers. Season with salt to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Risotto
- Heat the stock in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until just barely simmering. Keep it warm over low heat.
- Meanwhile, heat a 5-6qt stainless steel pot (or Dutch oven) over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and let it melt. Add the onion. Cook for about 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic, a pinch of salt, and a few cracks of black pepper.
- Stir in the arborio rice. Allow it to toast for a minute or so. Mix in the tomato paste. Start to ladle the heated stock into the pot, one ladle (or about a ½ cup measurement) at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon after each addition until the liquid has been absorbed. Continue until you’ve added all of the liquid. This process should take about 20-25 minutes.
- Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, parmesan, basil, and lemon zest. Turn off the heat and stir until incorporated. Pour the risotto onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Spread it into an even layer. Chill for 1 hour.
Arancini
- Set up a work station with 3 large bowls and a sheet pan. In one bowl, add the flour. In another bowl, whisk the eggs. In another bowl, add the breadcrumbs. Season each with a pinch of salt.
- Add oil to a large, heavy-bottomed pot (or Dutch oven) until you have enough to fry in. Heat over medium heat until the oil reaches 350°F.
- Use a 2-oz ice cream scoop (or a ¼ cup) to portion the risotto into 12 mounds onto the sheet pan. Flatten each mound of risotto and place a cube of mozzarella in the center. Fold the edges around and roll each one into a tight ball, enclosing the mozzarella.
- Dredge each ball through the flour, eggs, and then breadcrumbs. Gently place each one back onto the sheet pan.
- Work in batches to fry the risotto balls until deeply golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes (adjust the heat as needed to maintain 350°F).
- Transfer the arancini to a plate lined with paper towels. Immediately sprinkle them with a pinch of salt. Serve them with the calabrian chili aioli on the side.
