FOODIE FRIDAY - ARANCINI

I'm late with this, too, but I persist in my logic that it's still Friday somewhere!

Arancini [rice balls, sometimes pyramids] or arancine if you live in Palermo or Agrigento are Sicilian fast food and most Sicilians buy them. There is nothing like the aroma of some of these cooking as you pass a salumeria or rosticceria. I do know one or two people who make them, however, and the other day I felt ashamed to have been in Sicily for four years without putting myself through this procedure, though I have made them in the UK. If your idea of a relaxed afternoon is to make the hell of a mess in your kitchen, this recipe is for you! I should warn you that my arancini are not perfectly formed like the ones you can buy, but they taste just fine! You should make the ragù in advance [I make it and freeze in small quantities] and your risotto a couple of hours before you want to start forming the arancini. Otherwise it will all prove too much and you will get burnt hands into the bargain. Cook your peas a couple of hours before, too. Oh, I knew there was something else: you shouldn't mix metric and imperial measures in a recipe but I have because it's what I do.

Here we go, then. These quantities will make about 8 large arancini:

Small quantity of ragù which you have already made [there's a recipe here]
Small quantity of cooked peas
3 tablesp olive oil
600 gr arborio or other risotto rice - it must be risotto rice!
sachet of saffron powder
seasalt and freshly ground black pepper
just over 1 pint hot water for the risotto
100 gr mozzarella, chopped small
about 2 tablesp flour and water to mix to a loose paste
packet pane grattato or about 8 oz very fine breadcrumbs
groundnut or sunflower oil for deep frying

Make a saffron risotto: heat the olive oil, then add a little of the rice and stir around. When it takes on a little colour, add the rest with the saffron powder, seasalt and freshly ground black pepper and stir well. Lower the heat to simmer and quickly add about one third of the water. Stir until absorbed, then add another third and repeat the process. Add the last third of the water and stir again. Let the rice absorb this. The risotto is ready when the grains look considerably larger and are al dente. [On my hob this takes under 10 mins.] Let the risotto cool completely.



Ready? OK, stir the peas into the ragù. Add about half a pint cold water to the flour and stir. Put the containers of risotto, ragù and peas, mozzarella, flour paste and breadcrumbs on a table:



Now, Sicilian women have a technique of forming a ball of rice, then making a hole in it, spooning in the ragù and cheese and then closing the hole, but I am not that dextrous. Sicilians, look away now! I just dollop some risotto onto the palm of my hand, slap some ragù onto that, add some mozzarella and dollop some more risotto on top of that. Then I form the ball as best I can. Have fun! Next you need to dip the balls into the flour paste to coat them all over and then roll them in the breadcrumbs. Everything will get terribly mucky but it will be worth it! When all the balls are ready, put the groundnut or sunflower oil into a large pan [I use a wok], heat it and fry the balls. Please take care! When they are browned use a slotted spoon to lift them out onto a plate lined with kitchen paper. Serve hot, with a salad if you like. Sicilians, look away again! I nearly forgot to say that these are perfectly OK warmed up. Buon appetito.