Another delicious variation of a classic Sicilian street food, pistachio arancini are filled with a creamy pistachio infused béchamel sauce and a cube of stringy cheese. Enjoy as a snack; as part of your buffet table for gatherings or the perfect finger food for picnics. Follow my easy, make ahead instructions for making homemade arancini!
Rice balls, risotto balls, whatever you choose to call them, this classic Sicilian street food has always been arancini in my family. All my life I've enjoyed my mom's classic ragu and peas filled arancini, and next to gnocchi they are no doubt my favorite food!
These days as you travel across Sicily you'll come across endless arancini filling options including alla Norma (eggplant); al burro; seafood; spinach; and squid ink to name just a few.
And next to ragu filled, our favorite is these pistachio arancini (arancini al pistacchio). This arancini recipe highlights one of Sicily's most popular food products, pistachios! Grown at the base of Mt Etna in the town of Bronte, pistachios are referred to as green gold and featured in numerous Sicilian dishes.
Making homemade arancini may appear to be a daunting task. However I've broken the recipe down into manageable steps, many of which can be prepared ahead so you can make perfect pistachio arancini. Check out my tips in the Recipe Notes section further below.
How to serve arancini
In Sicily arancini are enjoyed as a street food and are available in bars, cafés, and rosticceria locations everywhere. It is said that the best ones are found on the ferry boat over to Sicily from Calabria. But sadly, on the day I made my crossing, they ran out!
In my opinion, they make for the perfect beach lunch, or any other picnic for that matter, as they are the ultimate finger food! They are also a great idea for buffet gatherings served as antipasto.
Here is how arancini are never served in Sicily: with a marinara sauce! In fact marinara sauce is not a thing in Sicily, nor anywhere else in Italy. Ask for a marinara sauce and you may get a seafood sauce with your pasta!
This trend of serving arancini with a dipping tomato sauce is no doubt a North American trend and you will never, ever see this in Sicily. Point made!
The most flavorful rice for arancini
My mom's arancini were the best and I attribute this to how she prepared her rice:
- The rice is cooked in broth, either vegetable or chicken broth for the best flavor.
- Grated Parmigiano cheese is stirred into the cooked rice infusing it with cheesy flavor.
- Lastly, once cooled stir a couple of beaten eggs into the rice making it easier to hold together when shaping the arancini.
Ingredient List
- Arborio rice
- Vegetable broth: chicken broth may be used instead
- Grated parmigiano cheese
- Eggs: for stirring into the rice and egg wash before coating in breadcrumbs
- Butter
- Flour
- Milk
- Salt
- Pistachios: shelled. I used granella di pistachio (crushed pistachios) purchased in Sicily.
- Cheese: cut into cubes for the center of the arancini. Any variety that melts well will do such as mozzarella; caciocavallo; scamorza or others of your choice.
- Breadcrumbs: I use unseasoned Italian crumbs
- Not shown: oil for frying. I chose avocado oil which is ideal for deep frying.
The following are step by step instructions with images to guide you through this recipe. Please scroll to the end of this post for the detailed printable recipe card.
Step by Step Instructions
1. Prepare the rice
-Cook the rice in the vegetable broth until tender.
-Transfer to a large, shallow bowl and stir in the grated Parmigiano cheese.
-Let cool and refrigerate until completely chilled, overnight is ideal.
-Remove from the fridge before assembling the arancini and stir in 2 beaten eggs.
2. Prepare the pistachio béchamel sauce.
-Prepare a classic béchamel sauce by melting butter in a small sauce pan.
-Whisk in flour until a paste is formed.
-Gradually pour in milk and whisk continuously until the mixture thickens.
-Pour into a bowl, stir in grated Parmigiano cheese and let cool.
-Grind pistachios in a blender into a coarse flour and stir into the béchamel sauce.
-Cover and refrigerate until completely cooled.
3. Assemble pistachio arancini and fry
-Use a ½ cup measuring cup to scoop rice into the palm of your hand and flatten it.
-Place a tbsp. full of pistachio cream in the center of the rice and top with a cube or two of cheese.
-Carefully wrap the rice around the filling and roll into a ball. Continue with the remaining ingredients.
-Preparing a dredging station: beat eggs in a bowl, pour breadcrumbs into a second bowl.
-Dredge the arancini first in the egg wash, allowing excess to drip off, then completely coat in the breadcrumbs.
-Heat avocado oil in a deep, heavy bottomed pot or your deep fryer according to manufacturer's instructions.
-When the oil is hot, fry a few arancini at a time until they are golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel lined tray to absorb excess oil.
-Enjoy hot!
Recipe Notes
-Arancini may be made with leftover risotto.
-For a non-vegetarian variation, try adding a cube or prosciutto cotto or mortadella in the center.
-Use a variety of cheese that melts well such as mozzarella; caciocavallo or scamorza.
-For mini arancini (half the size) use a ¼ cup measuring cup and add ½ the filling suggested.
-I use a ½ cup measure to make even sized arancini.
-When assembling the arancini, lightly wet your hands to prevent the rice from sticking onto your hand.
-I assemble all the arancini first, then dredge them egg wash and breadcrumbs.
-Cook the rice a day ahead and refrigerate. This is recommended as the completely chilled rice is easier to handle.
-Prepare the béchamel a day ahead and refrigerate it.
-The arancini can be completely assembled a day ahead, refrigerated and fried the following day before serving.
Keep leftovers refrigerated for up to 5 days. Reheat in the oven before serving.
Already fried arancini may be frozen. Let cool completely and place in an airtight container with parchment paper separating arancini. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and reheat in the oven.
Did you try this pistachio arancini recipe?
Let me know how much you enjoyed it by rating it in the recipe card below!
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Check out more delicious Sicilian arancini recipes!
- The Best Sicilian Arancini
- Arancini with Mozzarella and Ham (arancini al burro)
- Seafood Arancini
- Arancini alla Norma
Ingredients
For the rice
- 2½ cups arborio rice
- 5 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup grated Parmigiano cheese
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- salt to taste
For the filling
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 3 tbsp. grated Parmigiano cheese
- salt to taste
- ½ cup pistachios whole, unroasted or crushed (granella di pistacchio)
- 70 grams mozzarella cheese cut into cubes
To assemble and fry
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup unseasoned Italian breadcrumbs
- 2.5 liters avocado oil for frying
Instructions
Prepare the rice
- Pour the vegetable broth into a large pot and bring to a boil. Add rice, lower to a simmer and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Add salt to taste.
- Transfer the rice to a large, shallow bowl or baking pan and stir in the grated Parmigiano cheese.
- Let cool and refrigerate until completely chilled, overnight is ideal.
- Remove from the fridge before assembling the arancini and stir in 2 beaten eggs.
Preparing the pistachio béchamel sauce
- Prepare a classic béchamel sauce by melting butter over medium heat in a small sauce pan.
- Whisk in flour until a paste is formed. Gradually pour in milk and whisk continuously until the mixture thickens. Do not let the milk burn.
- Pour into a bowl, stir in a pinch of salt and grated Parmigiano cheese and let cool.
- Grind pistachios in a blender into a coarse flour and stir into the béchamel sauce.
- Cover and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Assemble and fry
- Use a ½ cup measuring cup to scoop rice into the palm of your hand and flatten it.
- Place a tbsp. full of pistachio cream in the center of the rice and top with a cube of cheese.
- Carefully wrap the rice around the filling and roll into a ball. Continue with the remaining ingredients.
- Preparing a dredging station: beat eggs in a bowl, pour breadcrumbs into a second bowl.
- Dredge the arancini first in the egg wash, allowing excess to drip off, then completely coat in the breadcrumbs.
- Heat avocado oil in a deep, heavy bottomed pot or your deep fryer according to manufacturer's instructions. I fill my top halfway to the top.
- When the oil is hot, fry a few arancini at a time until they are golden, about 3-4 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel lined tray to absorb excess oil.
Notes
-For a non-vegetarian variation, try adding a cube or prosciutto cotto or mortadella in the center.
-Use a variety of cheese that melts well such as mozzarella; caciocavallo or scamorza.
-For mini arancini (half the size) use a ¼ cup measuring cup and add ½ the filling suggested. Tips -I use a ½ cup measure to make even sized arancini.
-When assembling the arancini, lightly wet your hands to prevent the rice from sticking onto your hand.
-I assemble all the arancini first, then dredge them egg wash and breadcrumbs. Make Ahead -Cook the rice a day ahead and refrigerate. This is recommended as the completely chilled rice is easier to handle.
-Prepare the béchamel a day ahead and refrigerate it.
-The arancini can be completely assembled a day ahead, refrigerated and fried the following day before serving. Storage Keep leftovers refrigerated for up to 5 days. Reheat in the oven before serving. To Freeze Already fried arancini may be frozen. Let cool completely and place in an airtight container with parchment paper separating arancini. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and reheat in the oven.
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