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Home Italian Recipes

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls

By Nagi Maehashi
267 Comments
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Published23 Oct '15 Updated21 Jun '25
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Gooey, cheesy rice enclosed in golden crunchy crumb. Need I say anymore? The Italians are genius, GENIUS!

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls

I received one of those “no brainer” questions a few weeks ago. It went like this:

“Nagi, would you be interested in attending a small lunch to sample and learn about Riccadonna sparkling wines? Massimo Mele will be cooking up an Italian feast!”

RICCADONNA LUNCH -2109

It took me about 2 seconds to hit Reply and send “YES!” straight away.

Oh, then I went back to check the date and make sure I was actually free – but really, I would have made it fit into my diary. 😉 I mean, who in their right mind would turn down a champagne lunch with Chef Massimo Mele cooking?? Even if you haven’t heard of him, with a name like Massimo, you can’t mistake his heritage!

At this lunch, Massimo cooked up a 4 course Italian Feast which was, unsurprisingly, phenomenal. A modern, fresh take on classic Italian ingredients, all paired with a different Riccadonna sparkling wine. And guess what? I got the RECIPE CARDS!! You can download a copy of them here. 🙂

Free-Massimo-Mele-recipe-cards

In addition to dining on an incredible 4 course Italian feast, I got to learn more about Riccadonna sparkling wines. We had a different sparkling wine for each course, all delicious!

The fact is, when it comes to champagne, I am a bit of a snob. I love real French champagne but as luck would have it, I can’t actually afford a $70 bottle to indulge in every week. 🙁 So for every day purposes, I am quite careful about which champagnes and sparkling wines I purchase because unlike wine, you don’t always get what you pay for. The quality of champagne and sparkling wines you get for $15 varies quite a lot – in my personal, humble opinion.

Riccadonna Prosecco for me is a guaranteed hit every time. What I find unique about it is that the bubbles are so delicate, it is almost like drinking a wine but with the extra little fizziness. Also it’s really light, quite dry and not sweet – it’s refreshing actually. More refreshing than most wines, less fizzy than cheap champagnes. All round – great value for money which is what I’m all about! 😉

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

So in the spirit of sharing something a little special today that pairs so beautifully with Riccadonna Prosecco, I’m doing something a little different.

I LOVE deep fried food. I have a theory that anything can be made to taste great when it’s deep fried. But I rarely do it myself at home because of clean up and… well, my hips. 😂

HOWEVER…these Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls are WORTH the effort! Besides the fact that they are eye-rollingly delicious, they are so good for make ahead. I’m thinking about a party I’m catering for my mother for Christmas and was keen to test these out.

Also, I didn’t actually use as much oil as I expected to. I used a saucepan, I just feel safer. And because of the small size of these balls, they are easy to handle as opposed to, for example, fried chicken which you would struggle to fry in a saucepan!

How to re-use oil

The oil can be reused twice because the Arancini Balls aren’t heavily seasoned with spices, as opposed to heavily seasoned food like Southern Fried Chicken which taints the oil with flavour.

To re-use the oil, cool in pot, line mesh colander with a single layer of paper towel, strain oil. Store until required – personally would stick to savoury rather than sweet.

Try Stay-Crispy Honey Chicken, Sweet and Sour Pork, Japanese Karaage, Mongolian Beef, Schnitzel or Southern Fried Chicken!

I was actually quite amazed at how well they reheated in the oven! They honestly tasted like they were cooked fresh, the shell was incredibly crisp, the round shape held up perfectly, and the inside was molten and delicious!

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

They can be served plain. I personally do not think a dipping sauce is required because they are loaded with cheesy flavour. However, I have also provided a quick marinara dipping sauce. Just don’t make the mistake I made, hmm…! Fishing out that Arancini Ball out was rather messy! 😉

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

Oh – do you need more convincing that these are worth making? Will this photo convince you? 😉

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

Before I sign off, one last thing. Most Arancini Ball recipe either require 30-40 minutes active stove time to make the risotto rice for these balls OR they are made with precooked ordinary rice which I personally feel does not have anywhere near the same creaminess.

So I use a compromise. I make BAKED risotto so you get the same creaminess, with far less effort. 🙂

Party season is coming up. Thanksgiving, Christmas…..

These are a MUST try! Honestly, I would not share these if I didn’t think they were worth the effort of (semi) deep frying. – Nagi x

PS Instructions for how to consume: sip of Riccadonna Prosecco, bite Arancini, sip Prosecco, bite Arancini….and continue repeating until the earlier of: no more Arancini balls left or bottle is emptied. 😉

Cheesy Italian Arancini Balls -Creamy cheesy risotto rice, coated in panko and fried golden. The most EPIC Italian starter ever! recipetineats.com

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Cheesy Italian Arancini Rice Balls - Sensational for making ahead!

Cheesy Italian Arancini Rice Balls

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 30 minutes mins
Cook: 1 hour hr
Total: 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Appetizer
Italian
4.98 from 67 votes
Servings25
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 1043
A classic Italian dish, I’ve made these bite size to be finger food but they are typically made larger to serve as a meal or appetiser! This makes 25 mini Arancini balls about the size of a golf ball. 🙂 Great for making ahead – they keep in the fridge for 3 days, then just reheat at 350F/180C for 10 minutes!

Ingredients

Baked Risotto

  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2 garlic cloves , minced
  • 1 small onion , finely diced (white, yellow, brown)
  • 1 1/2 cups risotto rice (arborio)
  • 1/2 cup white wine (or substitute with broth/stock or water)
  • 3 1/2 cups chicken broth/stock
  • 1 cup milk

Rice Mixture

  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
  • 2 1/2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley , or 1 1/2 tbsp dried parsley (Note 1)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Pepper

Coating

  • 1/2 cup plain flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Black pepper
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
  • Cooking oil (I used vegetable oil)
Prevent screen from sleeping

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
  • Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and cook for 5 minutes until soft.
  • Add rice and stir until grains turn translucent. Add wine and turn up the heat to medium high. Cook until liquid is mostly absorbed/evaporated.
  • Add chicken broth and milk. Stir, bring to simmer, cover, then transfer to oven. Baked, covered, for 30 to 40 minutes until all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
  • Remove from oven and allow to cool. Add Rice Mixture Ingredients and mix to combine. Cover and transfer to refrigerator for at least 3 hours or preferably overnight.

Coating

  • Mix flour, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl, eggs in another (lightly beaten) and panko in a third shallow bowl.
  • Measure out a level (packed) ice cream scoop of rice mixture (about 2 1/2 tbsp) and roll into a ball. (Note 2)
  • Roll in flour, then dredge in egg mixture, then coat in panko, pressing to coat. (Note 3) Repeat with remaining mixture.

Cook

  • In a medium saucepan, pour in 1″/2.5cm depth of oil and heat over medium high heat.
  • Toss in a breadcrumb and if it starts sizzling immediately, the oil is hot enough.
  • Carefully transfer a few balls into the hot oil, using a spoon. Turn frequently so they cook golden evenly, and when they are a deep golden brown, remove onto a paper towel lined plate to drain.
  • Repeat with remaining balls.

To Serve

  • Serve with Marinara Sauce (optional) (Note 4) sprinkled with finely chopped fresh parsley if desired.

Recipe Notes:

1. You can substitute with any other Italian-esque herbs or combination you want e.g. basil, thyme, oregano.
2. When the rice is refrigerated, it should become sticky and firm enough to roll into firm balls. If not, just add a wee bit of panko breadcrumbs (2 tbsp at a time) which will help absorb excess moisture and hold together.
3. I find the fastest way to do this is to measure the scoops out first into a baking tray, then roll them, then coat them in batches.
4. Quick Marinara Dipping Sauce – Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a small saucepan with 1/4 cup of very finely chopped onion and 1 garlic clove, crushed. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, then add 1 cup of tomato passata (pureed canned tomatoes, also known as tomato sauce in America), 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp mixed Italian herbs (or sub with other herbs), pinch of chili flakes (optional), salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes until thick, remove from heat and allow to cool.
5. These can be baked, but the crumb is not quite the same deep golden brown, but it’s still delicious! To bake, after rolling the balls, place them in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm them up again. Then coat in panko as per recipe, drizzle with oil OR generously spray with olive oil and baking in a 200C/390F oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
6. I know some people like to stuff a cube of cheese in the middle. I used to but I don’t anymore, ever since the hot cheese scorched my chin!
7. Make Ahead: Refrigerate overnight raw or freeze in airtight container. Then defrost and cook per recipe. Or cook per recipe then cool, then refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze and thaw, then reheat in a hot oven 200C/390F for 12 to 15 minutes until heated through and crunchy again.
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.
Cheesy-Italian-Arancini-Balls_Steps

No nutrition today. Because these are…you know. Fried. 😉

This post is sponsored by Riccadonna who hosted the lunch and asked if I would like to share what I thought about Riccadonna sparkling wine. As someone who has been sipping on Riccadonna for years, I was pretty darn thrilled to accept! N x

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267 Comments

  1. Dianne says

    December 24, 2018 at 2:56 pm

    I made the risotto portion of this recipe tonight in advance of Christmas Eve. I baked it because I thought that was an interesting twist and I didn’t have time to babysit the risotto while prepping another dish. Can I just say OMG?!! If I didn’t need the risotto for the arancini I would have eaten the entire pot by myself. I’ll defknifely be making this version of risotto again to make with shrimp scampi- my favorite way to eat risotto. I’ll be back tomorrow after I make and serve the rice balls as they’re intended to be. 🙂

    Reply
  2. Yiota Rigas says

    November 25, 2018 at 10:58 am

    Can i freeze them for 3-4 hours instead of refregerating them overnight?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      November 26, 2018 at 7:25 pm

      Hi Yiota! If only freezing for a few hours I think it’s just best to refrigerate! 🙂 N x

      Reply
  3. Valeria says

    November 8, 2018 at 6:05 am

    Hi i was wondering if i don’t add the cheese would i still need to add the egg?

    Reply
  4. Valeria says

    November 8, 2018 at 4:15 am

    Hi, I was wondering if I can do this recipe with out cheese? Would I still have to add the egg?

    Reply
  5. Julie says

    November 4, 2018 at 1:01 pm

    Haven’t started cooking them yet, but after assembling these, I REALLY disagree about using shredded cheese vs cubes. By the time I was able to put it in there, they ended up more like softballs rather than golf balls.

    Reply
  6. Lizzie says

    October 8, 2018 at 3:53 am

    I made them and they are delicious!

    Reply
  7. Kelly says

    October 3, 2018 at 11:16 am

    Anyone done the risotto with the thermomix?

    Reply
  8. Carol says

    August 29, 2018 at 10:48 pm

    I’m making them now. I’m just baking the risotto atm. 😁

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      September 3, 2018 at 10:29 pm

      Hope you loved it Carol! 🙂 N x

      Reply
  9. Christina Richards says

    August 27, 2018 at 11:53 am

    5 stars
    Always wanted to make these but thought they were too hard. This was really easy and the family loved them! Thank you for making complex recipes easy!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      August 27, 2018 at 7:34 pm

      Glad to hear you enjoyed this Christina!! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 N x ❤️

      Reply
  10. Healthy Kitchen 101 says

    July 25, 2018 at 2:38 pm

    Are they still crunchy after being frozen in the frigde?
    – Natalie Ellis

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 25, 2018 at 7:50 pm

      Yes once you bake them!!

      Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 25, 2018 at 7:50 pm

      Yes once you bake them again!!

      Reply
  11. Aidan says

    July 24, 2018 at 4:55 pm

    How well do they freeze?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 25, 2018 at 10:05 am

      PS Just updated recipes notes

      Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 25, 2018 at 10:02 am

      Hi Aidan! These freeze great – raw or cooked 🙂 Just ensure they are cool then freeze in an airtight container. Defrost before cooking!

      Reply
  12. Alexandria says

    July 23, 2018 at 11:27 am

    5 stars
    I made these on Friday and they were very good. These will become a regular. Ran out of time before sunset and did not make the sauce but they didn’t need it. Will be making these again and trying the baking method or air frying. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
    • Alexandria says

      July 24, 2018 at 1:12 pm

      5 stars
      I did substitute Better than Bouillon vegetable broth for the chicken broth and water for the wine to make it vegetarian.

      Reply
  13. Christy says

    July 23, 2018 at 5:49 am

    5 stars
    Would an air fryer work for making these? I’ve fried them before and love the recipe but wanting to try out my new air fryer!

    Reply
    • Julie says

      August 22, 2019 at 10:55 pm

      Did you ever try this? I would also love to air fry!

      Reply
  14. Tori says

    July 20, 2018 at 7:49 pm

    Could I use some dried porcini mushrooms in this recipe?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 20, 2018 at 8:37 pm

      Definitely! Rehydrate them in boiling water then chop and mix through 🙂

      Reply
  15. Fatima Dent says

    July 4, 2018 at 6:04 pm

    5 stars
    Hi Nagi,
    Just made a double batch of these bad boys for my son’s first birthday party! Yummo! I made them bite size and ended up with over 80 balls. I Just want to confirm what temperature and duration to reheat from frozen on the day.
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      July 4, 2018 at 9:13 pm

      I thought for a moment there you were calling your son a bad boy! 😂 Happy birthday to your son! They would be better thawed then reheated. Thaw, Pop them on a rack then I think 15 minutes at 180C will do the trick!

      Reply
      • Fatima Dent says

        July 5, 2018 at 9:05 am

        Haha! Thanks Nagi! My freezer is currently full of your party pies and arancini. And I made your gourmet crackers. Also, planning to make a few of your dips. You mentioned on one of your dips posts a homemade cracker recipe? Looking forward to that! Your recipes are THE BEST 🙂

        Reply
        • Nagi says

          July 6, 2018 at 5:22 pm

          Oh YES! Search for crackers and you’ll find it, I only have one recipe. It’s SO GOOD! I made so many of them over the Christmas period!!

          Reply
  16. Danielle says

    June 19, 2018 at 8:05 pm

    Hi, could I make these with sourdough (breadcrumbs) instead of panko? I have someone intolerant of yeast.

    Reply
  17. Declan Dunn says

    May 15, 2018 at 10:08 am

    Hi Nagi,
    For this recipe is one serve equal to one ball, I am planning to make this for a very large group of people and I would like for them to at least get two each?
    Thanks.

    Reply
  18. Paris says

    May 8, 2018 at 11:34 pm

    Hi Nagi I am a beginner so I was wounderung in step two when you add the rice has it already been cooked (boiled) or is it put in as uncooked rice? Thank you

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 13, 2018 at 4:37 pm

      Hi Paris! Use uncooked rice. 🙂 With recipes, if the ingredients just say “rice”, then it means raw rice. If it is supposed to be COOKED rice, then the recipe will say “Cooked Rice”. 🙂 N xx

      Reply
  19. Paul Watson says

    May 5, 2018 at 4:22 am

    Thanks very much for the recipe, dying to make it. Just wanted to ask what you thought about using panko breadcrumbs would that work?

    Reply
  20. Pippa van Wijk says

    March 25, 2018 at 2:05 pm

    I used left over beetroot and fennel risotto and added blue cheese that needed using up. Every ball ended up like a mini volcano with risotto oozing out of a crack in the top. The only thing that stopped that was to double crumb – flour, egg, breadcrumbs, egg, breadcrumbs. Any ideas about why this might have happened

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      March 26, 2018 at 6:42 pm

      Hi Pippa! Hate to say it but it sounds like the risotto you used was too watery 🙂 N x

      Reply
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