Italian Rice Balls

A fantastic "arancini" recipe as is, or doctored up (as is usually the case with me!). I added fresh garlic and minced red pepper for a surprise of color inside. AND, since my restaurant is a "no-fry" zone, I had to bake the rice balls – and they turned out perfectly! I gave them a nice coating of bread crumbs and then baked them on an oiled sheet till browned and crispy. Nice to know there's an alternative to frying them!

These are so good I could eat them every day!! This is a good basic recipe and you can add stuff to it like mozzerella, peas, ground beef whatever you like with no problem. It helps to use arborio rice because it's stickier and helps the balls stay together better.

I made quite a few changes to this recipe & had great results. I added some grated cheddar cheese and some green onions for more flavor. Then I made the mix into patties instead of balls, I mixed the parmesan cheese in with the bread crumbs & coated the patties. After that I panfried them in olive oil instead of deep frying. They were really good served as a side dish with chicken. Even the kids enjoyed them. Thanks for the idea.

Vince, I made these for a friend of mine that was longing for Rice Balls like her Mother use to make (Her Mother has passed on) I have never made them before and I found this recipe and made them. I am not being dramatic here but she ate just one and her eyes welled up and she said " These are just like the one's my Mother made me" Thank you for an excellent recipe and for making my friends day! Sincerely, Mama Rizzuto

I don't know if it's just because I've never made these before or even know what they're supposed to look like, but I was very frusterated that after all that work, I was unable to even get the rice to go into balls. I wasted alot of expensive olive oil and they just fell apart even as I was dipping them. =(

ABSOLUTELY LOVE THESE!!! I make these rice balls all the time, but a little differently. I add about 1/4-1/2 cup finely chopped onion, about 1/2 tsp. garlic powder and 1-8oz. can tomato sauce, along w/ the other ingredients.If the mixture is a little too wet I add some extra parmesan cheese or breadcrumbs. I form them into balls and stuff a cube of mozzarella cheese into the center,sealing it completely inside, then fry until golden. FANTASTIC!

So I played around with this a bit, & have a few suggestions. First off do NOT use parboiled rice (aka Uncle Ben's). You're just asking for a headache. I would recommend sushi rice, arborio, or even brown rice which is very sticky. Secondly, if you want to add flavor because a lot of people have said it's bland, I would recommend cooking the rice in chicken stock instead of water & using seasoned breadcrumbs. If your rice comes out not sticky this is a very easy recipe to "save". Add a little extra cheese & 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs into the rice mixture. I pan fried mine instead of deep-frying, definitely would not recommend baking them though.

What a great recipe. Very easy to make. I put a piece of motzarella cheese in the middle of the rice ball. I also used Italian bread crumbs for more flavor.

I added Italian seasoning to the egg and cheese mixture. I also added a cube of mozzarella to the middle. Not bad.

I have never made these before, nor have I had these before. It didn't wow me like I had hoped after reading all of the reviews. The rice stayed together well and presented well. I thought the flavor would be more pungent than it was. I think I will tinker with the seasoning amounts and try again. Thanks for the post.

I've made these several times - and they are frequently requested by all family and friends! They are simple to make, the only thing I changed, is I flavor my bread crumbs with fresh garlic, fresh parsley, and romano cheese. Also I omitted the parmesean cheese and use Romano instead. GREAT RECIPE, EASY TO MAKE - HIGHLY RECCOMEND!!

These were definately a little bland the first time around, so the second time I cooked the rice in chicken stock with some garlic, and used seasoned crumbs with a few spices added in. And since i cringe at the thought of trying to deepfry ANYTHING in olive oil, I went with vegetable oil. also stuffed a chunk of mozzerela in the middle, and i might try putting some ground beef or italian sausage in it next time. these turn out pretty nice, you just need to tweak it to your own tastes.

Great recipe..wonderful appetizer. Served these on SuperBowl Sunday and everyone raved. Can be made ahead and reheated or frozen for another day. I used dried basil instead of parsley and chicken broth instead of water. (My home made broth made from the remains of a roasting chicken I bought at the warehouse store.) Throw all the leftovers in a pot with a gallon of water, a carrot, a piece of celery, a medium onion, bring to a boil and cook for a hour. Season, drain the broth into containters, discard the other remains. Cool and then freeze the broth for other uses such as this. I also insert a cube of mozzarella in each ball before rolling in italian seasoned bread crumbs. At this point the balls can be refrigerated and cooked the next day if you so desire.

pretty bland

these were good, but just too cheesy for our taste

MY CHILDREN ARE VERY PICKY BUT THEY BOTH LOVED THIS RECIPE. MY HUSBAND IS A BIG MEAT EATER AND HE SAID THE NEXT TIME WE HAVE THESE, I DON'T HAVE TO FIX A MEAT DISH. WOW!!! I DID ADD MOZZ CHEESE AND ITALIAN BREADCRUMBS AS SUGGESTED. ONE THING I DID THAT I DID NOT NOTICE ANYONE ELSE DOING, I ADDED MILK TO THE MIXTURE TO HOLD THEM TOGETHER AND I DID NOT ROLL THE BALLS IN BREADCRUMBS, I ADDED THE BREADCRUMBS TO THE MIXTURE. THEY TURNED OUT WONDERFUL!

I like this recipe but next time I will add some touches of my own. The balls didn't want to stick together and they weren't as flavorful as I had thought they would be. Add some herbs and lessen the water amount and you've got an amazing side dish.

I made this recipe as directed, except that I added some shredded mozzarella to the rice mixture before forming the rice into balls. I liked it very much, but would make a few changes next time: 1. I would wait until the water was fully absorbed into the rice, because the balls flattened a bit when I tried to fry them; the mixture was too loose, even with the extra added cheese. 2. I would use plain vegetable oil in a deep fryer, or bake the rice balls on a well-oiled pan for 20 minutes at 400 degrees, turning them after 10 minutes. (The latter is what I wound up doing after my first batch burned in too-hot oil on the stovetop.) 3. I highly recommend the addition of extra mozzarella, either in cubes or shreds, and serving the rice balls with marinara sauce for dipping.

First of all, I always microwave my rice, 1 cup rice and2 cups water, 18 min. With that said, I next left cool a bit and added eggs mixture and refrigerated about a half hour. They formed balls very easily. I deep fried some of them and they tasted to bland for me. So into the rest of the mixture, I added garlic powder and chopped dried onion, also mozzarella cheese. This is a good recipe. You can just add any of your own preferences to this. We really liked them,Marinara sauce is good with them and so many other dipping sauces would be good. I will be making these again.

These were ok, but I doubled the amount of rice so the filler wasn't all bread crumbs. To those who complained of them being dry, try doubling the amounts of water and rice (2 cups) without making the mixture too mushy and they will turn out alright. You have to compact them tight and use less oil or else they will fall apart in the pan as our tester did, but overall these were lovely served on their own or as a substitute for pasta.

Very flexible

awesome recipe! i did what other ppl suggested, and added mozarella cheese and garlic powder to the rice. also, instead of using bread crumbs, i found that just smashing some ritz crackers and adding italian seasoning did the trick just fine!

These came out pretty good, I added mozzerella bits to the rice. It was a little messy to make but worth making again

I made this recipe as shown except I used Italian Bread crumbs. I atempted to bake a few as one user posted but this didn't crisp the coating. I was able to fry the rest and they turned out GREAT! For me, being a healthy eater I wanted to bake them but frying was the only way to go and much Worth it! I doubled the batch for a party and the rice took longer to cool and I split into two bowls and put in fridge to cool down. The longer you cool the rice mixture the easier to create balls. This recipe as listed yeilds approx. 35-40 rice balls. Try them as posted first, then maybe play with new ingrediants if you feel necessary.

These are great! Yea it takes a little time, but it was definatley worth it! These are one of the best i've tasted! I added american cheese and I think it tasted really good! I keep making them because there pretty easy! I probably had it about 8x over the past month and I CANT get over the taste! REALLY REALLY DELICIOUS=)

I made these rice balls but had a hard time to keep them from splitting although they were good. I put them in refrig for about a 1/2 hour thinking that might help them from falling apart when they hit the oil. Oh well, try, try again. I made them again and put cubes of mozzarelle in the middle and family liked them much better. thanks

Finally! A recipe for those delicious treats I've had at Italian festivals. These came out perfectly- only suggestion- they're not very good when re-heated in the microwave.

great recipe - i also threw in some grated mozarella cheese..... it can also be used with left over rice, it's a bit more tricky but it is also good. thanks VInce!

this wasn't as easy as i thought it would be to make, and the end result was a bit bland and disappointing. my roommate loved it though.

These are sooooo fantastic!!! great with pasta sauce, cocktail sauce, or just plain.

These were excellent. I added some meat, sauce and mozzarella in the center. I would definitely make them again.

OH MY GOSH THESE ARE GOOD! My new favorite vegetarian entree! I used instant rice, with equal amounts of water and rice. I added extra Parm and some bread crumbs to rice mix for extra hold, and pepperjack cheese to the mix for some extra spice, as well as additional Italian herbs. I pan-fried with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil, which worked fine, and saved me from using a ton of expensive olive oil. They're delicious served with spaghetti sauce and a vegetable, because you get both the protein and starch in the balls themselves. TRY THIS RECIPE!!

Not only are these really, really yummy (especially with a thick red sauce), but I find that I usually have everything I need to cook them on hand. I made these for "Cooking Night" with my friends and they were gone in seconds. They are quite labour intensive though.

MMM...my friends are all really really addicted to this recipe, I'm always asked to make it for them

I was very pleased to come across the recipe while searching for recipes containing rice. I used arborio rice and followed the recipe exactly and it yielded perfect results! You can easily fry with vegetable oil or a mixture of olive and vegetable oil. I stuffed the inside with ground beef from sauce, and some defrosted frozen peas, with a cube of mozzerella or fontina. Next I will put ham and cheese inside. Just a perfect recipe that I thoroughly enjoyed making. Tried it two days in a row. I broke them open and served them with sauce over the top and grated cheese! The best ever!!! I

Alot of hassle for something so mediocre.

YOU MUST USE SAUCE. I have been making these all of my life with my mother and grandmother. You need to use a homeade tomato sauce (or store bought...whatever) to hold it all together. Just add enough to get the consistency right and the rice easy to roll up. In my family we put ground sauage in the mix and add a cube of fresh mozzerella cheese to the center. we roll the mixture in cheese and bread crumbs and fry...SO WORTH THE EFFORT. They will become a family tradition

I think I need to fry these instead of baking them, (I am getting a deep fryer for Christmas)and a great dipping sauce will go a long way. will try again.

I didn't really think these had enough flavor. I wish I had read the other reviews first so I would know to add onion, garlic, and a mozzarella cheese cube in the center. That sounds yummy!

I followed the recipe exactly. Very nice. Everyone liked them

too dry and crunchybut had good flavor

These were not my favorite. turned out very dry.

I had some left over asparagus risotto and used that for the rice. I wrapped the rice around a piece of asiago cheese, breaded them in Italian bread crumbs and it was fantastic. The risotto really made it easy to throw them together and everyone went crazy over them. Thanks for the recipe.

These are just as my mother made them, except she always added garlic powder to the rice and egg mixture before forming them into balls.

I recently saw Giada make something similar and am glad I found this recipe! Make sure you chill the rice mixture long enough or you will have a hard time making them into balls. I wish I had some chunks of cheese to add to the centers to make these balls even better! I put half of these in the freezer to fry up around the Holidays.

Very good recipe. Make sure you use a small grain rice as it will hold together much better. I also found that letting the mixture sit for about fifteen minutes also helped. Thanks Vince!

I am an avid rice eater, and really enjoyed these. A little short of time one night and put rice in steamer in microwave and then proceeded as stated, turned out fine. Have at different times added sun-dried tomatoes, olives, basil, etc., and they have still been really yummy. This recipe is very adaptable to different tastes.

Beautiful presentation (I used a cookie scoop to make balls so they were uniform). I will make again, but I found them to be a little bland. Maybe some cayenne? I did add garlic, but will try to punch up the cheese by using something tangy-er.

Very disappointed! I think there is way to much water used to cook the rice. There was NO way I could make balls out of this even after letting it sit in the fridge overnight. I added more cheese and breadcrumbs to try to thicken up. I ended up just baking hoping we could eat as a side. Nope! A waste of ingredients in my opinion.

Looked nothing like the picture. I did mine exactly as the recipe said and they fell apart and tasted greasy and salty.

to those having trouble with them falling apart: japanese rice might work. onigiri, rice balls, are really popular in japan and the glutenous rice really holds together well. i'd guess you could eliminate the egg in the mixture if you used it. make sure your hands are wet, so the rice won't stick to them, or just scoop one ball's worth of rice onto saran wrap and shape without ever touching it! (note: i didn't make these yet, but thought the tip might help. i'll re-review after making them.)

I loved this recipe! I recommend!

I think they turned out nicely...I did add a little Italian seasoning, but other than that, I followed the recipe as written.

This has become a regular request from my family, especially my brother. Really tasty and just right when eaten alongside pasta. I used jasmine rice and they turned out fine. =)

My family just loved these, though they were a bit of a pain to form into balls.

I recently tried this recipe and it was a big hit in our kitchen! I served it with cream of chicken soup as a gravy over them, along with turkey meatballs. My family loved them, and they asked when we were having thim again!

wanted to make them for Christmas Eve but figured Id try them out before hand. Being italian I remember my great grandmother making them...They were great!! I used Arborio Rice(stickier), and chicken broth instead of water.Seasoned with garlic,parsley,parmesan cheese,and added mozzerella cheese in center of rice before rolling into balls. I also used Panko-italian seasoned bread crumbs...May try to to mix up different things but such a great easy recipe as is..Great Grandma would of loved these!!!

i tried this recipe added chopped green peper and mushrooms. it was delicious. The only thing i would chang about the recipe is the salt. From 1 teaspoon to half a teaspoon. Dip the rice balls in some sauce...IT WAS DELICIOUS

Came out great!

what a great recipe easy to make and taste fantastic with the help from the other reviews i did use italian bread crumbs and stuffed it with mozzarella wonderful

Although this recipe is time consuming, it is relatively simple to make. I used long grain rice, 'cause that was all I had, and omitted the parsley, adding a tablespoon of italian seasoning instead. These turned out awesome! The balls were a little salty for my taste, however, I don't usually put salt in recipes. I will definately be making these again! Very delicious!

very easy recipe but needs to have more of a cheese flavor and remeber to use plain breadcrumbs if you use italian seasoning. In addition, you can put the rice in the freezer to cool it quicker. Over all I am giving this a 4 since my hubby is still eating them as we speak lol

This recipe sound great. After two failed tries, I gave up. Im not sure what I am doing wrong, but my lack of experience is probably to blame. I will keep it in my box and try again.

I used some sauce in the mixture as well. I had a hard time makeing the rice into balls. But it was VERY good.

These were good but so very bland. It shocked me that 1 cup of rice could consume 4 cups of water. That's kind of what these tasted like, water. I added some spices and also baked mine off instead of frying. I definitely think if I make these again a healthy portion of cheese in the middle will help out. That and maybe cooking the rice in tomato sauce or with a bouillon cube.

One of my favorite Italian restaurants serves rice balls, & I love them! I was so excited to see this recipe. My family was having spaghetti tonight, and I thought it was the perfect time to try making these.It was nice that we had all the ingredients for them...no produce or weird ingredients. I added a clove of garlic. I was running low on time, so I only refrigerated the rice mixture for 50 minutes, and I baked the balls in an oiled pan instead of frying them, because baking is more healthy. They were a litte crumbly, but that was probably because of not refrigerating them long enough. I should also have put more breading on them. Overall, they were great, & they taste almost the same as the restaurant!

The balls are a bit difficult to make with the rice mixture and you really have to use a lot of bread crumbs to get them right. But once you have it.. they are good.

Excellent recipe, my husband loved it really!

Instead of cooking rice, this is my go to recipe to use leftover rice. I skip the cooking part and these are great for breakfast too.

I've used this one a few times! Always a hit. Suggestion for those who have never tried this- use italian rice, or arborio, which is thicker and starchier

When I went to Italy I fell in love with these! But when I came back I couldn't find a recipe that was just right. But these absolutely do the trick.I love them! Only I would recommend adding a little bit more of cheese.

This is an excellent basic recipe. As others have noted, it does need some embellishments. I added garlic and a finely minced shallot to the mixture, along with fresh parsley rather than dried. I also chilled the mixture after it was mixed, which will help to make it easier to roll. As others have noted, it is important to use a short grain rice. I used sushi rice, but arborio or short grain brown rice or also fine. I also added some seasonings to the breadcrumbs – lemon pepper, dried oregano, etc. Really, this is an excellent foundation recipe to play with as you wish. I have made this a few times, but the last time I opted to bake rather than fry. Absolutely perfect. I made 26 golf ball sized balls and laid them on a cookie sheet which I greased with all of oil. After 15 minutes, I turned them over and completed baking for another 15 minutes. They also freeze well, so they are perfect to take to work.

This is a great recipe! I tried the aborio (sp) rice and found that a bit too sticky. I then tried carolina rice which worked out fine. If the mixture turns out a bit to loose, I just add more bread crumbs. When rolling the rice balls I stick a cube of mozzarella and it was perfect!

Fun to eat and easy to make. They stayed together nicely while frying, although I made them into patties instead of balls. I was using leftover cooked rice (1 cup uncooked=2 cups cooked). I thoroughly heated the rice in the microwave first, then continued with adding the egg/cheese mixture per the recipe. Served with warm tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese--delicious!

Dont use "white rice"!!! Use Arborio rice!!!

This was really good! After reading some reviews, this is something you can definitely modify. Didn't have parmesan cheese, I used shredded mild cheddar cheese and added the breadcrumbs with the egg mixture. I also used boil in the bag rice. Once I put the items all together, I let it sit in the fridge for one hour. I had a separate bowl with breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder and flour. Formed the rice mixture into small patties and coated then with the breadcrumb mix. For a dipping sauce I used cocktail sauce which was really good. I would definitely make this again.

Great recipe. Made it exactly as stated. Turned out perfect, rice was easy to handle and form into a ball. Fried up perfectly, only problem I would have to say is that I ate too many of them. Tasted just as I remembered them as a little girl when my grandma use to make them.

i would not make this again i didnt find them tasty or good i followed the recipe and it didnt seem to pan out sorry

Delicious made just the way the recipe was listed. I agree I could eat these everyday.

These were really good. I baked them instead of frying them and my kids thought they were great. Not enough seasoning for my taste - next time I will add something more to the rice, maybe even cook it in some chicken stock. I also think it's important to say that you do not cover the rice while cooking it. That is way, way too much water to put a lid on the pot, it needs to evaporate.

These are okay. I've had these in Italy, and this recipe is really not like the authentic ones I've had or made before. I would definitely use seasoned breadcrumbs and/or add some Italian seasonings to it. This recipe is a little bland. I would also use mozerella, but that is more of a personal preference.

clean up took longer than the cooking. These are really sloppy but great end result, wow! I put Applegate ham, tillamook mozzarella, onions, and the rest of the recipe. these golden nuggets are very rich and my stove caught on fire, but thankfully I'm still around to tell about it. (I don't normally cook with oil)

I love this recipe... I'd made this two times now and i will do it more and more...

Great recipe!! Mouth watering Arancini!! I used Italian bread crumbs which consists of breadcrumbs, parmigiana cheese, and pieces of parsley. I made it together with another recipe: "cordon bleu chicken", which is featured in my photo. Great mix up!

First time I've made these, they were very good. I added some shredded mozzarella cheese. My only tip is be careful when frying them. Wow did it make a mess! You definitely should use a splash screen! But they were delicious!

Growing up with my Italian Grandmother we never had much money and everything was "stretched" out. We ate these all the time but they weren't balls they were flat and fried in oil till crisp then turned. We called them Fletal and they were made from leftover rice/cheese soup. Using the leftover soup (with the broth drained) made them absolutely flavorful and delicious, looking forward to Saturday nights with them. The soup was a chicken broth with rice, then parmagon cheese was added and an egg. We also called it sick soup as when we had a cold in the winter it would warm you up from the inside out. Take the leftover soup, add an egg, lots more parm cheese. salt, pepper, garlic and then make into 4-5" patties and fry flipping once browned. These are good the same day and not as good left over.

Followed the recipe exactly except I had to use red wine instead of white because that is all I had on hand. A little time consuming but well worth the effort. My family enjoyed these very much. Thanks for sharing!

They are first of all, REALLY TASTY. I made 4 times the recipe since when I make rice I always make 4 cups of raw rice at a time. Mine fell apart too at first, but guess how I fixed them? I tried googling and followed a suggestion to add egg yolk to the mixture. Did NOT do the trick. I then added LOTS of bread crumbs and blended them right in. Luckily I had tons of homemade bread crumbs in the freezer. Worked like a charm! Then shaped them into balls, as per instructions, breaded them, and refrigerated them, (as they are time-consuming, so I decided to deep-fry later), and they worked fine. The balls were cold from the refrigerator when I deep-fried them, so actually that may have helped them to hold their shape in the end. Next time, I may end up using sticky rice to see if that helps... One aspect of my rice which probably did not help to make the mixture stick, is that I added oil to the rice (which the recipe did not call for), since I always fry my raw rice before adding water, but right after I added it, I thought "oops". By the way, I used long grain parboiled rice...

My kids loved these. My didn't turn out as pretty as the picture but they tasted great. I added a cube of colby/jack a to the center and added a few spices to the rice.

Very easy to make and very tasty

need to be dipped in egg before rolling in bread crumbs and they are not really served as a bread rather more an appetizer or with an entree

Wayyy too hard, inedible... needs a egg and flour coating before frying, not just bread crumbs

This is a very traditional croquette recipe from southern Italy. My mother use to make them just like this (minus the black pepper). You need to chill them for several hours before you are able to properly form them into croquette or ball shapes or they will fall apart. Once they are in the oil don't disturb them until they are golden on one side and then gently roll them over to avoid them falling apart. I have also sprayed them with olive oil and baked them in the oven to make a large batch of them without using so much oil and taking so much time.

Great recipe... I made two types Vegetable & Chicken they were awesome.

Splendid! Paired with spaghetti and marinara sauce it was amazing!

Love the simplicity of this recipe / I make mine with Success Rice (chilled overnite) and Progresso Italian breadcrumbs: I prepare the rice as directed and add a pinch of salt, pepper and paprika with 2 Tbs. of butter as it steeps (covered) / Then I chill the rice 2 hours minimum or overnite; form in balls with 1 egg as a binder then roll in breadcrumbs / Fry in Crisco oil (no substitution) and dry on paper towels / Serve with a marinara sauce and grated Parmesan- Viola ! CpC

Absolutely scrumptious! I packed some as a lunch for school and my friends couldn't stop asking for more. I fried them in corn oil with a wok and they turned out fine. I also needed to wait 45 minutes for the rice to cool instead of an hour. It also helps to keep the cheese mix in the fridge for at least 15 minutes before adding it to the rice. I used jasmine rice and it still stuck together. Brilliant recipe, I'll be making more.

These were great. I used seasoned breadcrumbs and fried in olive oil. Mixed a small amount of thawed frozen baby peas to the rice and served with homemade marinara sauce. Thank you for sharing this recipe :)

Fool proof, I did not expect these to turn out as well as they did. I used Uncle Bens rice because it was what I had on hand but luckily read some reviews and took advice to add a little more cheese to make them stick together better. I did add some more seasoning just for personal taste and found that having really wet hands helped a lot when shaping! Very happy with this recipe, HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!