How to make traditional rancine to the norm - By Arancinotto

Introduction to the recipe

Pasta alla norma, a typical recipe from Catania that has become popular throughout Sicily, is a pasta topped with tomato sauce with basil, fried aubergines and salted ricotta. The recipe owes its name to the comedy writer from Catania, Nino Martoglio, who lived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is said that, upon tasting this dish, he exclaimed, “Chista è ’na vera Norma” (“This is a true Norma”), thus comparing the excellence of its flavour to Vincenzo Bellini’s operatic masterpiece.

When transposing it into an arancina, we respected the original recipe, the only change being the thickness of the sauce, which is much more reduced and concentrated in comparison with the sauce intended for pasta.

Sicilian

Average

160 grams

Vegetarian

Ingredients for about 12 arancini

For the rice:

500 grams of rice ("Roma" and "Originario" rices, mixed in equal doses)
1.1 liter of vegetable stock
2 bags of saffron
10 grams of salt
60-100 grams of butter

For the finish:

100 gr of flour
180 ml of water
2 eggs
150 gr of bread crumbs

For the filling:

2 black aubergines
200 ml of passata of cherry tomato
80 gr of salted ricotta
1 clove of garlic
some fresh basil leaves
extra virgin olive oil
salt
black pepper

Preparation of rice and filling

Rice

How to prepare the rice:

In a saucepan, put the broth, the butter, the saffron and the salt
When the stock is boiling, add the rice and mix well
Cover and cook over low heat until the rice absorbs all the broth and is cooked but al dente
When cooked, stir, pour the rice on a cold surface and spread evenly to allow rapid cooling
When the rice is cool down, it is ready to prepare the arancini

Important

It is important to let the rice dry well during cooking. It should not be too hot or too wet, or it could stick to the mold.

For more information about rice, Click here.

The filling

Trim the ends off of the aubergines and dice them evenly
Place the diced aubergine into a colander and sprinkle it with coarse grain salt. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, so that the bitter-tasting moisture contained in the flesh will drain off
When the thirty minutes are up, rinse the aubergine cubes thoroughly and pat them dry with a dish towel or paper towels
Heat extra virgin olive oil in a large pan. When it is very hot, fry the aubergine cubes a few at a time, so as not to lower the temperature of the oil, then place them on absorbent paper
Chop the basil finely
Use the flat of a knife blade to crush a whole, unpeeled garlic clove
Sauté the garlic clove in a drizzle of olive oil until it has just begun to turn golden, then add the aubergine. Sauté it in the oil so that it takes on the flavour of the garlic, then add the cherry-tomato purée and the basil
Cook over low heat for about ten minutes, then remove from the heat and let it cool
Add the shavings of salted ricotta and mix it in well
Shape the arancini and put in the freezer a couple of hours before passing the arancini in the batter

Shape the arancine

1 - Fill the base of the Arancinotto with rice and use a spoon to pack it down firmly.

2 - Put the lid on the base and insert the plunger as far as it will go.

3 - Remove the plunger and spoon your filling into the central hole, packing it in with a teaspoon to ensure there is a generous amount.

4 - Cover the top with a thin layer of rice and press it down using the other end of the plunger.

5 - Take the cover back off of the Arancinotto and gently remove your arancino.

Frying

The finishing touch

Put the arancini in the batter and in the bread crumbs as follows:

In a bowl, place the flour
Add the egg and water and beat well with whips
When the batter is smooth and dense, pass the arancini
Immediately after having passed them in the batter, pass the arancini in bread crumbs

Frying

Fry in plenty of oil until golden brown, to ensure your arancini fry up perfectly, use one of the following oils: peanut oil, olive oil, or palm oil.
Heat the oil to the ideal temperature, 190°C, either in a frying pan or by setting the temperature on your deep fryer.
If using a pan, you can make sure that the oil has reached the proper temperature by dropping in a bread crumb. If it sizzles, then the oil is ready.
Immerse the arancini gently in the oil, only a few at a time, so as to prevent the temperature of the oil from falling too low.
When they are done, place the arancini on absorbent paper, then serve.
Serve the arancini.