Arancine with sardines

Introduction to the recipe

Sarde (sardines) play an important role in Sicilian cuisine, as the main ingredient in a number of particularly well-loved traditional recipes, such as pasta con le sarde (pasta cchi sardi, in dialect) or sarde a beccafico. They are usually prepared using ingredients typical of Sicily's sweet-and-sour culinary tradition, such as raisins, pine nuts and finocchietto (wild fennel).

In transforming them into arancine, we have respected these flavours, but reinterpreted them in a creative fashion. The rice is pleasantly flavoured with wild fennel, while the centre of the arancina is more reminiscent of sarde a beccafico.

Sicilian

Medium

160 grams

Fish

Ingredients for about 12 arancini

For 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
50 gr of wild fennel

For the finish:

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

For the filling:

400 gr of sardines
130 gr of bread crumbs
50 gr of pine nuts
50 g of raisins
½ glass of white wine
½ onion
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
chop the fennel and halfway through cooking add to the rice
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 informations about rice, Click here.

The filling

Clean the sardines by removing their heads and entrails, then butterfly them and remove the bones
Slice the sardines into strips
Put the raisins to soak in cold water
Mince the onion and sauté it in extra virgin olive oil until it is just beginning to brown
Add the fish, the soaked raisins and the pine nuts, salt and pepper to taste, then add the white wine and simmer until reduced
Remove from the heat and add the breadcrumbs, mix them in well and leave it to cool

How to shape the arancini

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.

How to frying the arancini

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 with sauce on the side.

For more information about Finishing and Frying, Click here.

Enjoy your arancini!

Varation

If you want a filling with a softer texture, you can omit the breadcrumbs

Bonus idea

If you want your guests to be truly dazzled, sprinkle these arancine with a few drops of lemon juice right after you’ve fried them.

The art of camouflage is an old culinary trick, and Palermo has always been an expert. Sarde a beccaficco is a recipe that began as an “emulation”. Nobles commonly dined on small birds known as beccafichi (t.n. meaning “fig-peckers”, a colloquial name for the garden warbler). The poor made do with what they had: the songbirds were replaced by sardines, the stuffing by a humbler filling consisting of breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, raisins and oil. To complete the illusion, the fish tails were rolled up to emulate the appearance of a roast beccafico.