Recipe - Roman Supplì

Roman Supplì
Supplì are the Roman cousins of the arancino. They differ essentially due to their typically “red” rice, flavoured with either ragù or tomato sauce, and because of their cylindrical shape. The name “supplì” comes from the French word surprise, in reference to its deliciously melting centre of mozzarella cheese. The full name of this famous appetiser is actually “supplì al telefono”, because when you break it in half to let it cool off, the melting mozzarella holds the two sides together like a telephone cord
From the World
Easy
80 grams
Meat
Ingredients for about 24 supplì
For rice:
- 500 grams of rice ("Roma" and "Originario" rices, mixed in equal doses)
- 60 grams of butter
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Onion
- 200 gr of minced beef 200 gr (150 gr of minced and 50 gr of chicken livers)
- 400 gr of tomato sauce
- Beef broth
- 100 g of Grana Padano to cream
- 100 ml White wine
- Fine salt
- black pepper
For the finish:
- 100 gr of flour
- 180 ml of water
- 2 eggs
- 150 gr of bread crumbs
For the filling:
- 200 gr of mozzarella
Preparation of rice and filling

The rice
The procedure for preparing rice è completely different than the classic arancino \ a. In fact, the rice is cooked directly in the tomato sauce, and not in the stock as it happens with the "Sicilian cousin". Moreover, the minced meat is found among the grains of rice and not in the nucleus of suppl ì .
- Chop the chicken livers coarsely
- Melt the butter in a pan with oil, add minced onion and minced meat
- Leave to brown
- Add the minced livers
- After 5 minutes, blend with the wine and add the tomato sauce
- Add salt and pepper and cook over medium heat
- When the sauce is ready, add the rice and, stirring often,
cook the rice by adding, when needed, some meat broth until the risotto appears dry and compact - 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
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
- Chop the mozzarella into pieces and let it sit in a colander for about 30 minutes to allow the excess liquid to drain
- Yes... with stuffing we have already finished! We can move on to the forming of supplì, by hand or with the aid of the Arancinotto mold.
Forming of the supplì
Frying

The finishing touch
Put the supplì 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 supplì
- Immediately after having passed them in the batter, pass the supplì in bread crumbs

Frying
- Fry in plenty of oil until golden brown, to ensure your supplì 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 supplì 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 supplì on absorbent paper, then serve.
- Serve the supplì.
Enjoy!
Variant
Do you prefer a "hotter" variant? Click here.
Bonus Idea
For a bright and colourful cocktail-hour appetiser, serve your supplì with a variety of different sauces or vegetable-based ‘pestos’ for dipping.
Historical note
The Roman supplì is a member of that large family of specialities made with rice that, in 19th-century Sicily, were known as crucché (meaning “crunchy”) or doré (“golden”). It is quite likely that such these rice-based recipes, like Sicilian arancine and Neapolitan sartù, were first introduced to the peninsula by the famed transalpine monsù (monsieur), cooks who fled revolutionary France between the 18th and 19th centuries to take up service in the noble kitchens of these Southern cities’ most prominent families.
Do you like this recipe? Let us know and share your results!
- Arancinotto Staff