Arancinette “alla bagna caoda” with roasted peppers

RSS

Introduction to the recipe

Bagna caoda, or bagna cauda (in Sicilian dialect), literally means “warm sauce”. It is a typical sauce from the Piedmont region, made with garlic and anchovies, and makes a wonderful condiment for raw or roasted vegetables. Tradition demands that it be served in the centre of the table in a special little pot, called a diàn or fojòt, equipped with its own mini-burner to keep it warm while eating. Legend tells that bagna caoda was the dish traditionally prepared for the grape pickers, to reward them for their labour. It is, in fact, a dish that is associated with the time of the grape harvest, even though it is prepared and enjoyed throughout the year.

In these arancinette, or arancine in mini-format, the sauce is used to flavour the rice and the filling is made from roasted peppers, which pair beautifully with bagna caoda.

From the world

Hard

30 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
2 heads of garlic
10 salted anchovies in oil
300 ml of milk
extra virgin olive oil

For the finish:

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

For the filling:

1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
extra virgin olive oil
salt, black pepper

Preparation of rice and filling

The sauce

Peel the garlic cloves, cut them in half lengthwise, remove their cores and then mince them with a knife
Put the garlic in a small pot with the milk and cook it for a good long time over very low heat, until it has dissolved
Desalt and debone the anchovies and dissolve them in a small pot with 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Add the sauce to the anchovies, allow the flavours to blend for a couple of minutes and then remove from the heat (add the sauce while the anchovies are cooking)

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 (add the sauce in cooking)
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

Lay the peppers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and roast them in a convection oven, preheated to 200°C, for about 40 minutes, flipping them halfway through
Remove the peppers from the oven, wrap them in aluminium foil and let them rest for 15 minutes
Take the peppers out of the foil, remove their skins and slice them into strips, making sure to remove the seeds and white filaments
Season the pepper strips with salt, pepper and olive oil

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.