Supplì: Roman risotto balls

Eataly is the store for the most delicious Italian delicacies. The cookbook of the same name is packed with classics that are easy to make at home. These supplì (similar to arancini) are the Italian equivalent of our bitterballen.

Making supplì

Pour the stock into a pan and bring it to the boil. Keep it warm over low heat while you make the risotto.

Heat a little olive oil in a large pan, add the onion, celery and carrot and fry for 4 minutes over medium heat or until they start to sweat. Add the two types of minced meat and chicken gizzards and fry everything for a few minutes until browned, then add the tomatoes and stew everything for 40 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the basil.

Add the risotto rice to the pan with the sauce and heat everything, stirring regularly, for another approximately 20 minutes over medium heat, adding a ladleful of stock whenever the previous one has been absorbed by the rice. Continue until the rice is al dente. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese.

Spread the rice out on a large baking tray, cover with plastic wrap and leave to cool. With damp hands, shape a 120-gram portion of the cooled rice mixture into a slightly oval croquette, make a hole in the centre with your finger, put a few cubes of mozzarella inside and seal the rice again. Continue with the rest of the rice mixture and mozzarella.

Beat the eggs in a deep dish. Spread the crumbled bread out in another deep dish. Dip the supplì in the egg, then roll them in the crumbled bread to coat them and repeat these steps two more times. Pour enough sunflower oil for deep-frying into a small, deep pan and heat the oil to 165 degrees. Carefully lower the supplì into the hot oil, in batches if necessary, and fry them for 3–4 minutes, turning them occasionally, until golden brown. Remove them with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.

Image: from ‘Eataly’ by @Food Editore/Piermichele Borraccia, 2017, Uitgeverij Unieboek | Het Spectrum, Houten.

Eataly
€45,-
Uitgeverij Unieboek | Het Spectrum