This post has been sponsored by USA Rice. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Kroll’s Korner running! The gooey mozzarella in the center is a wonderful surprise and dipping them in marinara or tomato sauce is an absolute must! (However, dipping in a basil pesto sounds equally amazing). I love serving these Italian rice balls as appetizers or they are delicious on their own with a salad (like this Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad) or soup (like this Vegetable Soup). It’s a perfect appetizer for the holidays, or year round, and a fun way to cook with rice in the kitchen!
U.S.-grown basmati rice: U.S. basmati is an aromatic long grain rice with its own distinctive aroma and flavor. Their savory and nutty flavor works really well in this recipe and you’ll love their fluffy, slightly chewy texture. Butter and flour: when making the béchamel sauce, you’ll need butter and flour to make the roux. Whole milk: 1 cup is needed to make the béchamel. This sauce gets mixed into the rice so the rice stays nice and creamy.
Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese: freshly grated Parmesan is recommend and low-moisture mozzarella. You’ll need to cube the mozzarella into small cubes to stuff inside the balls. Italian breadcrumbs: I like using Italian breadcrumbs because they have a little seasoning already mixed in. I haven’t tried making these with any other breadcrumbs but I’d imagine any finely ground bread crumb would work great. Eggs: For the dredging station when the rice balls get coated. (Dredging station is 3 shallow bowls: flour, egg and then breadcrumbs). Vegetable Oil: A neutral oil like vegetable or canola oil is best for deep frying.
Making the rice is very similar to making rice pilaf. It’s easy and takes all of 25 minutes from start to finish. Once the rice is done you can make the béchamel sauce (see video for guidance). You’ll combine the rice and béchamel sauce together and then turn out onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Flatten into a thin even layer and chill in fridge for at least 1 hour. After the rice is chilled, scoop a small handful and shape into a flat disk. Place mozzarella in the center and fold the rice around the cheese and shape back into a ball, being sure to enclose the cheese. Rice balls may be a little sticky but not too horrible to work with. You can use wet hands if too sticky. Dredge in flour, then egg and then breadcrumbs and fry in vegetable oil.
