Let’s be honest, life is getting too busy, and we don’t have all the time we used to have. This is my lazy way to still feel the flavor of arancini without spending too much time cooking when I’m away from Italy.
Ingredients for 3 servings
- 300 g rice
- 300 ml tomato sauce (I usually make the whole bottle and make other recipes with what is left)
- 200 g ground meat
- 150 g peas
- 1 golden onion (half for the tomato sauce, half for the filling)
- 150 g grated parmesan cheese
- 200 g smoked provola (that’s the ideal choice, but I know it is tough to find, so you can replace it with mozzarella)
- 50 breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp EVO oil
- 1 glass red wine
- Salt, black pepper
Preparing the rice and sauce
If you don’t have tomato sauce ready, the first thing you should do is prepare that one (you will soon find my own recipe, but any other one is okay; just be sure it is well-cooked and not watery).
Place a pot on a medium heat stove with 750 ml of water and bring it to a boil. The ratio to cook the rice is 1 to 2.5, so that’s what you have to stick with if you are changing the rice amount. As soon as the water boils, add the salt and pour the rice in (rinse it first!). Keep stirring the rice and cook it until it absorbs all the water (that’s why we had to weigh it).
Don't lose this recipe! Drop your email and we'll send it to you, so you've got it handy the next time you're planning dinner.
Making the filling
In the meantime, heat the EVO oil on medium heat, then add the sliced onion and let it brown, then add peas and crumbled ground meat. You can choose the meat you prefer, either pork or beef; I don’t suggest lean meat for this recipe. You could also add veggies like carrots or mushrooms.
Sear everything together, then add salt and the wine (it is important that you cook at high heat and keep stirring, in order to deglaze the proper way). Once all the wine is deglazed and the filling looks like the pic, turn off the stove.
Assembling the casserole
When the rice is ready too, you basically finished. Grease the casserole and cover it with breadcrumbs, mix in the pot the rice with enough tomato sauce for it to be colored yet “dry” (look at pic n.3 for a reference), 3/4 of the filling, and 3/4 of the cubed smoked provola.
After mixing well, place half of it in the casserole, add the other 1/4 of the filling and smoked provola, half of the grated Parmesan cheese, and then “close” it with the last half of the rice.
Level with a spoon and cover it with grated Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake it at 220°C in a fan-assisted oven for 20- 25 mins; it must be golden, and all the cheese has to melt. Then enjoy!
Lazy Arancino Casserole
Ingredients
Method
- If needed, prepare tomato sauce first; it must be well-cooked, not watery.
- Bring 750 ml water to a boil in a pot over medium heat. Add salt and rinsed rice; stir until all water is absorbed.
- Meanwhile, brown the filling half of the sliced onion in EVO oil over medium heat. Add peas and crumbled ground meat; sear together.
- Add salt and red wine. Deglaze over high heat, stirring, until the wine has evaporated. Turn off heat.
- Grease a casserole dish; cover the bottom with breadcrumbs.
- Mix cooked rice with enough tomato sauce to color it without making it wet. Add 3/4 of the meat-pea filling and 3/4 of the cubed smoked provola.
- Mix well. Layer half the rice mixture in the casserole, then the remaining 1/4 filling and provola, half the parmesan, and the remaining rice.
- Level with a spoon; cover with remaining Parmesan and breadcrumbs.
- Fan bake at 220°C for 20-25 minutes until golden and all cheese has melted.