Air Fryer Arancini

This Air Fryer Arancini recipe, or fried Italian rice balls, are balls of creamy risotto rice and cheese with a seasoned crispy breading! They’re air fried until perfectly golden with a soft, creamy, cheesy center!

We’re a fan of pretty much anything that’s been breaded and air fried, so why not rice balls too? These air fryer arancini rice balls are fantastic Italian snacks/appetizers that are perfect as an appetizer for your next Italian meal or delicious just to munch on as a snack.

If you’ve got leftover rice this recipe is an excellent way to use it all up! We like to enjoy these crispy Italian rice balls with marinara sauce for dipping but my kids have been known to dip them in ranch as well. No surprise – they dip everything in ranch!

You can serve these alongside just about anything but they’re especially good with more traditional Italian recipes like my air fryer chicken parmesan! Or make it a vegetarian meal with this air fryer eggplant parmesan!

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What Is Arancini?

Arancini are balls of rice that have been mixed with cheese, breaded, and fried. Arancini is a popular Italian street food that make excellent snacks or appetizers! The name “arancini” means “little oranges” in Italian, mainly due to their shape and the golden color they have after frying.

We made our arancini a bit healthier and easier by air frying the rice balls instead of deep frying.

These are a great way to use up leftover rice, especially leftover arborio rice!

What We Love About This Recipe

Customizable: Arancini can be stuffed with all sorts of good stuff including cheese, meats, veggies, and more. For this recipe we’re keeping it pretty simple with rice, cheese, and fresh herbs, but feel free to modify it with more ingredients or fillings!

Crispy: The breading is made with seasoned Italian bread crumbs and all-purpose flour which will get nice and golden crisp in the air fryer!

Leftovers: We nearly always have leftover rice and this is one of our favorite ways to use it up! Waste not, want not!

Ingredient Notes:

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Arborio Rice – Use leftover cooked arborio rice for this recipe, as it creates the ideal creamy texture for the arancini. The starchiness of arborio rice helps the arancini hold their shape and provides a satisfying mouthfeel. You’ll want the rice slightly warm, but not hot as you’ll be handling it.

Cheese – The combination of grated parmesan and diced mozzarella cheese adds a rich, gooey center to these air fryer arancini balls. Ensure the mozzarella cubes are cut into small pieces to evenly distribute the cheesy goodness throughout the rice mixture.

Herbs & Seasoning – Fresh parsley and dried basil contribute vibrant flavor profiles to the arancini. Feel free to experiment with other herbs such as oregano or thyme for additional aromatic depth. I’m seasoning the rice with salt & black pepper.

Breading – To prepare the crispy seasoned breading you’ll need all-purpose flour, beaten eggs, and Italian bread crumbs. These will come with seasoning already mixed in which makes it nice and easy.

Marinara Sauce – These crispy air fryer rice balls are perfect for dipping in marinara sauce! We love Rao’s Marinara and use it for just about anything that requires marinara but feel free to use any brand or variety you prefer, or use something else entirely for serving. See below for more serving suggestions!

How to Make Arancini Risotto Balls:

• Combine – To begin stir together the already cooked arborio rice (leftover risotto works!), grated Parmesan cheese, diced Mozzarella, chopped parsley, and dried basil. Add as much salt and pepper as you’d like to taste!
• Scoop – We typically use a medium cookie scoop for this part as it keeps the portions even. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of the rice mixture and shape it into a compact ball with your hands. Repeat until all the rice is used up, about 16 to 20 arancini balls.
• Breading – You’ll need three shallow bowls or dishes. Add the all-purpose flour to one, beaten eggs in another, and Italian breadcrumbs in the last. Roll each rice ball in the flour, then dip it into the egg, and finally coat it well in the bread crumbs. Panko breadcrumbs work here too. Place each of the coated arancini balls onto a plate and set aside.
• Air Fry – Preheat your air fryer to 370 degrees and place the arancini balls into the air fryer basket in a single layer. The rice balls should not be touching so if your air fryer basket isn’t very large you may need to air fry in batches. Spritz them with an olive oil spray and air fry for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the breaded rice balls are golden brown and crispy!
• Serve – Let the air fried rice balls cool for a couple minutes before serving them with some marinara sauce or other dips. See below for some serving suggestions!

Serving Suggestions:

You can serve these air fryer arancini rice balls as an appetizer or a snack! They’re great for parties or holidays too. We like to serve them with marinara sauce or some sort of tomato sauce for a classic Italian flavor combination, but you can also use other dips or dressings. Garlic aioli or pesto are good choices too if you’re keeping it Italian.

A simple side salad or some air fryer garlic bread would make a good choice to go with these too. And you can’t go wrong with soup! This sausage tortellini soup is perfect.

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Rice Ball Recipe Variations:

Feel free to experiment with different ingredients and fillings when preparing these air fried rice balls. Here are some good ways to switch things up:

Cheese – You can use other varieties of cheese here though we do love the melty mozzarella!

Meat – You could stuff these rice balls with cooked ground Italian sausage or ground beef. Diced salami or pepperoni would also be tasty, just make sure you’re using small pieces.

Veggies – There are lots of options here! Peas, diced onion, mushrooms, tomato, bell pepper, and spinach are all popular choices when making arancini.

FAQ:

More Easy Air Fryer Snack Recipes!

• Air Fryer Hot Pockets
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• Air Fryer Nachos
• Air Fryer Mini Corn Dogs
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Air Fryer Arancini Rice Balls

Created by: Karly Campbell

Course Air Fryer Snacks, Appetizer, Veggies

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Total Time 32 minutes minutes

5 servings

This Air Fryer Arancini recipe, or fried Italian rice balls, are balls of creamy risotto rice and cheese with a seasoned crispy breading! They're air fried until perfectly golden with a soft, creamy, cheesy center!

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Equipment

• Air Fryer
• Parchment Paper

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 cups cooked arborio rice warm, but not hot
• ▢ 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• ▢ 1/2 cup diced mozzarella cheese in small cubes
• ▢ 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• ▢ Salt and pepper to taste
• ▢ 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 large eggs beaten
• ▢ 1 cup Italian bread crumbs
• ▢ Marinara sauce for serving
• ▢ olive oil for spritzing

Instructions

 

• In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked arborio rice, grated parmesan cheese, diced mozzarella, chopped parsley, and dried basil. Season liberally with salt and pepper to taste.
• Scoop about 2 tablespoons of the rice mixture and shape it into a compact ball using your hands. We use a medium cookie scoop for this. Repeat this process until all the rice mixture is used, forming 16-20 arancini balls.
• Set up a breading station with three shallow bowls: one with the all-purpose flour, one with the beaten eggs, and one with the Italian bread crumbs.
• Roll each arancini ball in the flour, shaking off any excess. Then dip it into the beaten eggs, allowing any excess to drip off, and finally coat it evenly with the Italian bread crumbs. Place the coated arancini balls on a plate.
• Preheat the air fryer to 370°F (190°C). Place the arancini balls in the air fryer basket in a single layer, ensuring they are not touching each other. Spritz with olive oil.
• Air fry the arancini at 370°F for 10-12 minutes, or until they are golden brown and crispy.
• Once the arancini are cooked, remove them from the air fryer and let them cool for a few minutes before serving.
• Serve the air fryer arancini hot with marinara sauce for dipping. Enjoy!

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Notes

Use leftover cooked arborio rice for this recipe, as it creates the ideal creamy texture for the arancini. The starchiness of arborio rice helps the arancini hold their shape and provides a satisfying mouthfeel. You’ll want the rice slightly warm, but not hot as you’ll be handling it.

Ensure the mozzarella cubes are cut into small pieces to evenly distribute the cheesy goodness throughout the rice mixture.

Nutrition

Serving: 4rice balls | Calories: 368kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 96mg | Sodium: 712mg | Potassium: 140mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 498IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 175mg | Iron: 3mg

🧑‍🍳 Proudly human-made. Every recipe on AirFried.com is created and kitchen-tested by real people. No AI recipes here!

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