Jambalaya Arancini
Mardi Gras will be very different this year, but the pandemic won’t stop our celebrations. Homes are being decorated as house floats ,and our yards will be the extent of our parade routes. New Orleanians are resilient, and we’ll make the most of it with our small family celebrations.
The celebrations may be small, but our food will be big in flavor. Every family has their favorite Mardi Gras dish, and mine include bite size treats for grazing throughout the day. This year I've combined the ease of Zatarain’s One Pot Jambalaya and their Cajun Style Smoked sausage for my Jambalaya Arancini. These crispy rice balls are filled with smoked sausage and gooey mozzarella cheese. Warm your favorite marinara sauce for a fun dip, and get the celebration started. If you enjoy this recipe share your version with me on Instagram at @y_delicacies. Happy Mardi Gras!
Jambalaya Arancini
Yvette Jemison
YDelicacies.com
Servings: 18 arancini
Jambalaya Mix
1 8-oz box Zatarain’s One Pot Jambalaya mix
1 14-oz package Zatarain’s smoked sausage, finely chopped
2 ¾ cup water
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
Assembly
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, beaten
2 cups panko bread crumbs
Vegetable oil for frying
2 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 18 ½-inch cubes
1 cup marinara sauce, warmed
Jambalaya Filling
1. Stir the contents of the boxed jambalaya mix, sausage and water together in a 3 quart sauce pan. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer until the rice is tender, 20-25 minutes. Let sit covered until completely cooled.
2. Mix the cooled jambalaya, parmesan cheese and 2 beaten eggs in a mixing bowl until well combined.
Breading and Frying
1. Set up 3 separate small bowls with the flour, beaten eggs and panko crumbs. Preheat ½-inch of oil on medium heat in a medium skillet. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.
2. Scoop a ¼ cup portion of the jambalaya filling and form a ball, with wet hands. Stuff the ball with a cube of cheese and enclose the rice to form a tightly sealed ball.
3. Roll the rice ball in flour, dip in the egg wash and roll in the panko crumbs.
4. Fry the breaded rice balls, in small batches in the oil, turning until all of the surface is golden brown, 2-3 minutes.
5. Transfer to the paper towel lined baking sheet and repeat with the remaining jamblaya filling and cheese cubes. Serve with the warm marinara as a dipping sauce.
