Game changing air fryer risotto balls to try right now! We love our easy to make air fryer recipes! Use your leftover risotto to make these delicious arancini balls!
I am a huge risotto fan. I was intrigued by risotto after watching all the cooks on Hell’s Kitchen fail at the task of making it. If you have watched that show, you know exactly what I mean!
While many times it looked delicious, Gordon Ramsey was not happy with the quality and the consistency.
With that said, I decided that I needed to try it. Not that I was better than your average aspiring chef on Hell’s Kitchen. I just wanted to give it a try.
After so many batches of risotto, my kitchen was a bit over run! So I decided to make these Air Fryer Arancini Balls. Let's just say they are a HUGE hit with my family!
How to make Air Fryer Arancini Balls
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If using leftover risotto, skip to step 6.
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Add olive oil to a deep and large saucepan over medium heat. Heat the oil Add the onions and saute until soft.
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Add dry rice and saute for 1 minute.
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Next, add 2 cups of veggie broth. Let the broth cook down while you continually stir to avoid any burning. Once the liquid has been cooked down, add 2 more cups. Continue with this process until all your liquid is absorbed and your rice is soft. This process should take about 20 minutes. Stir in parmesan.
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Pour risotto into a casserole dish or sheet pan. Cool for 1-2 hours in the fridge. (This step is very important. The risotto HAS to be cold to be able to be rolled into balls).
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In a small bowl, place the bread crumbs. In another bowl, place the beaten eggs.
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Remove chilled risotto (rice mixture) from the fridge. Roll into 1 inch rice balls. Dip into eggs then into bread crumbs to coat the entire ball. Do this until you run out of ingredients.
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Place rolled and coated balls back into the fridge for 45 minutes.
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Remove from fridge and place into Air Fryer in small batches. Free at 400 degrees F for a cooking time of 10 minutes. Shake at minute 8. The balls are actually done around minute 6-7 but the browning doesn't happen until minute 8-10 🙂
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Serve with marinara sauce and ENJOY!
We’ve created some mouthwatering risotto recipes that are amazingly easy. You have probably seen our other risotto recipes. If not, be sure to check out Broccoli and Cheese Risotto, Kale Risotto, and Spinach and Shallot Risotto!
What about the rice?
I have found that the key to good risotto is great rice. In our risotto recipes we generally use Lundberg White Arborio Rice. For us, we like this rice because it is certified gluten-free.
Wondering what Arborio Rice is? It is actually a traditional rice used when cooking creamy Italian dishes! If you want a creamy texture with your rice, Arborio Rice is the rice to use!
Air Fryer Risotto Balls made from leftovers!
Since it uses your leftovers, it’s a huge bonus in the menu planning area! We love to eat and use leftovers!
I think it is safe to say that after you try this one time, you'll be making double batches of risotto from now on. One batch to eat, then one batch to throw into the fridge to make Air Fryer Arancini Balls later in the week!
So maybe you are reading this recipe but don't have an air fryer yet, that's okay! My family has tried several Cosori Air Fryers and the Power Fryer Xl (which is pictured for this recipe.
We truly like each of those brands. You can easily get them on amazon. Many have next day shipping if you have Amazon Prime!
Breading for Risotto Balls
Back to these risotto balls. So we are using our left over risotto (or even making a new batch) and coating the risotto balls with breading.
In our case, we are gluten-free. So our breading will be gluten-free breading. If you don’t have any food restrictions, you can use your favorite bread crumbs.
In this particular recipe, we used Ian's Gluten Free Italian Bread Crumbs. These particular gluten-free bread crumbs are super allergen friendly. So if you need to avoid things like eggs, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, soy and wheat, you should check them out!
Vegetarian Air Fryer Resources – We have a vegetarian air fryer newsletter, which you can subscribe to here. We also have a specific vegetarian air fryer recipes group on facebook. You can find that Veg Air Fryer FB Group here.
If you are looking for vegetarian recipes beyond air fryer ones, we have a Vegetarian Newsletter as well as a Vegetarian Recipes facebook group. This newsletter and FB group offers up recipes that on the stove, in the oven, on the grill, in the instant pot and more!
Other Resources:
- Air Fryer Calculator (convert oven recipes to air fryer)
- Common Air Fryer Mistakes
- Air Fryer Cooking Times Cheat Sheet
- Can You Put Foil in the Air Fryer
- How to Clean Your Air Fryer
- Tips for Your Air Fryer
- Cosori Air Fryer Reviews
More Air Fryer Goodies:
- Meat + Veg Newsletter
- Air Fryer Recipes – Facebook Group (large + fast paced – meat/veg)
- Air Fryer Recipes for Seniors – Facebook Group
- Gluten Free Air Fryer Recipes – Facebook Group
- Air Fryer Eats – Facebook Group (slower paced)
If you are new to air frying and you have some oven recipes that you would like to convert to air fryer recipes, we can help! Our sister site Air Fryer Eats, just launched an Air Fryer Calculator.
To use the air fryer convertor, simply enter your oven temp and time into the calculator and it will give you an estimated time and temp (in F or C) to start with when you use your air fryer!
Air Fryer Risotto Balls (Air Fryer Arancini Balls)
Ingredients
Risotto
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 cup onions diced very small
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
Breading
- 1.5 cups Bread Crumbs I used Ian's GF Italian Pankos
- 2 eggs beaten
Instructions
- If using leftover risotto, skip to step 6.
- Add olive oil to a deep and large saucepan over medium heat. Heat the oil Add the onions and saute until soft.
- Add dry rice and saute for 1 minute.
- Next, add 2 cups of veggie broth. Let the broth cook down while you continually stir to avoid any burning. Once the liquid has been cooked down, add 2 more cups. Continue with this process until all your liquid is absorbed and your rice is soft. This process should take about 20 minutes. Stir in parmesan.
- Pour risotto into a casserole dish or sheet pan. Cool for 1-2 hours in the fridge. (This step is very important. The risotto HAS to be cold to be able to be rolled into balls).
- In a small bowl, place the bread crumbs. In another bowl, place the beaten eggs.
- Remove chilled risotto (rice mixture) from the fridge. Roll into 1 inch rice balls. Dip into eggs then into bread crumbs to coat the entire ball. Do this until you run out of ingredients.
- Place rolled and coated balls back into the fridge for 45 minutes.
- Remove from fridge and place into Air Fryer in small batches. Free at 400 degrees F for a cooking time of 10 minutes. Shake at minute 8. The balls are actually done around minute 6-7 but the browning doesn't happen until minute 8-10 🙂
- Serve with marinara sauce and ENJOY!
Nutrition
All though this website attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, the information should only be considered an estimate. Varying factors such as different product types, different brands, etc. can change nutritional information. It is your responsibility as a consumer to read all labels to make sure the ingredients fit your dietary needs as well as calculate your own nutritional information as a double check.
Leave me a comment below telling me if you have an air fryer. What recipes have you tried in your air fryer? I'd love to know!
I love risotto so I'm sure I would love this recipe. I need to get an air fryer.
Yep, air fryers are pretty awesome!
I don't have an air fryer but I keep seeing recipes that tempt me. This is not helping me resist! It all looks so good.
You won't be able to resist much longer, ha! So yummy!
We love risotto! These look delicious, I might have to get an air fryer.
WE are HUGE risotto fans too!
This sounds really good. l love using the air fryer whenever I get a chance. This is a really unique idea that sounds amazing. Thanks for sharing, I have to give this one a try.
Air fryers are THE best, aren't they? Such yummy food you can make!
Those look amazing! I can't wait to try out your recipe. I bet they're going to be so good. I love using my air fryer too, so I'm interested in giving these a try.
They are quite tasty!
Ahh, these looks so delicious! A healthy and yummy recipe. This is so new to me so I'm excited to try this!
Thank you, enjoy!
This looks like such a fun and yummy recipe. I would love to try making this for my family.
It is delicious!
Oh sweet! I just got an air fryer, and I can't wait to give these a try! I love arborio rice dishes.
Enjoy!
I love Air Fryer recipes! These Risotto Balls look so crisp and delicious!
Thank you so much!
Airfryer is such an amazing gadget and I love to treat myself often with Airfryer treats guilt free. Aranchini Balls in airfryer looks like must try for me.
Thanks for adding it to your must try list!
I don’t have an air fryer but am eyeing one. This will be one of the first recipes I make!
We love our air fryer!
I just got my air fryer. I can't wait to try this!
Enjoy! Thanks for stopping by!
When do you add the cheese to the rice? I may be missing it but I would love to make these, but am not sure when to add that part!
Hi Jay! In step four, you add the parmesan cheese 🙂 . These are SO good and filling!
Can this be made with leftover sticky rice?
Yes 🙂 It can be 🙂
What kind of parmesan would you recommend?
Am I buying fresh grated Parmesan cheese or am I using the stuff out of the shaker?
I would recommend the fresh grated or shreds 🙂 . That works the best 🙂
I made this recipe with leftover mushroom and zucchini risotto, and it came out great! As a test, I rolled half my risotto balls in cornstarch before the egg wash, and I think it made the breading sturdier and easier to dip in the marinara. Will definitely make these again with my next risotto leftovers.
Thanks for letting me know Blake! I am so glad that you loved our Air Frye Risotto balls! I LOVE the tip of rolling the risotto balls into cornstarch! I have got to try that!!
I am literally watching diners, drive-ins, & dives & they had a restaurant in Baltimore that makes arancini with their homemade mozzarella & a meat sauce, both in the middle. Then they deep friend them. Do you think that would translate for this recipe (GF + airfryer) since they would have to be a little bit bigger? Just wondering. Thanks
Also, have you tried to freeze any of these??
I think it might translate! Worth a try, it sounds delish! I haven't tried to freeze them but have frozen air fryer mozzarella sticks and they freeze great. I'd try it!
Hi,
Your recipe says 8 servings. How many arancini equals one serving? Thank you. Can't wait to try this.
I can usually get about 18-24 arancini per batch and we have it divided between 8 people for an appetizer serving. So that's about 2-3 per person. However, we have also eaten it literally as a meal, so you can adjust it based upon how hungry you are and how many people you have. They also reheat very well 🙂 Enjoy!