Rustic Italian Suppli

Rustic Italian Suppli are made with a tomato sauce, rice and fresh mozzarella. Great for lunchbox as they are delicious finger food – crunchy on the outside with melted mozzarella on the inside.

How to make them?

Start by making the rice wrap: In a frying pan add the olive oil, garlic and tomato purée- cook for 5 minutes on medium heat, then remove the garlic.

Add the rice stir and cook for 1 minute. Add the hot water a little at a time, stirring often until the rice is cooked – 20 minutes. The mixture should not be liquidy but it should be creamy. Stir in the parmesan cheese. Move the mixture to a clean bowl and let cool completely. The best is to let cool overnight.

Shape suppli: Into the palm of your hand measure out approximately 2 tablespoon of the rice mixture. Layer on your palm and in the middle place a stick of cut mozzarella; mold into a cylinder shape, making sure that the mozzarella is completely covered. Set aside on a clean plate and continue with the rest rice and mozzarella.

Prepare egg and bread crumbs: In a small bowl beat an egg, and place the bread crumbs in a plate, add grated parmesan thyme and pepper. First roll the Suppli in the egg to coat well and then in the bread crumbs. Cover well all sides. At this point you can cover the supply with foil and place in fridge for up to 5 days.

Frying: In a medium pot (15 cm in diameter) heat the vegetable oil. Fry 3 supplies at a time turning a few times until golden brown; keep the oil as close to 180°C as possible or the Suppli will cook too quickly and the mozzarella will not become soft and stringy. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on plate covered with paper towels.

Suppli or Arancini?

Arancini are round shaped made with rice and usually includes meat, peas and cheese.  Whereas  Suppli are cylinder shaped, made with tomato rice; and in the middle a piece of mozzarella is placed. When you break it in half, the mozzarella pulls apart like a line.

Oven baked suppli:

Suppli can be baked – place the breaded suppli on a parchment paper; drizzle with a little olive oil and bake  in a pre-heated 220°C (standard baking, no fan) for 20-25 minutes, until golden.

Make ahead:

Make the Suppli, coat well, cover and refrifgerate up to 5 days in a fridge. Fry before eating.

You can keep leftovers wrapped in plastic and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. Eat cold or re-heat on a baking sheet in the oven.

Suppli is kid’s favourite food in their lunchboxes. And once shaped it takes minutes to fry.