A Recipe for Kimchi Arancini Scotch Eggs (Part 2/2: A Weekend Cooking Project)
we're romanticizing leftovers here!
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Aaaaaand we’re back! (I think this might be the first time you’re hearing from me on a weekend. I hope it’s been a lovely one). A couple days ago, you received a recipe from Su Scott’s “Pocha,” a collection of recipes inspired by the beating heart and soul of Korea’s lively pocha food culture. (If you missed my last dispatch on Wednesday, check it out here). We made Su’s spin on an Italian comfort dish, dressed up with kimchi for a little tang and some color—a tribute to her Korean heritage. Today, we’re turning those leftovers (boo, food waste!!!!) into some arancini.
Arancini, stuffed fried rice balls beloved in Italian cooking, are typically made with day (or two)-old leftover cold risotto. Su decides to take it a step further, however, by wrapping the chilled rice around a quail egg, coating it with panko, and deep-frying until golden brown. The inspiration for this, in fact, initially came from the dizzying array of seasoned rice balls sold in Korean convenience stores, some of which had a jammy, soft-boiled egg tucked inside.
“Is it arancini or a Scotch egg? Is it Korean? Does it matter? I don’t think so!” Su writes. “It is all those things fused together to form the flavors that represent everything I love about food, which is that we share more things in common that not. Deliciously-seasoned carbs, studded with a soft sunshine-golden egg and deep fried—what’s not to like?”
Su adds that these scotch eggs would be absolute gold served with okonomiyaki sauce. (Do with that statement what you will).
Makes 12
12 quail eggs
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, for dusting
1 large egg, lightly whisked
A heaping 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
750 grams cooled kimchi risotto
Vegetable oil, for frying
Bring a pan of water to the boil, just enough to cover the eggs. Carefully lower in the eggs. Stir gently, put on the lid and simmer for 2½ minutes to yield soft-boiled eggs. Lift the eggs out of the pan with a slotted spoon and submerge in a bowl of cold water to chill rapidly. When cool enough to handle, drain and tap the eggs gently against the surface to crack the shells a little, then peel very carefully.
Prepare four shallow, rimmed plates or trays ready: one transfer the rice balls to as you go along, one filled with the flour, one with the egg, and one with the panko breadcrumbs. Spray the breadcrumbs with a little water to moisten. Place a sheet of plastic wrap on the work surface.
Spread about 60 grams (2 ounces) of risotto thinly in the middle of the plastic wrap, wide enough to cover the egg. Roll one egg in the flour to coat lightly and place it in the middle of the rice. Start lifting up the corners of the clingfilm to help you cover the egg in the risotto, pressing gently but firmly to secure the rice onto the egg. This might feel a little fiddly but you’ll soon get the hang of it. Transfer to the plate, then continue until you’ve used all the eggs and risotto. Once done, refrigerate for 20 minutes to firm up.
Keep one hand for the egg and the other for handling the dry ingredients. Lightly dust the rice balls with flour, dip into the whisked egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs gently but firmly until evenly coated. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the rest of rice balls.
Prepare a cooling rack set over a roasting tray so that you can quickly transfer the cooked rice balls as you go along.
Fill a heavy saucepan with enough vegetable oil to submerge the balls—but not so much that it comes up to ¾ of the way up the pan. Heat the oil to 340ºF. Carefully lower a few of the rice balls into the oil, making sure you don’t overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden brown, crisp, and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack while you fry the remaining balls, working in batches.
Serve warm.
Recipe adapted from “Pocha: Simple Korean Food From the Streets of Seoul” by Su Scott. Copyright © 2024. Used with permission of Hardie Grant Publishing. All rights reserved.