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Mexican Rice Balls

Do you ever find yourself with too much leftover rice?? You eat it for three days, then you don't want to eat rice again for a whole month! This is what happened to me just this past weekend, so I decided to get a little creative and take a simple bowl of Mexican red rice and transform it. I have several friends who are Italian and I often hear them talk about these fried rice balls filled with mozzarella, so a light went off in my head, LOL! I had all the ingredients already, so it was worth a try. This recipe is a keeper and cannot wait to make it for my friends.

Mexican Rice Balls... Cheesy!

Yields 6 servings

Ingredients:

5 cups day old Mexican red rice
1 cup cotija or Parmesan cheese, grated
12- 1 inch cubes of queso fresco, jack, or mozzarella
5 eggs
Pinch of chipotle powder
2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup panko bread crumbs
Canola oil

It's a bit of a messy job, but the rice balls come together quite quickly.

The rice balls before being breaded and fried.

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the rice, grated cotija cheese, 2 eggs, and chipotle powder. Stir well to combine and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

2. Set up your breading station, whisk the remaining 3 eggs, combine the bread crumbs in another bowl. Preheat canola oil in a small pot, so it comes up at least 3 inches on the side. Heat to medium/high heat.

3. While the oil is getting hot prepare the rice balls. Take about 1/4 cup of rice mixture in the palm of your hand and make an indentation with your thumb. Take a 1-inch piece of cheese and place it in hole. Form the rice around the cheese, pressing in place. Form the rest of the rice balls and transfer onto plate.

4. When ready, line a clean plate with paper towels, set near frying station. Dip the rice ball into egg, then carefully roll in bread crumbs. using a metal, slotted spoon, carefully drop into hot oil. Fry for 2 minutes, turning once, until golden brown. When adding the rice balls to the oil, try to shake off excess bread crumbs from spoon. Transfer fried rice balls to plate lined with paper towels. Serve with your favorite salsa. Yields 6 servings.

Note: You can also use plain white rice for this recipe. I used homemade spicy bread crumbs, seasoned with oregano, garlic, and jalapeno.

Other recipes by Sonia:

Mexican Red Rice
Buñuelos
Chile Relleno with Serrano Shrimp
Cheesy Chorizo Bread
Flank Steak Tacos
Queso Fundido with Barbeque Shrimp
Annatto-Citrus Marinated Chicken
Chile Garlic Shrimp Kabobs
Avocado Fries
Chicken Enchilada Soup with Chayotes
Dulce de Leche and Chocolate Chip Chimichangas

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Tags: Appetizers, Rice, cheese, rice balls

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Comment by Sonia Mendez Garcia on December 2, 2012 at 2:36pm: I just want to clarify that this is just an interpretation of a rice ball recipe...I am Mexican, so of course I am always adding Mexican flavors to recipes, makes it fun for me, and we like it..:)

Comment by Sonia Mendez Garcia on October 16, 2012 at 7:18am: Lemoncello, I would imagine them to be tasty with almost any fillings!! next time I would like to try some shrimp and avocado! Let me know if you try them with meatballs!

Comment by Lemoncello on October 15, 2012 at 10:18pm: Genius. I wonder, it might also be good with cooked mini meatballs inside too.

Comment by Sonia Mendez Garcia on October 10, 2012 at 6:46pm: Rachel, you must try this recipe....it's so much fun and sooo tasty!!!!!

Comment by Rachel Zito on October 10, 2012 at 6:29pm: what a cool idea! I'll have to try this for my fiance