Ingredients
- 1 cup white rice (sticky rice like Niko Niko)
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 tbsp yellow curry powder
- 1/2 tsp salt (plus more for dusting the arancini after frying)
- 1/2 cup boiled then chopped chicken
- 1 box Girl Scout Samoas Cookies
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 handful of fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp fresh mint leaves plus a pinch of salt
Coating
- 4–6 Girl Scout Samoas Cookies, pulsed into crumbs in a food processor
- 2 tbsps panko bread crumbs (or regular, plain bread crumbs)
Directions
- First, get your rice and chicken prepared, this can be done at the same time. Get a small pot of water boiling and add your chicken breast (I use a frozen one). Boil until cooked through (about 15 minutes).
- While that’s boiling, get another small saucepan for the rice. Combine the coconut milk, water, curry powder, 1/2 tsp salt, and rice in a saucepan. Put on medium heat and constantly stir, THE WHOLE TIME, with a spoon, until it boils. Continue constantly stirring for 2 minutes while boiling. After 2 minutes, turn the heat off, cover with a lid, and remove from heat. Set a timer for 20 minutes, and do NOT remove the lid.
- Meanwhile, prep your coating of Samoas crumbs and bread crumbs (I like panko bread crumbs—which are Japanese, but can be bought at any old grocery store). I put this mixture in a bowl and keep it in the freezer until I’m ready to roll the arancini and fry them. This prevents the chocolate from burning in the hot oil.
- Take 4–5 Samoas and chop each into 4–6 chunks, set aside. You’ll stuff a chunk of Samoas into the middle of each arancini.
- When your rice and chicken are done, stir them together and refrigerate until chilled completely. Once chilled, use a tablespoon to create evenly sized arancini balls (“arancini” means “orange” in Italian). As you create each ball, stuff a Samoas chunk into the middle and then roll in the crumb mixture. I like to pop the whole batch in the freezer for a few minutes to chill them down before frying (again to keep the chocolate cold).
- To prepare your dipping sauce, just toss the Greek yogurt, basil, mint, and pinch of salt into the blender. Puree it and stick it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
- When guests arrive, get a small saucepan ready with 1–2 inches of canola oil hot on medium-high heat (I set it around 7–8). To test your oil, drop a tiny bit of your rice mixture in and see how long it takes to form a crispy outer crust (this should be no more than 1 minute). To fry, drop the arancini (up to 3 at a time) into the oil and let fry for 1-minute max—this will create a brown, crispy crust (that’s right, it’s a SAMOAS CRUST).
- Plate them up with a saucer full of your basil, mint yogurt sauce, and serve hot. When you bite into the arancini, you’ll get the added surprise of a warm, melted center! As the arancini fry to a golden crisp, that Samoas chunk you stuffed into the center is liquefying into a caramelly, chocolatey, coconutty surprise. The warm flavors of coconut, curry, and salty chicken are wonderfully balanced by the sweetness of chocolate and mint, and the refreshing basil and yogurt.