Arancini are rice balls with a filling that you can wolf down in one or two bite. Today, it’s a symbol of Sicily, like the Etna volcano or oranges; they’re sold in almost every eatery on the island and regarded as the most popular local street food. Tourists rarely try this dish and few know about it beyond the borders of Italy. This may be because some joke that arancini is what you make from what’s left over from last night’s risotto… but that’s exactly what it is – a joke. In fact, arancini date back over a millennium! People started making this dish long before risotto, back in the 10th century. The island was heavily by Arabic culture at the time, and rice and saffron – the main ingredients in arancini – as well as oranges were brought in to Sicily for the first time. Arancini actually take their name from oranges. In Italian, “arancini” means small oranges, and the rice balls do in deed look like the little Sicilian citrus fruits. Vladimir Pavlov will be telling us interesting facts and stories such as this in the new program. True, the chef will be offering his own recipe for the famed Sicilian dish – his arancini are made with cauliflower with a mozzarella filling, served with a tomato and basil sauce! In the Geography of Taste. Only on Russian Travel Guide.