The arancinA is one of the most famous Sicilian delicacies, not only in Italy but probably in the world.

It is a sphere of rice which in the centre is filled with ragù meat sauce with peas and fried on the outside, with a breading that makes it golden. The arancina just described, commonly called “accarne” (with meat), is always paired with its sister “abburro” (with butter) which is instead seasoned with cheeses and ham cubes and with a more oval shape.

So, a spherical one with a red and rich heart, the other one more elongated with a soft and delicate body.

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Arancina is a traditional Sicilian dish but, specifically because of its diffusion, it has often been revisited.

To date, the different recipes and varieties of toppings are no longer counted.

Among the most popular, in addition to the two classic ones, there are for example, those with sausage, spinach, salmon, traditional aubergines or with fish. Even the sweet ones.

The pistachio arancina in the photo - with external breading enriched with crumbled pistachio together with flour and with cheeses, ham and salted pistachio pesto inside - is just a concrete example of these new varieties of the dish (and for me personally, one of the best and richest).

And who knows how many other versions exist, given that the recipe has been exported to different parts of the world, an inevitable presence among the appetizers on the menus of Sicilian or Italian restaurants, even if we find it at the bar(1), among the other pieces of rosticceria (deli preparation).

Rosticceria in Sicily is a "food category" that is generally found in bars or that is made at home. It is a set of savory or sweet preparations based on brioche dough(2) called “pezzi” (litt. piecies).

Rosticceria piecies can be large - and in that case it constitutes a complete meal - or small - and is called "mignon" and consumed on the same occasions as "finger food" (a Sicilian and rich finger food, of course!) - and is seasoned in different ways. Specific shapes and condiments correspond to recipes, preparations and names of peculiar pieces: for example, Ravazzata con gli spinaci (spinach pastry), Rollò (wurstel pastry), Calzone, Pizzetta (small pizza), Arancina, indeed...!

So at the bar, if you found yourself simply ordering a "pezzo", you would risk confusing the employee behind the counter who inevitably needs more details: "Fried or baked? With or without meat? White or with tomato sauce? With which salami?".

When it comes to cooking, in Sicily it is better not to take anything for granted!

 

The tradition of arancina in Palermo

In Palermo in particular, the arancina is a very important rosticceria piece.

On December 13th, the day of Saint Lucia, it is in fact morally and religiously FORBIDDEN to eat products that contain processed wheat.

The reason is linked to the fact that in the early 1600s it is said that Palermo was hit by a severe famine and that, precisely in response to the prayers of Palermo inhabitants, during Saint Lucia day a ship loaded with wheat arrived in the city. The citizens, such was the hunger, did not even have time to grind the grain and chose to eat it just boiled.

To commemorate this event, since then every 13th of December, it is not allowed to refine wheat and by tradition all foods based on processed wheat are banned.

Pasta and pizza, therefore, are two bases absolutely not to be consumed, worse than eating meat on Fridays in Lent(3).

This "devoted sacrifice" is transformed, however, into a perfect opportunity to eat substitutes for pasta and, always by tradition, there are dishes that are consumed on this day precisely because they are granted.

In this sense, the arancina represents a perfect dish because it is produced with another type of cereal and therefore "very respectful" of the religious tradition.

In Palermo, the 13th of December, it is also called "Arancina Day"

 

The history of arancina...

It is difficult to accurately trace the origins of the arancina recipe because there are no literary sources that describe its birth. For this reason, some scholars have searched for the answer to the genealogical question in the ingredients and in their arrival at the island.

Probably this dish, like many others of the Sicilian culinary tradition, is the result of the "Arab recipe" because saffron, a fundamental spice for the colour of rice and for its unmistakable aroma, was introduced by the Arabs.

The Arabs would also be responsible for the etymology of the dish: it would seem, in fact, that the aforementioned population used to call the round-shaped meatballs of their culinary tradition with the name of the fruit.

 

...and the never-ending dispute over its gender

It is precisely from this historical clue - from the attribution of the name of the fruit - that the dispute over the genus of arancina arises.

In Sicily, in fact, the genus of arancina deeply divides the islanders and the love for this dish is so strong that the island literally splits itself "into two" to proudly defend the correctness of the name.

The "spaccazza", as it would be called in Sicilian, or the "separation", is exactly halfway between East and West.

The eastern Sicilians, in fact, defend the masculine gender of the dish (so they call it “arancinO”) because, precisely due to its shape, the arancino is nothing more than the fruit of the orange tree which, in Sicilian dialect, is used in the masculine. The Sicilians of the West, on the other hand, together with the Ragusans and Syracusans (who, although oriental, are united in the struggle with the other side of the island) correctly use the feminine declination of the fruit (so, arancinA). The orange is indeed a tree, but the fruits are oranges.

Apart from the gender difference, which is in effect a reason for great competition between the two halves of the island, the western arancine differ from the eastern ones also in shape.

In fact, in the parts of Catania and Messina (that are located in the Eastern part of Sicily), the "oranges" alter themselves to resemble peaks reminiscent of Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe that places its slopes right in the eastern territory.

Regardless of the origin, it is certain that the Sicilians honour their land by giving tributes in every way.

But from my side, since I come from Palermo and I would add also "so proudly", I will always defend my Conca d'Oro(4) and our oranges and for this I can only say, until the end of my days, that "l’arancinA è fimmina!" (ArancinA is a woman!).