5 Delicious Deep-Fried Italian Foods You Need To Eat Now

5 Delicious Deep-Fried Italian Foods You Need to Eat Now

Everybody loves Italian food. Everybody loves deep-fried food. Put them together and you have a handful of dishes that are so delicious that it's bonkers. 

Arancini

This popular Sicilian food consists of breadcrumb-coated rice balls that are typically filled with ragù, tomato sauce, and mozzarella. A little piece of fried heaven, essentially. Here's a recipe that incorporated the strange bedfellows of prosciutto and chocolate.

Cotoletta alla Milanese

Cotoletta is a clarified butter-fried veal cutlet similar to wiener schnitzel, but it is cooked bone-in. The most exquisite cotoletta uses only milk-fed veal. Does eating veal make you uncomfortable? Try Mario Batali's recipe, which uses mortadella instead. 

Olive all'Ascolana

Don't just stuff olives; throw them in the deep-fryer! Traditionally, these green olives are stuffed with meat. If you're planning on keeping a beach bod, try a slightly healthier (and gluten-free) recipe of pan-fried olives with rosemary.

Panzerotti

From the Apulia region of Italy, these fried, savory pies are similar to calzones, except they are smaller and the bread is softer — more like a doughnut. The most common filling is mozzarella and tomato, but there are many options. Check out this recipe, which contains ricotta and mint leaves.

Struffoli

Finally, dessert. These marble-sized doughnuts are traditionally tossed in honey, sprinkles, and orange rind. Use this recipe and bring them to your next potluck!