Hot & Spicy Crawfish Balls

I got the idea for these watching "The Great Food Truck Race" on the Food Network. One of the teams has a staple menu item of deep fried rice balls. Well...I just happened to have some crawfish in the freezer and just happened to have some rice in the pantry and viola, "Deep Fried Hot & Spicy Crawfish Balls".

Ingredients You'll Need

RICE:
1 1/2 cups medium grain rice (Medium grain sticks better than long grain. AKA-Sushi rice)
3 eggs - separated
1/2 stick butter - melted
Small cubed or shredded cheese (Your choice)
Bread Crumbs

FILLING:
1 Small onion diced
12-16 oz. cleaned crawfish
1/2 pint Marinara sauce (I used my homemade.)
1 t. Oregano
1/2 t. Basil
2 T Extra Virgin Olive oil
1 T Chili Garlic sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Preparing the Ingredients

Cook rice, drain and let cool. While the rice is cooling, heat a large skillet and add oil. Cook onions until translucent, add marinara, oregano, basil, salt & pepper; simmer for about 5 minutes.

Add crawfish and chili garlic sauce and simmer for another 5 minutes allowing any liquid to cook out. (I added a little shredded cheese to help it thicken a little.) Allow to cool. To the cooled rice, add 3 egg yokes, 2 Tablespoon of the crawfish mixture, and butter, mix well.

Assemble & Cook Your Balls!

In separate bowls, have the beaten egg whites and breadcrumbs. Take about 2 Tablespoons of rice and form in the palm of your hand then creating a crater in the center. Add a cube of cheese and a heaping teaspoon of crawfish in the crater, add a little extra rice to top it and form the rice into a ball.

Wash the balls in the egg whites then dredge in the bread crumbs. Deep fry for 7 - 10 minutes or until golden brown. (Everything is already cooked but the cheese needs to melt.) Serve with spicy mayo...ENJOY!