Funguy’s Fried Queso Rice Balls

Left over rice often creates a dilemma about what to do with it. Why not mix it up a bit and get a little creative by turning that plain side dish into something wow worthy instead! 

These FunGuy filled fried rice balls are a perfect outside the box type of recipe to try when you want to play a bit with something new. We promise that even if they don’t roll up as planned, the taste alone is worth it!

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Brush off any debris from the FunGuy mushrooms with a damp cloth. Trim the stems before roughly chopping the mushrooms. Peel and dice the onion and remove the stem from the tomato and dice it and set aside. 
3. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute 2 minutes. Add the chopped mushrooms and sprinkle the taco seasoning over the mushrooms and saute for 10-15 minutes, or until the mushrooms have browned and most of the liquid has been cooked out. 
4. Transfer the cooked mushrooms to a large bowl with the rice and half of the tomato. Crack the egg into the bowl and add in the queso and sour cream before stirring well to combine. Add ¾ cup of the bread crumbs to the bowl gradually, about 2 tablespoons at a time, or until the rice and mushroom mixture clumps well to form large balls. With wet hands, roll the rice and mushroom mixture into 8 balls a little larger than a golf ball but smaller than a tennis ball in size. 
5. Pour the rest of the bread crumbs into a shallow bowl.  Carefully roll each ball in the bread crumbs to cover the outside completely and set them aside. 
6. In a deep pan, over medium heat, pour in the vegetable oil to about 2 inches in depth. Allow it to get hot enough that a ½ inch cube of bread starts cooking as soon as it hits the oil. Place each ball into the hot oil, working in batches of 2-3 at a time, and allow them to fry 3-4 minutes or until golden brown on the outside. Move the finished mushroom and rice balls to a plate lined with paper towels to drain off excess oil. 
7. Once all of the rice and mushroom balls have been fried, place them on the baking sheet and pop them into the oven for 5-7 minutes to finish cooking the inside and crisp up any soft bits. Remove the fried rice balls and allow them to cool about 5 minutes
8. While the FunGuy fried rice balls cool make the pico de gallo by mixing the remaining tomato, onion, cilantro, and lime juice together. Taste and add salt as needed. 
9. Plate by adding the pico de gallo on the dish, then one of the rice balls and top with more pico de gallo and a dollop of sour cream. Serve immediately. 

Have a Fun meal!