Christmas and New Year

Croquettes

00743 11 40 C 11 croquettes. 007431 69 40 69 C 47. Italian Potato Croquettes – Italy’s most popular street food!

Is there a secret to making the Best Homemade Italian Potato Croquettes? You also won’t believe how simple and easy this recipe is to make. These crocchette di patate are a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, whether you choose to serve them as part of your appetizer platter or as a side dish. They are so versatile that you can eat them hot or cold. In Italy, they are extremely popular street food. Who can resist a good spud, regardless of how it has been transformed? But did you know that the type of potato that you use can make all the difference in the final product?

So what is this potato-croquet secret I am talking about? Well, there are actually a few secrets I would like to share with you. In order to make the Potato Croquettes, you need to use a mealy potato that becomes dry and fluffy when it is cooked. The Russet potato, also known as the Mighty Idaho, is the spud for us today. You want to know another secret? Steam the potatoes instead of boiling them. That way, you end up with potatoes that are slightly drier than their boiled counterpart.

Baking the potatoes, as opposed to boiling them, is another alternative that will provide excellent results. Now that I have revealed all my secrets, let’s make the best potato croquettes! How to make the Best Potato Croquettes As mentioned, make sure to steam the Russet potatoes that we are going to use to make this recipe for Italian Potato Croquette. I absolutely love garlic with these easy potato sides, so I will add a few cloves to be steamed alongside my russets. The potatoes are cooked when you can easily poke through the skin reaching the interior of the potato with a paring knife. This usually takes about 35-45 minutes, depending on the size of your potato.

Always steam your potatoes with the skin. Just in case you are wondering, you can make mashed potato croquettes with leftover mashed potatoes. So, if you are like me, the next time Thanksgiving rolls around and you made way too many mashed potatoes, just make this recipe! When the potatoes have slightly cooled down, remove the skins and pass them through a potato ricer or a food mill. Gently combine the beaten egg, Romano cheese, chopped parsley and pepper. As a side note,  I add only a few pinches of salt, because I think that the cheese provides more than enough salt.

At this point, I will use my largest disher to make large scoops. I can usually make about 10 scoops. As you can see, I place all my scoops on a baking sheet. I will then cut each scoop in half, and continue to shape each croquette into a log shape.

I will first roll each section into a small round ball and then proceed to roll into a log. Once you get the hang of it, it should take you just a few minutes to get them all done. This is perhaps a little obsessive but I cannot for the life of me freelance these little guys. Okay, so now that you have formed your croquettes, place them in the fridge for about 20 minutes or so. In the meanwhile, you can do some prep stuff.

I also line a baking dish with parchment paper, because these guys are going in the oven. Did you actually think that we were going to deep fry these little nuggets of goodness? Roll each croquette in the flour mixture, making sure to shake off the excess flour. I will then place them back on the baking sheet. I continue to roll all of the croquettes in the flour.

Notice there is just a light coating of flour. I find that this extra step helps to develop more of a crust. Croquettes are coated with the egg mixture. I will then dip each flour-coated croquette in the egg wash, followed by a roll in the breadcrumbs. The traditional method will dictate that these croquettes are deep-fried. So, are you ready for a little unconventional method?