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| Croquettes for every taste, with ham, cheese, chicken, cod, vegetable. Just in time for International Croquette Day. |
Golden-brown and crispy on the outside, meltingly soft on the inside and packed with flavor, a good croquette is a joy to bite into. Croquettes appeal to all the senses. Kids love them. Genuine crowd pleasers, croquettes are perfect party food as well. So, get rolling, because tomorrow, January 16, is International Croquette Day! Yes, really.
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| Ham croquettes. |
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| Potato-cheese croquettes, no bechamel required (vegetarian). |
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| Eggplant croquettes, no bechamel required (vegetarian). |
Olive oil is the best oil for frying croquettes. Because olive oil is expensive, many cooks use lesser vegetable oils. This is false economy, as foods fried in olive oil absorb less oil than if fried in other oils. That means the oil lasts longer and it makes for less greasy food. Another advantage: olive oil, which is rich in antioxidants, can be strained and reused four or five times, whereas other oils begin to break down and really should not be used more than twice.
Don’t use your delicate and most expensive extra virgins for frying, for the simple reason that many of their flavor qualities are lost at frying temperatures. Best are extra virgin oils from Spain made from the very stable Picual olive.
You can fry croquettes in either a deep-fat fryer or a deep skillet. You need oil deep enough to completely cover the croquettes while they are frying.
Fry food in small batches, without crowding, and allow the oil to return to frying temperature before adding a new batch.
Forget the old wives' tale about "low smoking point." Olive oil is very stable at frying temperatures, which shouldn't exceed 360ºF. Heat olive oil until it is shimmering, just beginning to waft a little smoke (360ºF). At this temperature a crust forms on the surface of the croquette, so the oil doesn’t penetrate it, but it doesn’t brown too quickly, allowing the interior of the food to cook thoroughly.
Have ready a platter lined with paper towels. Skim croquettes out of the oil and allow them to drain a few minutes.
After frying, cool the oil, strain it and store in a dark place for using again.
Fry food in small batches, without crowding, and allow the oil to return to frying temperature before adding a new batch.
Forget the old wives' tale about "low smoking point." Olive oil is very stable at frying temperatures, which shouldn't exceed 360ºF. Heat olive oil until it is shimmering, just beginning to waft a little smoke (360ºF). At this temperature a crust forms on the surface of the croquette, so the oil doesn’t penetrate it, but it doesn’t brown too quickly, allowing the interior of the food to cook thoroughly.
Have ready a platter lined with paper towels. Skim croquettes out of the oil and allow them to drain a few minutes.
After frying, cool the oil, strain it and store in a dark place for using again.
Recipes for several kinds of croquettes (ham, mushroom, cheese-potato, eggplant) as well as suggestions for dipping sauces are on these posts: Pat 'Em, Roll 'Em, Throw Them in the Oil, and Eggplant, How Do I Love Thee?
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| Serve croquettes with a dipping sauce, such as this alioli, garlic mayonnaise. Great tapa for a drinks party. |
Ha ha ...and tomorrow is today - I had no idea and must go out and celebrate the croqueta!
ReplyDeleteMad Dog: Hope you got a few raciones of croquetas before the day was done. Tho, I'm sure they will be just as delicious any day of the year.
DeleteWell, happy birthday to all the croquettes ! Love the various tastes but limit the consumption because of the cooking technique ! Like both your mushroom and eggplant ones ! I use olive oil largely for salads and rice bran and grapeseed ones for cooking. Do not trust canola (rapeseed) as very much try to avoid anything GMO. Appealing photos . . . hmm !!!
ReplyDeleteEha: Both the cheese and eggplant croquette recipes are super easy, as they don't require a béchamel sauce as base. Olive oil is kind of expensive for frying, but it's superior. Give it a try.
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