MAD ABOUT SPANISH CROQUETTES! ONE OF SPAIN’S ESSENTIAL TAPAS
Croquettes are one of Spain’s most popular tapas and a staple in most Spanish kitchens. These delicious little bites are everything you look for in comfort food: crispy, salty, crunchy, and tasty. Read on to learn more about this essential Spanish favorite and how to make them!
What are croquettes?
Croquettes came about as a way to avoid wasting food, especially meat. Leftover meat or vegetables are combined with béchamel sauce and fried to golden perfection. It’s a great way to make sure that no food in the fridge goes to waste! Croquettes originated in France, where they use creamy potatoes as a base. Instead of potatoes, Spaniards use béchamel, a rich, creamy sauce made from butter, flour, and milk, similar to a roux. In Spain, these delicious bites are called croquetas, and they are a tapas bar favorite.
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Popular varieties
Croquettes can feature any number of ingredients, including meat, vegetables, and cheese. The most popular variety is croquetas de jamón, made with savory Spanish ham. Some other popular varieties include the following:
- Pollo (chicken)
- Bacalao (codfish)
- Setas or boletus (mushrooms)
- Espinacas (spinach)
- Queso (cheese)
- Cocido (Spanish stew)
- Pulpo (octopus)
These are just some of the more popular croquettes you’ll find at tapas bars, but the sky’s the limit! You can use whatever ingredients you have on hand, or whatever your taste buds prefer.
How to Make Them
Ready to make your own croquettes? Here’s what you’ll need to make croquetas de jamón:
- 500ml whole milk
- 100g all-purpose flour
- 200ml chicken stock
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 250g Spanish ham, finely chopped
- 30ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 eggs
- 150g breadcrumbs
- Salt and nutmeg, to taste
- Extra virgin olive oil for frying
Now that you have all of your ingredients ready, let’s make some croquettes! Note that the dough should be made about a day in advance. While croquettes take some time to prepare, they aren’t very difficult and are absolutely delicious.
- Finely chop the onion and Spanish ham. Try to chop the pieces as small as possible, especially the onion, then set them aside.
- Heat the butter and oil. Drop one generous tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of oil into a large frying pan. Set the flame to low heat, add the onion, and stir.
- Sauté the ingredients. Continue stirring and add the ham. Sauté for about 3-4 minutes, or until the ingredients are well combined.
- Add the flour and cook. After about 3-4 minutes on low heat, stir in the flour. The flour needs to brown a bit, but keep stirring continuously so that it doesn’t burn. Gradually stir in the milk, adding it bit by bit while stirring.
- Incorporate broth and cornstarch. Once all the milk has been added, stir in the broth and cornstarch. The key to perfect croquettes is to never stop stirring, so keep going! While stirring, add a pinch of nutmeg and another pinch of salt.
- Cool the dough. Once the dough begins to take form and is no longer sticking to the pan, transfer it to a bowl to cool down. Cover the dough and place it in the fridge to cool and solidify, ideally for 24 hours.
- Shape the croquettes. Once your dough is ready, take a spoonful of it and roll it into an oval shape. Repeat this until all of the dough has been used.
- Fry the croquettes. Heat up the olive oil in a large frying pan. You want at least half an inch of oil to ensure that the croquettes fry evenly. Beat 2 eggs in a small bowl and pour breadcrumbs into another. Dip each croquette into the egg, followed by the breadcrumbs, then lower them into the frying pan using a slotted spoon. Fry the croquettes until they are golden brown.
- Drain and serve. Take the croquettes out of the pan and transfer them to a paper towel to soak up any excess oil. Serve immediately and enjoy!
If you want to try some traditional Spanish croquettes, join Food Lover Tour on an amazing culinary adventure!