A comfort dish just in time for the Fall! A crispy and crunchy vegetarian potato croquette that combines simple ingredients for an extremely tasty and satisfying meal!
Over the years, I have modified not only the ingredients but how I handle coating the patties with panko. The beauty of cooking is adapting dishes! Feel free to do the same! Enjoy!
List of Ingredients
- 6 C (using a liquid measuring cup) or ~3 lbs Russet potatoes, cubed
- 1 Egg, room temperature and lightly beaten
- 1 Small yellow, white or sweet onion, finely diced
- 1 Medium/Large clove of garlic, minced
- ~½ C Frozen corn, thawed and drained
- ~½ C Frozen green peas, thawed and drained
- ½ Tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (Morton’s is not the same…use less.)
- ½ Tsp Ground black pepper
- 3 Tbsp (heaping) Rice flour for batter plus more as needed, use non-glutinous rice flour from Asian markets (Bob’s Red Mill will seem gritty.)
- Non-dairy milk substitute or regular milk (or water in a pinch) to form batter
- Panko (Japanese-style bread crumbs) for coating
- 1 Tbsp Oil/butter for frying onions
- Neutral flavored oil for deep frying, enough for about 1 inch deep
Enjoy as is or with store bought katsu sauce or A-1 or make your own sauce:
- 3 Tbsp Ketchup
- ~1-2 Tsp Worcestershire sauce
- Adjust to your taste!
List of Tools
- Small bowl and colander for thawing the peas and corn
Tip: use this small bowl to also lightly beat the egg or I grabbed a separate measuring cup - Measuring cups (½ C) for the frozen vegetables
- Measuring spoons (½ tsp) for the salt and pepper
- Vegetable peeler
- Cutting board and knife
- Large (liquid) measuring cup for the potatoes (I use an 8 C liquid version.)
- Spatula or cooking chopsticks and a resting plate for frying the diced onion
- Medium fry pan
- Large cooking spoon and a resting plate (I used this for frying the onion and to mix all the ingredients together.)
- Skewer or toothpick for testing the doneness of the boiling potatoes
- 5 quart pot
- Large mixing bowl and colander to drain potatoes and mix ingredients. (I used the 5 qt pot and a splatter screen to do this.)
- Potato masher or fork
- Fork to help dip patties into the batter and soup spoon for measuring the rice flour
- One bowl for the panko and one for the batter
- Large plates or baking sheets for forming potato patties and for battering the patties
- Baking sheet lined with a paper towel and a cooling rack that fits on top to cool the croquettes. Essential for cooling the croquettes properly to keep crispy and crunchy.
- 3 qt heavy gauge pot for deep frying (I like using a 3 quart pot to conserve oil.)
- Skimmer with resting plate for removing any stray panko from the bottom of the pot
- Freezer safe container for saving some for another time!
- Wax paper or parchment paper if layering inside the container
- Serving plate
Directions
Prepare ingredients
Place corn and peas in a colander, rinse under tepid water to thaw and set aside to drain. Bring 1 egg to room temperature. Peel and mince garlic, set aside. (Breaking the clove triggers a reaction increasing the healthy compounds and limiting damage from heat. But it needs to sit for about 10 minutes.) Peel and dice onion then fry using ~1 tbsp oil or butter on medium. Fry onions until soft but before turning brown. Rinse and peel potatoes, cube into ~½ in. x ½ in. pieces. The actual size is not as important as the consistency in size. The goal is to have the potatoes cook at the same rate. Boil the cubed potatoes in salted water until soft. A toothpick or skewer should easily pierce a piece when done. When finished cooking, drain completely and pour the potatoes into a large mixing bowl or use the same pot to mash the potatoes. Do this with a potato masher or a fork until smooth in texture.
Prepare the patties
Add drained vegetables, cooked onions, garlic, salt and pepper to the mashed potatoes. Now, lightly beat the egg and pour on top and mix thoroughly. Form slider sized patties ~2 ½ in. diameter and ~3/4 in. thick and set aside on a large plate or baking sheet. Do not overcrowd or stack.
Cover with Panko
Combine rice flour with ~ ¼ C non-dairy milk substitute or regular milk in a small bowl. Form a batter similar in consistency to a pancake batter. Use more liquid if necessary and continue to adjust. Place some panko in a separate bowl. Dip one patty in the batter, completely coating and then cover with panko all over. Set aside on a large plate. (Again, do not overcrowd and please do not stack.) Continue until finished making more batter when necessary.
Freeze any extras
If 24 pcs is too much at this point, freeze any before frying. First, cool completely and then add to a freezer safe container. Use wax or parchment paper to separate any layers. (Yep, it is okay to stack when freezing.) When ready to enjoy, deep fry straight out of the freezer. Be careful as any frost or ice crystals will cause the oil to splatter more than usual.
Fry the panko-covered patties
Heat oil in a pot on medium high. The oil is ready when a piece of panko floats quickly to the surface and the oil bubbles quickly. When the oil is heated, add the patties. Please do not overcrowd. Let fry untouched to set the batter then check that patties are not stuck to the bottom. Let the pieces cook on one side before turning. The patty is done when the outside is golden in color and has browned evenly. Remove any stray panko from the pot with a skimmer to prevent oil from forming a burnt flavor. Place cooked patties on a prepared baking sheet lined with a paper towel and cooling rack that fits inside. Continue until all the patties are fried.
Enjoy!
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