Ham and Manchego Cheese Croquettes

Croquettes are a staple dish on virtually all Tapas bar menus so as you can imagine everyone has there own recipe or family hand-down, so it doesn’t matter really what goes inside. Replace the ham with Tuna or Salmon and experiment. Whatever you decide, the base recipe is foolproof so let your imagination go wild.

INGREDIENTS TO GET READY

600g x Baked Potato (no skin)

120g x Grated Manchego Cheese (or your own preference)

100g x Chopped Boiled Ham

1 x Large Egg. Yolk

4 x Spring Onions very finely sliced

20g x Chopped Jalapeños

1 x Dessertspoon Dijon mustard.

150g x Breadcrumbs

2 x Large Eggs

100ml Milk

150g Flour

PUT IT TOGETHER

1. Wash the potatoes, dry and rub the skins with oil and place on a baking tray in a preheated oven at 180°C for approximately 35/40 minutes until they are cooked through. Remove from oven, cut in half and allow to cool before scraping the potatoes out of the skins and into a bowl

2. Add the egg yolk to the potato and mix well. Add the ham, cheese, spring onions, mustard and Jalapeños, season with salt and pepper and mix well

3. I find the best way to form the croquettes is to use a disposable piping bag and pipe the potato mix in long cylinders onto parchment and the chilli before crumbing. The cylinders need to be around 3 1/2cm In diameter

4. While the potato mix is chilling prepare to crumb. You will need 3 trays: 1 for the flour, 1 for the Bread crumbs, 1 for the egg wash (milk and eggs)

5. Once chilled remove the potatoes from the fridge and cut the strips of potato into 6cm lengths. The mix should yield around 16 portions

6. Pass the croquettes through the flour making sure they are totally covered, roll through the egg wash, and finally through the crumb, again ensuring they are completely covered in crumb. Return to the fridge for an hour to set before cooking

7. Deep fry the croquettes in batches of 5 or 6 at 180°C for 4/5 minutes until they are crispy and golden brown