My Oma's Kroketten

Dutch kroketten

When I was a child I used to visit my grandparents in the Netherlands at least once a year, usually for three weeks at a time. And there I got to sample my Oma's delicious, butter-based cooking, delicious cheeses, puddings brought by the milkman in glass bottles, siropwafels, poffertjes and of course, my personal favourite, Dutch kroketten or croquettes. I have been working on perfecting a good dairy-free version (oh the unfair irony of being lactose intolerant now) that tastes as good as the ones I remember. Here's my favourite version so far, kroketten based around a chicken and mushroom ragout:

Chicken stock

1 small organic chicken or several chicken legs

1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 celery stalk

4 cups cold water

salt and pepper

I cook the chicken in my Instant pot with the vegetables for 30 minutes to produce several cups of chicken stock and at least 400 g of cooked chicken meat

Ragout ingredients

1 onion, finely chopped

60 g butter or margarine

80 g white flour

500 g, 2 cups, chicken stock

400 g chicken meat, chopped finely (or 600 g if not using mushrooms)

150 g chopped mushrooms, lightly sauteed

salt, pepper, marjoram, Maggi seasoning to taste

For breading

white flour

2 eggs, beaten

a few cups of bread crumbs

Fry the onion until soft and then add the flour and add the warm stock slowly while stirring vigorously to create the roux which will form the base of the ragout. Season it with salt, pepper, marjoram, and Maggi seasoning. When it is fairly thick and comes away cleanly from the pan remove it from the heat and stir in the cooked chicken meat and the sauteed mushrooms.

Cool the ragout in the fridge for several hours until it becomes solid and workable. At this point you are ready for breading the kroketten. Divide the ragout into approximately 16 portions. Working quickly so as not to soften the cold ragout too much, roll each kroket into a long tube shape. Next dip the kroket into flour, followed by an egg wash and finally into bread crumbs. 

After forming the kroketten you can put them back into the fridge to firm up for an hour or so or freeze them for later use. 

Next deep fry the kroketten in batches for about 6 minutes or until golden and serve immediately with strong mustard. I use safflower oil to fry as it is a fairly healthy oil and also keep my deep fryer set at 350F as that is also a healthier temperature to use for frying. Canola oil is also a good choice to use as it doesn't produce the same oil smell in the environment as other oils. Some people might also like a broodje kroket, an open faced sandwich with the kroket sliced open and also served with mustard.