Sunday, June 5, 2011

Salt Cod (Bacalao) Croquetas

Spanish croquettes come in several iterations, including serrano ham, chicken, shrimp, chorizo, or veggie. The base is usually a bechamel sauce (flour,butter & milk), and then you can add whatever other ingredient your culinary heart desires. On my '82 TAS high school trip to Spain, my Spanish mom in Segovia would cook fish croquettes at least once a week for dinner, and I've been trying to replicate her recipe ever since. I came up with the following using salt cod or 'bacalao,' which I'm pretty sure was the same fish that she used in hers. 


Ingredients: 
2 tbsp. Olive oil
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
3 tbsp. flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. salt
pinch of nutmeg
10 oz. Bacalao (salt cod),* desalted, deboned & shredded
4 eggs
3 cups Panko bread crumbs


Sweet Chili-Horseradish Sauce: (not traditional, but goes really well with the croquetas)
1/4 cup prepared horseradish
1/4 cup Chinese Sweet-Hot Chili Sauce
1/2 tsp. Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce
a few drops of fresh lemon juice, or to taste


For the dipping sauce

La Tienda http://www.tienda.com/ sells both the dried salt cod and the prepared version (already desalted & rehydrated), which they ship to you in an ice pack. I used the prepared version in this recipe as it was less time-consuming.




Remove any bones from the salt cod and shred by hand.


1. Melt butter and olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until flour is well-blended. 


2. Stir in 1/2 cup of milk, and turn up the heat to medium-high. Bring mixture up to a boil, then add remaining milk. Turn heat back down to medium low, and stir constantly about 5-6 minutes or until mixture thickens. 


3. Add the shredded salt cod to the white sauce, and season with 1 tsp. salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Stir to blend and cook another minute or so until fish cooked through. Spoon mixture into a baking pan or casserole and let cool. Once cooled, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for a couple hours or overnight to let it set. 


4. For the breading: beat the eggs in a shallow pan or casserole. Place panko bread crumbs in a separate plate or casserole. Using a tablespoon, scoop out the fish mixture and shape into ovals (kinda cigar or football-shaped). First roll each croquette in the bread crumbs, then in the beaten egg, then back again in the bread crumbs, shaking off any excess. Place breaded croquettes on a foil-lined baking sheet and refrigerate for half an hour. 


5. To Fry: Pour about 2 inches of olive oil in a pot (don't use a skillet or else you'll have to use a ton of oil to get it to the right depth) and heat over medium heat. When oil is very hot (almost smoking), add a couple bread crumbs to see if they sizzle. If so, add a few croquettes at a time (don't crowd the pot) and fry 2-5 minutes until the croquettes are golden brown on all sides. Remove to a large casserole dish or baking sheet lined with paper towels (keep the cooked croquettes in the oven so they stay warm). Fry the remaining croquettes.


6. To serve: Place croquettes on a platter and serve as is or with your favorite sauce. I don't think sauce is traditionally served with croquetas in Spain (I could be wrong, but my Spanish mom didn't), but EE and I invented a great sweet chili-horseradish dipping sauce for a batch of these guys that we cooked up on Memorial weekend. This is an all-purpose sauce that would probably go well with any seafood. 


*If salt cod is impossible to come by, I think you can always substitute with any other white fish that's readily available in the market. 


Melt olive oil & butter over medium heat in a skillet.

Whisk in flour until well blended.

Stir in 1/2 cup of milk and turn heat up to medium high. Bring mixture up to a boil, then add remaining milk. Turn heat back down to medium and stir constantly until mixture thickens (this is the white sauce or Bechamel).

Stir in the shredded salt cod and season with 1 tsp. of salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Cook another minute or so until cod is cooked through.

Spoon mixture into a casserole and let cool. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours or better yet, overnight.

Beat eggs in a shallow baking dish; place panko bread crumbs in a separate plate or dish.

Using a tablespoon, scoop out the fish mixture and form into an oval shape.

Coat the croqueta with the bread crumbs.

Then roll into the beaten egg.

Then coat with bread crumbs one more time.

Place the croquetas in a casserole or foil-lined baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Fry the croquetas in olive oil in batches.

When golden brown, remove to a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Keep croquetas in the oven so they stay warm as you finish cooking the rest.

Serve croquetas while hot with some Sweet-Chili Horseradish sauce and lemon wedges on the side.

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