"Mejores que los que mi madre hace!"
That is what my friend Hector told me today, when I took some by his auto repair shop. He is Puerto Rican, and knows about stuff like this.
Ham Croquettes. A true taste of heaven.
This recipe is from one of my old neighbors in Miami. He was Cuban, but Hector does not know that. He thinks it is a Puerto Rican recipe.
Ham croquettes
Ingredients
Half stick of Butter
1 medium finely minced onion
One Scallion, minced
Two small hot peppers, red, fine diced
1/3 cup flour
12 oz can evaporated milk
Several gratings of fresh nutmeg
1 tablespoon dry sherry
2 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1.5 pounds smoked ham, cut into chunks, and run through the food processor. (The weight will be less than that when trimmed)
1 cup dry bread crumbs (more or less)
Salt & black pepper to taste
COATING
2 eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
6 or 8 Ritz Crackers, processed into crumbs
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs mixed with 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Vegetable oil for frying
Method:
In a large pan, melt the butter, add the onions, scallions and peppers and chopped Parsley. Saut� until translucent.
Stir in the flour to make a roux -- add more butter if necessary to make it smooth. Gradually whisk in the evaporated milk to form the sauce. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens. Whisk in nutmeg, sherry. Fold in the ground ham and one cup bread crumbs.
Let simmer for five minutes on low heat. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Spread the mixture on a cookie sheet, and refrigerate until well chilled -- at least one hour.
Lightly flour your hands, and shape a bit of the mix into a tapered cylinder. I make mine about two inches long, about half an inch around. I make all of them, then bread them.
Have your egg wash ready.
Combine the bread crumbs, cracker crumbs and flour in a the food processor, along with the salt and pepper. Pour out onto a large plate.
Dip the croquettes in the egg wash and roll them in the seasoned bread crumbs. Dip a second time and re-roll in bread crumbs. When all are breaded, place back in the �fridge for a couple of hours. They must be well chilled before cooking
Heat your oil to 350� F, and depending on the size of the pan, cook about 6 at a time, until the croquette is golden to dark brown. This should not take more than say 5 min.
Remove with tongs, and place on a rack over paper towels to drain.
Serve on a bed of lettuce with a bottle of Sam�s Guava Lava hot sauce  Makes about 30 croquettes.
