Boiled potato mashed with parsley, shaped around a piece of cheese, breaded and fried. The cheese melts inside while the outside crisps. Six servings, and it is what to do with mashed potato left over from another meal.
Sealing the cheese in
This is the step that decides whether the recipe works. A piece of cheese goes into a hollow in the middle of each croquette and the potato closes over it.
It has to close completely. Cheese that finds a crack does not stay put: it melts, runs out into the hot oil, and leaves a croquette with a hole where the good part was meant to be, plus a pan that needs cleaning.
Roll each one smooth in your palms after sealing and look for thin spots. A croquette with an even wall all the way round will hold.
Papa capira, and what to use instead
The recipe calls for papa capira, a Colombian variety that cooks dry and floury. That texture is not incidental: floury potato mashes into something that holds a shape, and waxy potato does not.
Outside Colombia, russet or Yukon Gold do the same job. What will not work is a waxy salad potato, which stays wet and slippery no matter how long you mash it, and gives a mixture that slumps rather than sits.
The step the recipe forgot
The method as it was published washed the potatoes, boiled them, and then mashed them with a fork. The peel was never mentioned.
Boil them whole in their skins, lift them out and peel them while they are still warm. That is when the skin lifts away cleanly, and it is much less pleasant once they have gone cold.
Leftover mash
This recipe exists in part to use up mashed potato from another meal, and it works well for that. Start at the second step, add the parsley, salt and pepper, and shape.
One thing to watch: mash that already has milk and butter in it is looser than fresh mash straight off the fork. Work in breadcrumbs a spoonful at a time until it holds a ball without slumping.
Frying, not sautéing
The instruction that had been on this page said to sauté them on both sides, which is not a thing you can do to a breaded croquette. They are fried in hot oil, turned to brown both sides, and drained on kitchen paper.
The oil needs to be hot before they go in. Cool oil is absorbed by the breadcrumbs, and a croquette that has drunk oil is heavy rather than crisp.
More croquettes and fritters
- Cassava croquettes — the same idea with yuca.
- Mashed potatoes — where the leftovers come from.
- Colombian stuffed potatoes — papas rellenas, larger and filled with meat.
- Cauliflower fritters — bound and pan-fried instead of deep-fried.
Potato Croquettes FAQ
That is exactly what they are for. Skip the boiling, start at the mashing step, and check the texture before shaping: mash that has already had milk and butter beaten into it is looser than fresh mash and may need breadcrumbs worked in to firm it up.
The croquette was not sealed. Any crack or thin patch and the melting cheese finds it, escapes into the oil and leaves you with a hollow croquette. Close the potato right over the cheese and roll it smooth in your palms before breading.
A Colombian potato variety that cooks up dry and floury, which is what this recipe needs. Russet or Yukon Gold behave the same way on American shelves. Avoid waxy salad potatoes: they hold too much water and the mixture will not hold a shape.
After. Boil them in their skins, then peel them while they are still warm, which is when the skin comes away easily. The original method never mentioned peeling at all, which left a step missing between boiling and mashing.
Work breadcrumbs into it a spoonful at a time until it holds. Letting the mash cool first also helps, because warm potato is looser than cool potato.
No. These go straight through beaten egg and then breadcrumbs. The potato itself is dry enough for the egg to cling to.
Mozzarella or queso campesino, the Colombian farmer's cheese, cut into small pieces. Both melt without turning to oil. A hundred grams is enough for a pound of potato.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound papa capira potatoes (or any floury potato)
- 100 gr mozzarella or farmer's cheese (in small pieces, for the centre)
- Breadcrumbs
- 1 egg (beaten with a pinch of salt)
- 1 tablespoon parsley (finely chopped)
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- Frying oil
Notas
Instructions
- Wash the potatoes and boil them for 15 minutes, or until a knife goes in without resistance.
- Lift them out of the water, peel them while they are still warm and mash them with a fork. Add the salt, the pepper and the parsley and mix well.
- Take a little of the mixture with a spoon and shape it in your hand into a croquette. Make a hollow in the middle, push in a small piece of cheese and close the potato over it, sealing it completely.
- Roll each croquette through the beaten egg and then the breadcrumbs, and fry them in hot oil, turning to brown both sides. Lift them out and drain them on kitchen paper.
- Serve hot, alongside meat and a salad.
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