Vegetable and potato croquettes

These croquettes are street food in Indonesia, sold on street corners as snacks. They are also made with ground mutton or beef, but here is an excellent vegetarian version. The Dutch introduced the "kroket" when they tried to colonize the islands. They brought along their version, but these bland croquettes adapted to local ingredients and tastes and became a national staple.

This is a perfect snack. Soft and usually prepared fresh, these krokets are served with spicy sambal to add that pop. The barely cooked vegetables still bear a crunch and are smothered by the omnipresent kecap manis, which makes them fabulous. Adding kecap manis to anything makes it awesome! I served these as a small bite in a coursed menu and folks asked for more!

This is a beautiful cookbook on Indonesian cuisine. The dishes are lovely and flavorful, and the recipes are written very well. This book brings a diversity of cuisine to my kitchen and table. Lara Lee brings recipes that have been handed down through generations orally, as well as newer recipes, in a very easy-to-read format. This book is great for those who want to learn about this cuisine and culture.

For more delicious recipes from this cookbook, click here

Ingredients:

For the mashed potatoes:

1/2 lb potatoes, peeled and chunked

4 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons milk

Salt, to taste

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

For the filling:

2 cups mixed vegetables such as peas, squash, beans, or other

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 teaspoon ginger paste

4 scallions, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons kecap manis

2 tablespoon oyster sauce

2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds

Salt, to taste

/12 teaspoon white pepper

2 tablespoons oil

For the croquettes:

1 cup all-purpose flour

Salt, to taste

4 eggs, well beaten

Breadcrumbs

Oil, to fry

For the sambal:

15-20 long red chillies (See note)

2-3 garlic cloves

1 tablespoon ginger paste

3-4 shallots

1/2 lb cherry tomatoes

1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate

1 tablespoon palm sugar or jaggery

Salt, to taste

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons coconut oil or sunflower oil

To make the mashed potatoes: Add the potatoes to a pot with the water and salt. bring to a boil and simmer gently for 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are very soft. Drain.

Mash the potatoes with the butter, milk, salt and pepper until very smooth. Set aside.

To make the filling: Add all the ingredients for the filling to a bowl and mix well. Heat the oil in a pot and add the filling mix and cook until the ingredients are well browned and soft. Set aside to cool.

To make the croquettes:

Make a disc shaped patty with the mashed potatoes. Add a tablespoon of the filling in the center and gently fold the mashed potato over the filling. Make a oblong shape and flatten it out a bit. The croquettes should be about 1-inch wideand 1 1/2-inches long. Set aside in the fridge until you are ready.

To make the sambal: Add all the ingredients, except oil, to a small blender and purèe to a coarse consistency.

Heat the oil in a small pot. Add the paste and fry on medium-low heat until the paste has thickened considerably and the oil has pooled on the surface, about 30-40 minutes. Be careful to continually stir the paste in the latter half, as the sambal sticks to the bottom and burns.

Note:

For a less spicy version of this sambal, substitute 10 chilli peppers for 1 red bell pepper.

Heat a frying pan with oil.

To fry the croquettes, pat a patty into the flour on all sides. Dip into the egg and then into the breadcrumbs gently coating it all over. Add the the frying pan and fry on medium-high for 2 minutes. eanwhile add 3-4 more patties after coatng them with the breadcrumbs into the pan. Do not overfill the pan or the croquettes will not fry well. Flip after about 2 minutes after the frist side is well browned. After an additional 2 minutes the second side should also be done. Remove and set on paper towels to drain.

Serve hot with the sambal.