Croquetas de Pollo (Chicken Croquettes) is very popular as party food and street food, also common at Dominican Christmas dinner tables.
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You'd be hard-pressed to find a Dominican who doesn't love croquetas, the most popular variety being Croquetas de Pollo (Chicken Croquettes). Croquetas are part of any decent picadera platter and are served as part of the fancy version of the Dominican Christmas feast.
Although croquetas are popular and well-known in the Dominican Republic, it is not a dish we created; they can be found practically anywhere in the world. And there are many versions.
What's a croqueta?
Croqueta (croquette, in English) is the name for a type of fritter made of a soft base (roux, mashed potato, rice, etc.) it's mixed with a savory ingredient (chicken, fish, minced beef, etc.), coated in bread, and fried. They are typically shaped like a corkscrew, but they can also be found as a flattened circle.
Creative cooks have made baked versions too.
About our Chicken Croquettes recipe
Croquetas is truly one of those dishes that, along with Pasteles en Hoja, Kipe, Empanadas and several others, Dominicans prefer to buy rather than make for themselves. There's a whole cottage industry making these Christmas and party favorites, and each family has their preferred purveyor.
Making croquetas is clearly more work than buying them ready-made, but although a bit time-consuming, they are not that difficult to prepare. So if you too love the contrast between its crispy crust and the melt-in-your-mouth creaminess of these croquettes, try our recipe. It has served me well.
Buen provecho!
Croquetas de Pollo Recipe (Chicken Croquettes)
Ingredients
- 2 lb [0.9 kg] of boneless chicken
- 1 onion, , quartered
- 2 garlic cloves, , crushed
- ½ teaspoon of pepper
- 2 teaspoons of salt
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 1 medium white onion, , grated or cut into very small cubes
- ½ cup of flour
- 2 cups of milk
- 1 teaspoon of parsley finely chopped
- 2 eggs
- 4 tablespoons of flour, (for dusting)
- 2 cups of fine bread crumbs
- 4 cups of oil for deep frying
Instructions
- Boil the chicken in 5 cups of water to which you added the onion, garlic, pepper and 1 teaspoon of salt (set aside the rest of the salt).
- Simmer until chicken is cooked through and flaking, add more water if it becomes necessary.
- Remove chicken from the water and cool to room temperature.
- Shred the chicken meat.
- Heat the butter in a skillet over low heat. Stir in onion and cook until it becomes translucent.
- Add the flour and stir vigorously until everything is well mixed, be careful to not to let it burn.
- Add the milk and remaining salt and stir until it is well mixed.
- Add the chicken and the parsley and stir until the mixture thickens enough to start lifting from the bottom.
- Cool to room temperature. Chill for a couple of hours.
- In a separate bowl stir the eggs and set aside.
- Put two tablespoons of the flour and chicken mixture on the palm of your hands and mould into cork shapes, if the dough sticks to your hands, cover your hands with flour.
- Dust the croquettes with flour, Bathe in the eggs, then cover with the breadcrumbs. Repeat until you use all the chicken mix.
- Chill for another three hours (best if overnight).
- Heat oil over medium heat in a small deep pot (there should be enough depth to cover the croquettes). Fry the croquettes until they turn golden brown.
- Rest on a paper towel to drain excess oil before serving.
Hi!
I would like to know how you shred the chicken I’ve done this a couple of times but can’t seem to find the right texture.
Love these recipes. I'm trying to learn to cook and dance. Keep up the good work
Thankyou for helping me learn to cook for my Dominican husband!!!