Japanese Croquettes (Mom‘s Korokke)

1. Gather all the ingredients.

To Make the Potato and Meat Mixture

1. Wash 2 lb russet potatoes under cold running water. Peel them with a vegetable peeler and remove the eyes. Tip: Use russet potatoes for their starchy, fluffy, and light texture. They are the best variety at soaking up the juice and flavor from the meat and onion.
2. Cut each potato into equal 4 pieces. Tip: To cook evenly, it‘s important that they are of similar size.
3. Put the water and potatoes in a large pot, cover, and bring to a boil over medium heat, leaving the lid slightly ajar to prevent the pot from boiling over. It will take about 15 minutes to come to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a gentle boil and cook until done, about 15–20 minutes.
4. Prepare the rest of the ingredients while you wait for the potatoes to cook. First, mince 1 onion finely (we call this cutting technique mijingiri in Japanese). Cut the onion in half. Lay one half flat side down on the cutting board. With the knife tip pointing toward the root end, make ¼-inch vertical slices to within ½ inch of the root end. Then, with the knife edge toward the root end, make ¼-inch horizontal slices, again keeping the root intact.
5. Finally, make perpendicular cuts down through the vertical slices you made. Repeat with the other onion half. If you need to chop the onions finer, run your knife through them using a rocking motion. Hold down the tip of the knife; otherwise, the onions will go flying around the room.
6. Preheat a large skillet on medium heat, then add 1 Tbsp neutral oil. Then, add the minced onions.
7. Sauté the onions until translucent and tender, about 12–15 minutes. Take care not to burn the onions. Tip: Make sure there is no moisture left in the onions so that the croquette don‘t get soggy. Leave the onions for a long stretch between stirring to give them a nice char.
8. Add 1 lb ground beef to the pan and break it up with a wooden spoon.
9. Season the mixture with ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper.
10. Stir to combine and cook until the meat is no longer pink. Turn off the heat and remove the pan from the stove to let it cool slightly.
11. Once in a while, check if the potatoes are done cooking. Insert a skewer into a bigger piece of potato; if it pierces the potato easily, it‘s done. Remove the potatoes from the heat and drain off the water completely. When you do so, use a lid to keep the potatoes from falling out of the pot.
12. Move the pot back to the stove. Shake the pot over low heat and let the remaining moisture completely evaporate (without burning the potatoes), about 2–3 minutes. Then, transfer them to a large bowl.
13. With a potato masher, mash the potatoes while they are still hot, allowing the steam to escape in the process. Add 1 Tbsp unsalted butter. Tip: Keep some potato chunks for texture.
14. Add ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper and combine well.
15. Gently squeeze the liquid from the meat mixture by collecting it to one side of the pan. We do this to avoid adding excess moisture to the potatoes.
16. Add the drained meat mixture to the bowl with the mashed potatoes and mix to combine.

To Form the Patties

1. While the mixture is still warm (but not hot), form it into oval-shaped patties roughly 3 inches in length. Take care not to create air pockets in the patties.
2. Placed the patties on a tray or plate. Cover and let the Korokke patties rest in the refrigerator for 15–30 minutes. Do not skip this step! Tip: Cooling the patties prevents the croquettes from exploding while deep-frying. If the patties are cold, they will not create and release steam. If you skip this process, the internal temperature of the warm patties will rise in the hot oil and create steam, which will then puncture a hole in the panko coating and explode. Resting in the refrigerator also helps the ingredients meld together.

To Bread the Croquettes

1. Prepare one tray each for ½ cup all-purpose flour (plain flour) and 2 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumbs). Crack 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) into a small bowl and beat with a fork.
2. Dredge each patty in flour and shake off the excess.
3. Then, dip each patty in the egg and coat with the panko, pressing the breadcrumbs to make sure they adhere.

To Deep-Fry

1. Once you finish breading the patties, add 4 cups neutral oil to a medium pot. Make sure there‘s at least 2 inches (5 cm) of oil in the pot so the croquettes are completely submerged.
2. Bring the oil to 340–350ºF (170–180ºC) over medium heat. Use a cooking thermometer to check the oil temperature (so there‘s no guessing!) Once you get used to deep-frying, you can use the chopstick or panko tricks to determine if the oil is ready for deep-frying.
3. Deep-fry 2–3 croquettes at a time until they are golden brown, about 2–3 minutes. Tip: Do not touch the croquettes until one side is golden brown. The inside is already cooked, so all you need to do is to fry until they‘re golden brown.
4. Transfer the croquettes to a wire rack or a plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess oil. Continue deep-frying the rest of the patties.

To Serve

1. Serve the Korokke with tonkatsu sauce (or you can make my Homemade Tonkatsu Sauce). Typically, deep-fried foods are served with shredded green cabbage in Japan. Try shredding your cabbage with a cabbage slicer and serve it with my Japanese Sesame Dressing. I also add a few wedges of tomato for color.

To Store

1. You can store the leftovers in an airtight container and freeze up to a month. To reheat, put the defrosted or frozen croquettes on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) for 15–20 minutes if defrosted or 45 minutes if frozen. Check if the inside is warm before serving.