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Ham croquettes (Croquetas de Jamon) are a classic Spanish tapas dish. Crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, these little flavor bombs will knock your socks off.
When Fred Meyer asked me to develop a recipe for their “Taste of Spain” event, I couldn’t have been more excited. I spent a summer in Spain for a study abroad trip when I was in college, so Spain has a special place in my heart. When I started thinking about Spanish recipes, the first thing that came to mind was ham croquettes or croquetas de jamon. I ate them probably more than any other food while I was there. They are everywhere. Pretty much every restaurant or cafe has them on the menu, especially in the middle of the day when weird American students tend to eat lunch and the rest of the city is on siesta. (Just in case you are super curious, I put a few photos from my trip at the bottom of this post).
With my nostalgia for Spain fully awakened, I was inspired to make quite a few tapas that I will be sharing in the next few weeks. Fred Meyer was kind enough to send me a box of Spanish goodies to play with while developing a recipe for them. Great Spanish olive oil, tapas sauces, olives and more. They will all be available in the stores starting April 3rd, so get excited! The line will be available in ALL Kroger stores, so even if you don’t live near a Fred Meyer, if you live near any Kroger owned store you will be able to check it out. Also aren’t those classic terra-cotta cazuela dishes cute? Just like how tapas are served in Spain. Those are actually imported from Spain, and I got them at Fred Meyer too!
My study abroad trip was one of the most eye-opening experiences of my life. I think that everyone should visit another country during their lifetime. Experiencing a different culture opens your mind in ways nothing else can. I was in my early twenties when I went, and I have been wishing lately that I could go back and experience it again. Although I was open to trying new things at the time, I have grown into a person with a greater appreciation for new things than I was at that time. Have you ever traveled abroad?
To be honest, this recipe seems a bit more complicated than most of the recipes I share on this site – I mean, you have to make a bechamel AND fry them! But really, it is not as difficult as it seems. The key to making a bechamel is to whisk in the milk very slowly so that the sauce doesn’t become lumpy. If you just dump the milk in all at once the flour will not be able to absorb the liquid and it will turn into a congealed mess – not good! Slowly whisk it in and you should be good. This isn’t something I would make every day, but is totally doable for a fun tapas night.
Ham Croquettes (Croquetas de jamon)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup finely minced onion
- ¼ and 1/2 cup flour divided
- 3 cups whole milk
- 3 cups panko breadcrumbs
- 3 eggs
- 6 ounces finely chopped serrano ham very finely minced
- salt
- pepper
- pinch of nutmeg
- oil for frying
Instructions
- Heat a sauté pan over medium heat. Add butter and olive oil and when butter is melted and oil is warm, add onion. Sauté onion until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add ¼ cup flour and whisk until browned and nutty, one to two minutes.
- Very slowly whisk in milk, a little at a time to avoid a lumpy sauce. Season with a little salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg (remember that the ham is salty, so go easy on the salt at first). Continue to whisk constantly until sauce has thickened, 10-15 minutes. When sauce has thickened, stir in ham. Taste and add more seasoning if needed.
- Pour sauce into a baking sheet and allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours (can also be done the day before cooking).
- When ready to cook, preheat oven to 200°F and prepare a baking sheet fitted with a cooling rack. This is for keeping the croquettas warm after frying until you are ready to serve.
- Prepare a breading station by whisking eggs in one dish and placing breadcrumbs into a shallow dish, and ½ cup flour in another dish. Shape the dough into 1-2 tablespoon sized, football shaped balls. Roll in the flour, then in the egg, then in the breadcrumbs.
- In a heavy pot or deep fryer, bring oil to 350°F degrees.
- Add up to six, one at a time, into the oil and fry until golden brown, 2-3 minutes. When removing from oil, place onto prepared rack and leave in the warm oven until ready to serve.
- These are best served fresh!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I had to dig deep into my archives to find my photos of my trip to Spain. I was hoping to find some photos of the food, but apparently in the days before iPhones I wasn’t as into taking food pictures. I actually didn’t even have a digital camera at that time, so my photos were taken with a not so fabulous point and shoot film camera.
Disclosure: I was compensated by Fred Meyer for this post, however my opinions, as always, are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that help make Fox and Briar possible!
you can also make the croquettes with minced chicken, any type of ham , minced shrimp etc.
Great idea!
I can’t wait to make these for my daughter. She spent a semester (4 1/2 months) abroad in Valencia studying and loved it (she is fluent in Spanish)! She totally embraced the Spanish culture and said if there was one other place she would live, besides Buffalo, NY, it would be Valencia. You are right about eye opening experiences abroad and we have always encouraged our children to travel. We have taken them to various place in Europe, Caribbean & Bahamas as well as over the U.S. I think learning about other cultures and how they live increases social tolerance for others. Very important in this day and age.
Hi Ann – yes, I agree! I can’t wait to hear how they turn out! Thanks for your comment.
Hi, I just got back from Barcelona last night and immediatly began to look for recipes for some of my favorite dishes from my trip,
very Happy to find this recipe,
Just one question.
Instruction 4 has me confused.
After the mixture has cooled, now it is supposed to be baked at 200
Please eloborate.
Thanks, Matt
Hi Matt, Mr Briar here filling in for Meghan… Thanks for your note. The 200°F oven is for keeping the croquettes warm before serving; we deep fry the croquettes in step 7 and then pop them into the oven so they stay warm and crispy. You can immediately eat/serve them if you wish and skip the oven steps. I updated step 4. Hopefully it is a little more clear now. We’re very excited to hear how these turn out and how they hold up against the memory of the real deal from your travels to Barcelona so please let us know when you make them.
Thank you so much for your quick response.
I look forward to making these croquettes and I will let you know how they come out.
Also, are there any recommended substitutions for ham in this recipe. I am sure the ham will be great, but I would also like to experiment a little and I am betting that some other ingredients would work.
Thanks, Matt
Hi Matt – I haven’t tried anything different but I’m sure you could use any other kind of meat, such as chicken. Just make sure the meat is cut up into very small pieces. Hope that helps!
Excuse the all-lowercase-letter post. my caps don’t seem to work in the comments. anyway, i was browsing for recipes for croquetas de jamon, and i came across your page. i’ve been craving them ever since i was in spain last november. i couldn’t get enough of them. i loved hearing that you studied abroad! although i never did when i was in college, i now work for a study abroad office. i wish every college student could experience studying abroad. anyway, i’m going to try my hand at making these, and reminisce about Spain.
I followed the recipe to the exact details and have found the cooled ham sauce so soupy that I can’t form into balls. I made the sauce pretty thick, I thought, too. It tastes good but without being able to form balls bread and fry…a little frustrating.
Hi Lori – I’m really sorry that happened! I have not had that experience, but there are a few reasons I can think of that may have caused it. First of all, it is possible the sauce was not cooked long enough or thickened enough. The second is it may not have been chilled long enough. As equipment can vary, cooking time can vary a bit too.
SELECTED THIS RECIPE FOR MY FIRST EVER ATTEMPT. SO FAR SO GOOD. THEY TASTE GREAT AS JUST THE “DOUGH.” IT THREW ME A LITTLE THAT SAUCE/”DOUGH” IS JUST BECHAMEL AND HAM. I MADE OUR CHRISTMAS HAM EARLY AND WE HAVE A LOT OF IT SO… NICE BLOG AND VERY INSPIRING. I HAVEN’T BEEN TO SPAIN SINCE 1976. THERE WAS A RIOT ON THE RAMBLAS IN BARCELONA WHERE I STAYED. IT WAS A FRANCO THING. SPAIN IS LIKELY VERY DIFFERENT TODAY, BUT I’M SURE THE SAME AS IT’S BEEN FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS TOO. I’LL LET YOU KNOW HOW IT WORKS OUT. FUNNY THING, MY COMPUTER WON’T DO CAPITAL LETTERS ON YOUR PAGE. SERIOUSLY.
Hi Richard, Sorry about the caps! It’s a glitch in my commenting system that I am trying to get fixed. I’m glad the croquetas seem good, hope they turned out great!
I love when they do their Hemisfares selections! I totally bought all the tapas stuff. Imagine that! I have that same bottle of mojo picon! I eat it on everything! These croquetas are awesome and can’t wait to make them for football season. They look like little porky footballs don’t they”?
Haha, yes, the totally look like little porky footballs! Thanks friend!
Ham croquettes are the best! There is a place in Miami that I stop every time we visit to get their ham croquettes. I’ve actually never made them myself but I definitely need to try this recipe. I love the photos of your trip to Spain too!
Thanks so much Ashley! I rarely see them in the US, but it makes sense you would see them in Miami because I think they are a pretty popular food in Cuba too?
Ohhhhh yes these look so damn good. I think Spanish food is even better than French food. I don’t think I’ve ever had a tapas dish I didn’t like! I cannot wait until I can travel more… still saving up!
Thanks so much Allie! There always seems to be MORE places to travel to, the list is always growing 🙂