Cooking for Pleasure: Salmon croquettes

Prep for salmon croquettes. (By Patty Schied)

By Patty Schied

When I was growing up in Juneau, salmon were very plentiful. My father would go fishing nearly every weekend and bring home fish, selling what we couldn’t eat to local buyers.

My mother would broil king salmon steaks for each of us. My father would then fling the huge steaks, about a pound and a half apiece, onto each of our plates. We would eat what we could, usually the bellies, and put the remainder on a platter to be used for salmon salad sandwiches and croquettes the next day.

It was usually my responsibility to make the croquettes. The recipe that we had from an old cookbook of my mother’s was quite plain. So I began to experiment. I can now say that I have made these every year for decades. They can be made with any leftover salmon, not just king salmon. The ones I made today are from sockeye salmon, a piece that I poached just for this recipe.

To feed four people, you will need about a pound of cooked salmon. Although the seasonings I used for this recipe were mainly fresh herbs, feel free to add more spice, such as Cajun or Old Bay seasoning.

Just be careful not to add too much so that you don’t overwhelm the delicate flavor of the fish.

Ingredients:

2 cups of flaked cooked salmon, carefully picked over for bones

2 tablespoons butter

1 small shallot, finely minced

2 tablespoons of flour

½ cup whole milk

2 tablespoons finely minced parsley

One egg, stirred to mix

1 cup soft bread crumbs

Salt, pepper and about 2 tsp of finely chopped fresh thyme, if you have it

2 cups of fine dry bread crumbs

Oil for frying

Directions:

Heat butter gently in a small saucepan. When melted, add chopped shallots and cook at low heat until soft, not brown.

Add flour and stir constantly at medium-low heat until it becomes very thick. Slowly add milk and stir until thickened. Remove from heat.

Stir in egg, mixing thoroughly. Add chopped parsley and fresh thyme, if using. Fold in flaked salmon, carefully checking for those almost invisible pin bones that seem to appear out of nowhere. Season with salt and pepper. TASTE.

Stir in just enough soft bread crumbs to make a very thick mixture, which should be stiff but not dry.

Scrape into a shallow bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours.

When chilled, remove about a 1/3 cup of the croquette mixture, checking again for those pesky bones, and make it into a thick patty (approximately ¾ inch thick) or croquette.

Dip into fine dry bread crumbs. Place on a plate. Repeat until all salmon mixture is used.

Heat about 1 inch of oil in a large fry pan to about 350 degrees.

Carefully place patties in the pan and fry until golden brown on each side.

Remove to a paper towel lined plate.

They should be crisp on the outside, creamy inside.

When you eat them, you will first notice the crunch, then the melt-in-the-mouth lusciousness of the salmon mixture inside.

Serve with or without tartar sauce.

Enjoy!

Ready to eat salmon croquettes. (By Patty Schied)