Crispy Ground Beef Croquettes: Golden Outside, Juicy and Savory Inside

Ingredients for Ground Beef Croquettes

This recipe makes about 24 croquettes.

For the beef filling

• 1 pound lean ground beef: 85% to 90% lean works best.
• 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• 1 small yellow onion: very finely chopped.
• 2 garlic cloves: minced.
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste: for color and depth.
• 1 teaspoon salt.
• ½ teaspoon black pepper.
• ½ teaspoon paprika.
• 3 tablespoons chopped green onions or parsley.

For the dough

• 2 cups whole milk.
• 2 tablespoons butter.
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour.

For breading and frying

• 2 large eggs: beaten with 2 tablespoons milk.
• 1 ½ cups plain dry breadcrumbs: or panko for extra crunch.
• Vegetable or canola oil: for frying, about 4 cups.

For serving

• Your favorite dipping sauce: sweet chili sauce, spicy ketchup or a mix of mayonnaise and hot sauce.

A Few Words Before You Start

The dough must be cold. Warm dough is sticky and hard to shape. Once it is chilled, it rolls between your palms like soft clay.

Choose a lean ground beef so the filling does not leak grease into the dough. If your beef releases a lot of fat when browning, spoon it off before mixing.

Panko breadcrumbs, found in almost every US grocery store, make an extra crisp, light coating. Regular breadcrumbs give a finer, more traditional crust. Both are wonderful.

For frying, choose a neutral oil with a high smoke point, like canola, vegetable or peanut oil. A heavy pot and an inexpensive clip-on thermometer make frying much safer and more predictable, and they help every batch come out the same lovely golden color.