My Friday entertaining took a back seat for some time. Just did not get around to inviting friends over. Back-to-school can be very hectic few weeks, if you know what I mean. The new routine does take some time to kick in until you’re ready for the same ol’ for the succeeding ten months. However, last week was different. It was my birthday. A few friends came over and we ate, drank, danced and had a lot of fun till the wee hours of the night.
These fish croquettes have nothing to do with the evening being discussed. However, this is one recipe I have resorted to many times when I hosted this same group of friends or others. The recipe does involve a little elbow grease but the euphoria generated by them matches up to all the labor that goes into it or maybe even beyond. This is a go-to appetizer for most Bong families be it a birthday, wedding or just a casual get together. Growing up, however, mom hardly ever made these. My mom is a borderline health freak and is way more in control over what goes in her mouth than me. So she made sure to steer clear from deep fried goodies almost always. But back home, these are sold by thousands of vendors street-side or otherwise. So grabbing a couple generously smeared with mustard sauce and paired with a few raw onion rings would be something I would look forward to every now and then.
Honestly, I seldom make these croquettes just for my family of three. There’s definitely an economy of scale concept involved here. And it always makes sense to make these in a huge batch than just a few here and there. The other thing why this recipe works for me is that these are extremely freezer friendly. I make these and throw them in the freezer almost a week ahead sometimes. Just take them out on the day you need them and let the deep fryer take care of them.
P.S: My experience is that once frozen, these croquettes come out way crispier than otherwise. Also, they do not disintegrate on being released into the hot oil.
Fish Croquettes Recipe (aka MachherChop)
- Prep Time: 60
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 70
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Try out this Easy and Quick Fish Croquettes Recipe at Home. We also call Fish Croquettes as Machher Chop in Bengali.
Ingredients
- Fish fillet – 4
- Potatoes – 2, medium
- Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
- Red chili powder- 1 tsp
- Coriander powder – 2 tsp
- Cumin Powder – 2 tsp
- Cilantro – 2 tbsp, chopped
- Kasuri Methi – 1 tsp
- Tomato Paste – 1 tbsp
- Salt – 3 tsp, divided, adjust to taste
- Sugar – 1 tsp, adjust to taste
- Garlic – 2 tsp, minced
- Onion – 1, medium, chopped finely
- Green chilies – 2, minced
- Corn flour – 6 tbsp
- Water – 4 tbsp
- Bread Crumbs – 1 cup
- Vegetable Oil – 1 cup
Instructions
- Wash the fish fillet and smear it with turmeric and 1 tsp salt. Let it rest for about 15 mins.
- In a skillet, pour 2 tsp of oil and shallow fry the fish fillet so that they are just cooked through. Make sure not to brown them.
- Boil potatoes, mash and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, take the fish fillet and shred them.
- In a large skillet, add a tbsp of oil.
- Throw in the minced garlic and saute until it is fragrant and lightly browned.
- Add the chopped onion and fry until they are a translucent pink.
- Now add in the shredded fish, mashed potato, spices, herbs, green chili, salt and sugar.
- Mix everything well with a spatula to make sure everything is well incorporated.
- Cook the mixture just until everything looks well mixed. Remove from the stove and let it cool.
- Now using an ice-cream scoop, make small balls of the mixture. You can make them small or big as per your wish.
- In a flat bottomed dish, take the corn-flour and water and mix well.
- In another flat bottomed dish, throw in the bread crumbs.
- Now set up a little assembly line. Take a ball, dip it in the corn-flour mixture and then roll it in the bread crumbs well and set aside. Make sure it is evenly coated.
- Once you’re done with all the balls, you’ll repeat the procedure all over again.This is actually the trick that will give you the store bought texture, taste and feel of croquettes.
- Store these balls in a covered container, making sure there is enough room between them and throw them in the freezer at least for 2 hours.
- When you’re ready to fry them, just take them and allow them to stand on the counter for about 10 mins.
- In a large sauce pan, heat up the remaining vegetable oil. Once it is hot, reduce the flame and release the balls in them. The balls must be fried in a medium flame for a good 4-5 mins until they are a golden brown.
- Serve with a condiment of your choice. In our case, it’s always a mustard sauce, ketchup and lots of red onion rings.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 12
- Calories: 331
- Sugar: 2
- Sodium: 692
- Fat: 23
- Saturated Fat: 2
- Unsaturated Fat: 20
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 16
- Protein: 15
- Cholesterol: 40
Keywords: Machher Chop Recipe, Fish Croquettes Recipe