Croquetas de Bacalao Recipe

Name: Croquetas de Bacalao
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 4 h 50 min
Yield: 20 servings
Cuisine: Spanish
Ingredients: 300 g cod fillet, skinless; 600 ml whole milk; 1 bay leaf; 60 g butter; 80 g plain flour; 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley; ¼ tsp grated nutmeg; ½ tsp salt; 100 g plain flour, for coating; 2 eggs, beaten; 150 g fine breadcrumbs; 300 ml vegetable oil, for frying

Croquetas de Bacalao

Crisp, breadcrumbed croquettes with a creamy filling of cod, béchamel and parsley, a Spanish tapas bar staple.

50 min prep and cooking plus 4 hr Chilling the filling 4 hr 50 min start to finish Serves 20 servings Medium

Why This Croquetas de Bacalao Recipe Works

The filling should be so soft that it nearly flows, and the coating should be so crisp that it cracks. Spanish croquetas are made from a very thick béchamel that sets overnight in the fridge until it can be shaped, and the contrast between the thin crust and the molten centre is what makes them addictive.

Cook the fish first. Poach 300 g of skinless cod fillet in milk with a bay leaf for 8 minutes, flake it, and keep the milk. Salt cod, soaked for 24 hours, is the traditional choice and gives a more intense flavour. The poaching milk becomes the base of the béchamel. Use the milk, not water. It carries the flavour of the fish.

Melt butter, stir in the flour, then add the warm milk gradually, stirring until you have a very thick paste, almost like mashed potato. This takes 10 minutes. Fold in the flaked cod, parsley and a pinch of nutmeg. Spread in a dish and chill for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.

Shape into small cylinders with floured hands, coat in flour, egg and breadcrumbs, and cook in oil at 180°C / 355°F for 1 to 2 minutes, until deep golden. Drain, and serve hot.

How to Make Croquetas de Bacalao

Tap a step to highlight it, or turn on Cook Mode for large type and step-by-step focus.

Poach the cod in the milk with the bay leaf for 8 minutes. Lift out and flake. Strain the milk.
Melt the butter, stir in the 80 g flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the warm milk gradually, stirring, and cook for 10 minutes until very thick.
Fold in the cod, parsley, nutmeg and salt. Spread in a dish, cover the surface and chill for at least 4 hours.
With floured hands, shape into about 20 small cylinders. Coat in the 100 g flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.
Heat the oil to 180°C / 355°F and cook in batches for 1 to 2 minutes until deep golden. Drain.

Small Things That Help

Chill the mixture well.
Coat twice for a thicker crust.
Do not overcrowd the oil.

What to Serve with Croquetas de Bacalao

Alioli
Lemon wedges
Fino sherry
Green salad

Keeping and Reheating

Uncooked croquetas freeze for 1 month. Cooked ones keep in the fridge for 2 days.

Questions About Croquetas de Bacalao

How long does Croquetas de Bacalao take to make?

40 minutes of preparation and 10 minutes of cooking, plus 4 hours of Chilling the filling, so allow 4 hours 50 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 20.

Nutrition per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (how much frying oil the food takes up cannot be known from the recipe). Why some recipes have none.

No Added Sugar

Croquetas de Bacalao

How to Make Croquetas de Bacalao

Small Things That Help

What to Serve with Croquetas de Bacalao

Keeping and Reheating

Questions About Croquetas de Bacalao

Nutrition per Serving

Your notes on this recipe

Cooked this? Keep a note for next time

How to Make Croquetas de Bacalao

Small Things That Help

What to Serve with Croquetas de Bacalao

Keeping and Reheating

Questions About Croquetas de Bacalao

Nutrition per Serving

Your notes on this recipe

Cooked this? Keep a note for next time

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