Creamy Corn Korokke

I love korokke! Not so much those potato kinds, but the creamy ones that ooze with bechamel sauce and stuffed with corn nibblets. I used to over snack on those in Secondary school. Being in a foreign land brings out even the most distant cravings, and so I decided that it is time for a korokke that afternoon!

Luckily, making one doesn't require much ingredients and you probably have most of the stuff in your own kitchen. Although the origins of a korokke is not from Japan but France (korokke = croquette), it is has been deeply embraced by the Japanese and have since been modernised to include various stuffings. You can add to the bechamel sauce corn nibblets (like me), or crabmeat, tuna, etc. But whichever ingredients you decide to use, make sure that they are cut into small pieces. The last thing you want is a 3-inch crabmeat snaking its way out of your otherwise perfect korokke!

Creamy Corn Korokke
(makes 5 to 6 pieces, depending on the size of your korroke)

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour for the sauce, and some for dusting
440ml of milk, warmed (stir it over a low fire or place it in a hot water bath)
150g of corn nibblets
panko
1 egg, beaten
Canola oil
Salt and black pepper to taste

In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter with a little bit of oil over low heat. Blend in the flour and stir for about 2 minutes.

Remove the saucepan from heat. Make sure the sauce is not bubbling before pouring in the milk. Beat the mixture vigorously with a whisk to blend the milk thoroughly with the roux.

Set the saucepan over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil, stirring it constantly. Reduce the sauce until it is viscous and consistent, with no lumps. Add salt and pepper to taste. This is your homemade bechamel sauce. When you are satisfied with it, add in the corn nibblets, stir it through quickly and remove it from heat.

Pour your creamy corn mixture into a tray or container and set it aside to cool for a few minutes. Then, put it into your freezer until the mixture becomes semi-solid (it has to be manageable when you take it out to roll it in flour and panko).

Meanwhile, prepare pour out your panko onto a plate, and the flour onto another separate plate. Take out your creamy corn mixture and shape it into round balls, about 3-inch wide. Here's the process: Coat it with flour, then egg, and lastly panko. If your mixture is still somewhat creamy and you are pressed for time (like me), depending on the dexterity of your hand, you can still give it a shot, as long as the mixture is not falling apart all over your hands and you get a decent panko ball at the end.

Heat your oil on a skillet over high heat. You need at least oil that is half and inch deep to get a good crsip. Make sure that the oil is heated to about 365 F. My favourite way of checking this is using a wooden chopsticks. Just stick it in. If there are bubbles forming at the side, your oil is ready. If not, until it is. Make sure your wooden chopsticks/spoon is not coated with oil when you test, because you won't get those bubbles even if your oil is very hot.

Fry your korokke in the oil until each side is golden brown. I'd advise against putting all in at one shot, because you need space to flip your soft korokke in the pan, and you don't want to risk bursting it. In the event that it does burst, just continue frying and try not to let the cream spread too much into the oil. Putting two korokke into the pan at one time would be good.

So there you have it! Homemade creamy korokke! Best to pair it with an episode of The Simpsons like what the hubby and I did. :) Tweet