Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
Japanese Pumpkin Croquette featured image

Kabocha Korokke (Japanese Pumpkin Croquette)


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 4 reviews

  • Author: Veggie Anh
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

Classic Japanese comfort food. Yummy pumpkin croquette deep fried with panko bread crumbs and served with tonkatsu sauce. Crunchy and bursting with flavor! This makes 10-15 Korokke.


Ingredients

Units Scale

To make the korokke 'balls'

  • 1 Kabocha squash (sub with other types of pumpkin or winter squash)
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 1 tbsp vegan butter
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tbsp plant milk

To make the coating

To serve

  • 1/2 head of cabbage
  • 2 tomato
  • Tonkatsu sauce (can sub with ketchup/mayo) *

Instructions

To make the korokke

  1. Wash and cut the kabocha. Carefully slice in half, remove the seeds then cut into long wedges.
  2. Steam or boil the kabocha wedges for 15-20 minutes, until soften and can be easily mashed with a fork but not too overcooked.
  3. Meanwhile, cut the yellow onion into small pieces. On a pan on medium heat, melt the butter, add in the onion and stir until the onion pieces are caramelized. This takes about 10 minutes.
  4. When the pumpkin wedges are softened, remove from the pot. When they are cool enough to handle, remove the outer layer. Put the pumpkin the a bowl and finely mash with a fork.
  5. Add in the bowl caramelized onions, plant milk, salt and pepper. Mix well.
  6. Form the pumpkin mixture into small balls (the mixture makes about 10-15 balls). The mixture is really soft, so chill the balls in the fridge for 15-30 mins to harden.

To fry the korokke

  1. Prepare three shallow dishes or bowls for each coating: flour, milk and panko.
  2. Dip each pumpkin balls into the coating.
  3. On a pan, add oil. When the oil is hot (put a chopstick in and bubbles appear), you can add in the pumpkin balls on a single layer to avoid overcrowding
  4. Fry/deep fry until all sides are golden. They fry really fast so be careful not to burn them. I suggest keeping the heat on medium high at first, then lower to medium low. Fry each pumpkin ball for 5 minutes on each side. Only flip when the other side is golden brown to your liking.
  5. Once the croquettes are golden brown, remove them from the oil and put on a plate with kitchen towels to remove the excess oil. Sprinkle with more salt.
  6. Serve on a plate with sliced cabbage, tomato wedges and tonkatsu sauce. Enjoy!

Notes

*You can use ketchup or mayonnaise to serve with the pumpkin croquettes.

  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Category: Main Course, Snack
  • Method: deep fry
  • Cuisine: Japanese

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 393
  • Sugar: 9.1g
  • Sodium: 213mg (9%)
  • Fat: 23.4g (30%)
  • Saturated Fat: 5.3g (27%)
  • Carbohydrates: 40.5g (15%)
  • Fiber: 5.4g (19%)
  • Protein: 8g
  • Cholesterol: 0mg