Tuna Croquettes

Ingredients:

• 440g (15½ oz) can tuna in brine
• About 200ml (7 fl oz) of milk
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 1½ tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• about 4 potatoes, boiled and well mashed
• 3eggs, beaten (2 & 1)
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• 175g (6oz) fine fresh white breadcrumbs (use the food processer)
• lemon wedges and parsley or watercress to serve.
• Cooking oil for frying

Instructions:

Drain the Tuna and make up the juice to 350 ml (12 fl oz) with milk. Flake the tuna and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan, add the onion and cook for about 4 minutes until soft but not coloured.

Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat, and slowly stir in half the milk mixture.

Return to the heat. Bring to the boil, stirring in the remaining milk mixture. Simmer for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Off the heat, stir in the tuna, parsley, lemon juice, 1 egg and salt and pepper. Pour this mixture into a shallow dish, cool, then cover, and put in the fridge for about an hour or so.

Then add (mixing well) enough mashed potato to make the mixture just stiff enough to enable you to form the croquettes into small balls (don’t make it too stiff).

Dip each ball into a bowl of the 2 beaten eggs, remove with a fork, allow to drain, and then put them one at a time into the bowl of breadcrumbs. If you shake this bowl the ball will roll around and cover nicely. Then you can re-roll the ball gently into shape if necessary.

Half fill a medium pan with cooking oil (or use a deep fat fryer). Heat to 180˚C (350˚F) or until a small piece of bread browns quickly. Fry the tuna balls in batches of 3 or 4 until crisp and golden. (It is very quick.) Remove using a slotted spoon and place onto kitchen paper to drain.

Serve hot.

These can be made the day before and heated in a fairly hot oven for about 15 to 20 minutes and they will re-crisp very well.