Cheese and potatoes – they are like a perfect match made in heaven. They always go well together, regardless of what the resulting dish is: mashed potato with melted cheese toppings, hasselback potato drizzled with cheese, baked jacket potatoes with taco cheese sauce, baked fries in a blanket of cheese…
This method of combining the two ingredients together helps to contain the cheese within the potato, which is a great to serve our guests. You could also add in some bacon or ham bits in the core of the potato balls to delight your guests with more surprises and flavours.
Ingredients:
- Russet potato: 800g
- White pepper: 1/2 tsp
- Salt: 1/2 tsp
- Butter: 1 tbsp
- Parsley: 1 stalk, chopped finely
- Cheddar cheese: 1 pack of 10 slices, cut into 4 quarters per slice
- Plain flour: 1/2 cup, mixed with a pinch of salt & white pepper
- Egg: 4, beaten
- Breadcrumbs: 200g
- Oil: 1 liter
Method:
- Boil potatoes for 20 min. Drain.
- Mash with pepper, salt, butter and parsley. Leave aside to cool.
- Grab a handful of mashed potatoes (about 3 tbsp full).
- Roll into a ball and pinch flat in the middle with thumb.
- Place 1 quartered slice of cheese in it.
- Wrap potato around cheese and roll into a ball again.
- Repeat for the rest of the potatoes and cheese.
- Roll balls in flour, tapping off any excess.
- Dip balls in egg & roll in breadcrumbs. Repeat for a second coating of egg and breadcrumbs.
- Deep-fry in oil for 10min till golden brown, turning the balls occasionally.
- Serve hot and crispy with mayonnaise.
Tricks:
- Coating the balls in flour first and then double coating them with egg and breadcrumbs helps to create a nice layer of crispiness for the balls, especially when they are served hot!
- This is a more oriental way of making potato balls with cheese. To transform it into a western dish, you can use other types of cheese such as Gruyere or sharp cheddar cheese, as well as ground blackpepper and dills, instead of white pepper and parsley.
Serving:
About 22 medium-sized balls