Make Japanese croquettes in the air fryer with my easy air fryer korokke recipe! Korokke are typically made from mashed potato and fillings such as ground beef, which are then breaded in panko breadcrumbs and deep fried. My korokke recipe eliminates the deep frying but still gives you a super crispy crust in the air fryer! Give it a try!
What are Korokke?
Korokke is the Japanese word for “croquettes.” Korokke consist of oval shaped discs of mashed potato and various fillings which are then breaded and deep fried. It is seems commonly believed that Japanese korokke originated from French croquettes. However, there are versions of croquettes in many countries! My friend Lily from Mexico told me that Japanese korokke reminded her a lot of Mexican croquetas.
In any case, these deep fried potato pucks are SO delicious. I guess that’s not too surprising. I mean, who says no to a deep fried potato?
Making Korokke in the Air Fryer
Although I do love making korokke the original way, deep frying, from time to time, you KNOW I can’t NOT do an air fryer version. With the elimination of all that oil, I feel way less guilty for all the korokke I eat.
The good news is that making korokke in the air fryer is almost exactly the same as your traditional recipe. There’s only a couple key differences:
- If you like that golden brown color of korokke, you’ll need to toast your panko prior to breading. Air fried panko doesn’t change color as quickly as deep fried panko.
- YOU DON’T NEED TO CHILL YOUR KOROKKE PRIOR TO COOKING!
Hallelujah! You don’t need to worry about korokke exploding in hot oil, so go ahead and plop those babies straight into the air fryer.
Korokke Ingredients
My korokke listed here use pretty basic ingredients: potatoes, ground beef, and corn.
My recipe calls for Yukon gold potatoes, because I just happen to like those potatoes the best and have them on hand. But you can definitely use russet for this recipe, no problem. In general you want to aim for 1.5-2 lbs of potato.
As for the other fillings, I like the combination of ground beef and corn, but there are ENDLESS options. Sauteed onion is a popular addition to ground beef. I’ve also had korokke with carrots or other veggies.
I remember visiting a korokke shop in Kyoto once, where the entire room was just filled with different kinds of korokke. It was heaven.
All that to say, just put in whatever you like!
Getting a Crispy Korokke Crust
As with all my katsu recipes, I always use a flour and egg batter to bread my food. Instead of dipping in flour and then egg separately, I mix the flour and egg together first to form a thick batter. I dip my korokke into the batter and then the panko. I find that using batters creates thicker crusts without bald spots.
One thing to note – eggs are all slightly different in volume and you may make your korokke slightly larger or smaller than mine. You may need more or less batter and panko accordingly.
How to Serve and Eat Korokke
Korokke make a great snack, but they can also be a main dish. As with many Japanese deep fried foods, I like to eat mine with tonkatsu sauce (I buy mine), cabbage salad, and rice. You could also stick it in a sandwich.. eat it on its own… really, there’s no WRONG way to eat a korokke. (I know there’s probably someone out there on the internet right now seeing this as a challenge, and will continue to think up some truly heinous way to eat a korokke. If that’s you, just please, keep it to yourself.)
Other Air Fryer Japanese Recipes
If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out some of my other air fryer foods:
Air Fryer Korokke (Japanese Croquettes)
Equipment
- Air fryer
Ingredients
- 4 Yukon gold potatoes approx 1.5 lbs
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 cup corn frozen, canned, or fresh
- 3 eggs
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 cups panko
- salt to taste
- oil spray
Instructions
- Pour panko into a large skillet on stovetop. Toast at medium heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
- Clean potatoes well and pierce them several times with a fork. Place in a microwave safe dish and microwave, covered, for 10 minutes, flipping the potatoes over halfway through.
- While potatoes are steaming in the microwave, saute ground beef and corn in a skillet over stovetop until cooked through.
- Check the steamed potatoes. If they pierce easily with a fork, they are done.
- Carefully (don't burn yourself!) peel the skin off the potatoes. The skin should come off very easily after steaming.
- Mash the potatoes in a large bowl.
- Add beef and corn to potatoes and mix. Add salt to taste. Because everything in this mixture is cooked, it's safe to taste.
- Mix eggs and flour to create a batter in a shallow dish. Pour panko in a dish and set nearby.
- With your hands, scoop a ball of the potato/beef mixture and form into a patty, similar in size and shape to a hockey puck.
- Continue making discs from the potato mixture. You should be able to make around 12.
- Batter and bread the discs by dipping them into your egg/flour batter and then into your toasted panko, making sure it's coated on all sides.
- Place korokke into air fryer and spray with oil spray. You may need to work in batches so as not to overcrowd the air fryer.
- Air fry at 400 degrees F for 7 minutes, or until the crust is cooked through and crunchy.
- Serve with tonkatsu sauce (I buy mine), rice, and cabbage salad, or just eat it on its own! Leftovers will keep in the fridge in an air tight container, but will lose crispiness. Reheat in the air fryer to crisp it back up.
Notes
- Feel free to substitute russet for the Yukon gold potatoes
- Change up the fillings to whatever you like!