Dutch Beef Croquettes Bento

I love trying new recipes. This time, I tried to make Dutch Beef Croquettes to give variation in my kids' diets. This recipe is quite time consuming, so I made a big batch and put the extras in the freezer.

Dutch Beef Croquettes Recipe

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
500 g beef mince
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme 
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce

For the roux
40 g butter
40 g flour
1 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 Eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
1 cup plain flour
1 pkt breadcrumbs
Vegetable or canola oil, for deep frying

Mustard Mayonnaise
1 tbsp Hot English Mustard
1/2 cup Mayonnaise

Method
1. Place olive oil in a large frying pan over medium - high heat, add onion, carrot and celery and cook for 3 – 5 minutes, add
beef mince, salt and pepper and cook for a further five minutes, or until mince is cooked through. Remove from heat.
2. Place beef mince mixture into a food processor bowl, add herbs and seasoning and process on high for about 1 minute.
Set aside.
3. To make the roux, place a medium sized saucepan over low heat. Add the butter and as it melts, stir in the flour. Once a paste like
consistency is achieved, whisk in the milk. The mixture will thicken up quickly but allow mixture to cook for 5 minutes to
ensure there is no floury taste, whisking occasionally. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Add one cup of the roux to the beef mince mixture and stir well. Place mixture into fridge or freezer to cool down.
5. Prepare three bowls, one with eggs and milk lightly beaten together, one with flour and one with breadcrumbs.
6. Once mixture is cool, take about a tablespoon of mixture and form into a log shape. Dip into egg wash, then coat in flour,
then roll in crumbs, dip in egg wash again and then finally coat in breadcrumbs. Set aside and repeat with remaining
mixture.
7. When you are ready to cook, heat vegetable oil in saucepan and heat oil up to about 180◦C. Deep fry 3 – 5 croquettes at
a time, cook for about 1 minute or until golden. Remove and place on paper towel. Repeat with remaining croquettes until all are cooked.
8. Combine mustard and mayonnaise in a bowl and serve with warm croquettes.

For my youngest son, I prepared :
1. Dutch beef croquette with mustard mayo
2. Milk jelly with nata de coco
3. Corn on the cob
4. Broccoli and carrots
5. Twiggy sticks
6. Yogurt for recess

For my eldest son, I prepared :
1. Dutch beef croquette with mustard mayo
2. Milk jelly with nata de coco
3. Corn on the cob
4. Broccoli and carrots
5. Rockmelon cuts for recess


I used this tool below to produce those pretty carrots :