Perkedel Kentang (Indonesian Potato Fritter with Ground Beef)

Perkedel Kentang (Indonesian Potato Fritter with Ground Beef). Yes, that’s what it is! I thought I missed something when I was making fried chicken the other day. One of my favorite fast food place in Indonesia is KFC and they have perkedel kentang on their menu – and yes, they also serve rice. My KFC experience over there would not be complete without perkedel kentang.

Today, I am sharing with you the no-fail recipe of Perkedel Kentang (Indonesia Potato Fritter with Ground Beef). I have tried over and over again to create this great dish. That shows how much I love perkedel kentang. I think many times, I failed because I boiled the potato first before mashing them up – a natural instinct because that’s what you do for making mashed potato. Boiling is a big mistake to make this fritter.

Perkedel Kentang is great to have as a snack or as a finger food in a gathering. Great to pair it with rendang, savory pork chop as a side dish, or even better with fried chicken! I strongly recommend you tried it with fried chicken. I am pretty sure you will go for second and will do it all over again. Give it a try, will ‘ya?

Tips: You can steam or bake the potato instead of frying them up prior to mashing them. The key is to soften the potato so that you can easily mash them without high water content. This is so that the potato fritter will not ‘break’ easily when frying.

Ingredients:

• 5 medium-sized potatoes – peeled and cleaned
• ½ lb ground beef
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon chopped parsley
• 2 cloved garlic – minced
• 1 medium-sized shallot – sliced (or fried shallot)
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Vegetable oil for frying
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

• Preheat the oil into a deep fryer or deep-frying pan.
• Cut each potato into 8 smaller parts and, when the oil is hot, put them into the frying pan or deep fryer. Cook until it is a bit brownish or about 15 minutes or so. Set aside and pat them dry with paper towel.
• Deep fry the sliced shallot, drain them from the oil and set aside.
• In a large bowl, add the fried potato. Mashed them up evenly.
• Add ground beef, one egg, chopped parsley, minced garlic, fried shallot, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix them well.
• Wash your hand and mold the mixed potato into a small ball and flatten it a bit. It will be like a donut-without-a-hole shape.
• On a separate small bowl, crack the other egg, add salt and pepper. Whisk it up.
• Coat each potato fritter with the whisked egg.
• Preheat the oil again in the deep fryer or the deep-frying pan.
• Once the oil is hot, fry the coated potato fritter until it is brownish or about 5 minutes.
• Serve while it is hot with ketchup or your favorite condiments!