These White Bean Croquettes have a crispy breadcrumb coating with a soft and light mashed bean insides. They are similar to fish cakes and are perfect for dinner with mushy peas and chips. The original Victorian recipe calls for haricot beans, but I used cannellini beans but really, any white bean can be used.
The other everyday ingredients required are shallots or onion, breadcrumbs, sugar, white pepper, salt, milk, egg, and butter or margarine. This provides a nice neutral flavour, making the croquettes ideal for dipping into a nice sauce, tomato ketchup or brown sauce, mushy peas, baked beans, or dip. Of course, you can add fresh or dried herbs or spices to give the croquettes a flavour boost.
If you would like to prepare vegan or gluten-free bean croquettes, all you have to do is make a few easy swaps – have a look at our recipe notes below.
This Bean Croquette recipe originates from the Victorian Era and was included in the Victorian cookery book “New Vegetarian Dishes” by Mrs. Bowdich (1892), where it was titled Haricot Bean Croquettes. Haricot beans are also known as navy beans in other countries outside the UK.
I made several adjustments to the original recipe, such as switching shallots to onions, reducing the cooking time, adjusting the amount of cooking liquid, and mashing the beans with a potato masher instead of chopping them once cooked. I also added more breadcrumbs. Cooking with old recipes often involves a lot of guesswork and some changes to the original recipe, as we are cooking in modern kitchens rather than Victorian ones.
If you would like to see the original recipe you can see it on our blog over on our old recipe collections – Haricot Bean Croquettes. If you would like to read Mrs Bowdich’s full book you can access it through our old recipe book links page. The book is free to read as it’s in the public domain.
How to prepare
To prepare the white bean filling, first, the beans are cooked in water and butter before adding milk and cooking for a few minutes more. Next, the beans are mashed and left to cool.
The onion is briefly cooked and then added to the mashed beans along with seasonings. For the coating, breadcrumbs and egg white are used.
The bean mixture is formed into chunky balls and dipped into the egg white before being rolled in the breadcrumbs. To cook, the croquettes are fried in oil until golden brown and crisp.
For more Victorian Era recipes do have a look at our Green Lentil Sausages and this fun Bread Steaks recipe. Victorian recipes are a great source of interesting budget-friendly meal ideas that we can easily adapt and put them to good use in our own kitchens.
White Bean Croquettes [Victorian Era Recipe]
Equipment
- large bowl for soaking beans
- Large non-stick saucepan
- potato masher
- 2 shallow bowls
- Fry pan or skillet
- Fish slice
Ingredients
- 250 grams dried cannellini or haricot beans
- enough water to cover the beans
- 30 grams butter or margarine 1 oz or 2 tablespoons
- 125 millilitres milk ¼ pint or ½ a cup
- 60 grams fresh breadcrumbs 2 oz [I used wholemeal breadcrumbs]
- 1 medium onion, fine diced or 2-3 shallots
- ¼ teaspoon salt add more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper add more to taste
- 1 medium-large egg yolk whisked with a fork
For the crumb:
- 1 medium-large egg white whisked with a fork
- 114 grams fresh breadcrumbs 4 oz [I used wholemeal breadcrumbs]
To cook
- vegetable oil enough to shallow fry
Instructions
Prep the beans:
- The evening before soak the dried beans in plenty of water.250 grams dried cannellini or haricot beans
Pre-boil the beans: [see the recipe notes below for the safety reason for pre-boiling]
- Once the beans have been soaked and drained, place the beans in the saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a rapid boil and boil fast for 10-30 minutes [some sources state 30 minutes is best for pre-boiling]. Carefully drain the beans and now they are ready to use for the recipe.if using haricot beans/navy beans you will not need to pre-boil.
Prepare the bean mixture:
- Add the beans to the saucepan.[To speed up the cooking process you can cook the beans in a pressure cooker]
- Pour enough water over the beans so that it comes about 1½ inch high above the beans. Add the butter or margarine.enough water to cover the beans, 30 grams butter or margarine
- Bring to the boil, give it a stir as the butter melts, and cook for about 1½ hours or until the beans are soft. You will likely need to add extra water as the beans cook if it looks like the water may dry out.
- Once the beans are soft and most of the water has gone add the milk.125 millilitres milk
- Cook the beans for about 5 minutes in the milk, stirring as required.
- Remove the beans from the heat and give them a good mash with a potato masher. Cool the mashed beans while you cook the onion.
Cook the onion:
- Fry the diced onion in a fry pan with a little oil for a few minutes.1 medium onion, fine diced
Finish the croquette mixture:
- Add the onions to the bean mixture along with the egg yolk, sugar, salt, pepper, and give the mixture a good stir. This is where you can add extra flavours if you like such as dried onion or garlic, paprika, fresh herbs such as sage or thyme, dried herbs such as basil or parsley, etc.¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon white pepper, 1 medium-large egg yolk, ¼ teaspoon sugar
- Leave to cool completely. Once cool the mixture can be refrigerated until the next day if you are meal prepping.
Form the croquettes:
- To the bean mixture stir in the breadcrumbs.60 grams fresh breadcrumbs
- Add the egg white to a small bowl and the rest of the breadcrumbs into another bowl – these are for coating your croquettes.1 medium-large egg white, 114 grams fresh breadcrumbs
- With a tablespoon scoop up good sized balls of the mixture and form into chunky balls about the size of a golf ball or just smaller. You can dust your hands in flour if it makes forming the croquettes easier.
- Dip each croquette into the egg white and then roll in the breadcrumbs. Use extra egg white or breadcrumbs if necessary.
- Place each croquette onto a plate or tray that has been dusted with flour or lined with parchment paper.You can chill the croquettes before cooking, or if you need them immediately, you can cook them right away.
Cook the croquettes:
- Add a good amount of oil to the fry pan, enough to shallow fry, and heat the oil.vegetable oil
- Once the oil is hot add the croquettes to the pan and cook each side until golden brown and crispy.
Notes
- Storage: Store croquettes in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for a few months.
- Reheating: Reheat by adding to a frying pan with a little oil to re-crisp and heat through.
- Pre-boiling: You may wonder why I have included rapid boiling the beans for at least 10 minutes before using for the recipe so I thought I should include some explanation: When preparing certain dried beans, such as cannellini beans, it’s essential to rapid boil them for at least 10 minutes after soaking. Cannellini beans are related to kidney beans and contain natural toxins called lectins, specifically phytohaemagglutinin, which can be harmful if consumed in large amounts. Rapid boiling for 10-30 minutes helps to destroy these toxins, making the beans safe to eat. However, if you are using haricot beans (also known as navy beans), they do not contain the same level of toxins as kidney beans. While they do not require rapid boiling, it is still important to soak and cook them thoroughly. Proper cooking ensures they are safe to eat and achieves the desired texture for the bean croquettes.
- Breadcrumbs: I used Co-op’s own brand wholemeal bread for the breadcrumbs but any breadcrumbs will do fine.
- It’s always a good idea to turn stale bread into breadcrumbs and store them in the freezer. This is a great time-saver, saves money on buying store-bought breadcrumbs, and helps reduce food waste.
Make it Vegan:
- Instead of egg yolk, use a flax egg: mix half a tablespoon of flax meal or ground flaxseed with 1 ½ tablespoons of warm water and let sit for at least 5 minutes to thicken.
- Replace the egg white with aquafaba (canned chickpea water).
- Replace the butter with dairy-free margarine.
- Use dairy-free milk instead of dairy milk.
Make it Gluten-Free:
- Use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Time-Saving Tips:
- Use a pressure cooker to cook the beans. Drain any excess liquid that may remain after cooking. Once cooked, proceed with the recipe in a separate saucepan by adding milk to the cooked beans, etc.
- Prepare the bean mixture 1-2 days before needed.
- Pre-boil [10-30 minutes] the beans 1-2 days before needed.
- Pre-cook the beans 1-2 days before required.
- Use ready-cooked beans: if doing so, add the drained cooked beans to the saucepan, add the butter and milk, and cook for 5 minutes before mashing. Proceed with the recipe.
- Fully prepare the croquettes and store them in the fridge for 1-2 days before frying in the oil.
- Have breadcrumbs ready prepared: use stale bread to prepare breadcrumbs and store them in the freezer for a few months.
Add Extra Flavours:
- Garlic and/or onion powder are nice additions, as are any fresh herbs or dried herbs and spices such as chilli powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, cumin powder, coriander powder, etc.
- For a curry flavour, make them curried croquettes by adding curry powder.
Do let us know if you prepare this tasty Victorian Era white bean croquette recipe! Leigh x