Fried Mashed Potato Balls

Print Recipe

These fried mashed potato balls are crispy, cheesy and outrageously delicious!

Prep Time40

Cook Time25

Total Time1 5

Course: Appetizer, Finger Food

Cuisine: American

Servings: - 5

Author: Chris Collins

Cost: £2 / $2.50

Equipment

Potato Peeler
Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
Medium Sized Pot & Wooden Spoon (for boiling potatoes)
Colander, Large Bowl & Potato Masher
3 Large Shallow Dishes (for coating mashed potato balls)
Suitably Sized Pot & Slotted Spoon (for frying)
Kitchen Thermometer
Wire Rack & Paper Towels (for resting mashed potato balls)

Ingredients

Filling

550g / 1.2lbs Baking Potatoes (see notes)
4 slices of Streaky Bacon, cooked, cooked and finely diced
30g / 1/3 cup grated Cheddar
70g / 2.5oz Red Leicester, sliced in to small cubes (approx 1cm - sub more cheddar)
2 tbsp finely diced Fresh Chives
1 tbsp Butter
1/4 tsp Salt, or to taste (plus more to season the water for boiling the potatoes)
1/8 tsp Black Pepper, or to taste

Coating

1 tsp Smoked Paprika
3/4 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp EACH: Garlic Powder, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper (omit for no spice)
40g / 1/4 cup Plain Flour
2 Eggs, beaten
60g / 1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
1 litre / 4 cups Vegetable Oil, or as needed for frying
2 tbsp finely grated Parmesan, to garnish
1 tbsp finely diced Fresh Parsley, to garnish

Instructions

Peel and dice the potatoes, then add them to a pot of cold water with 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes and just about fork-tender. It's important that you don't over-boil the potatoes, otherwise they'll soak in too much water and the balls will be too sloppy to mould.
Drain the potatoes in a colander and leave them to steam dry and completely cool. It's important to let the steam escape from the potatoes so they can dry out. To speed up this process, you can lay them on a towel until they're completely cool.
Mash the potatoes with the butter, cheddar, bacon, chives, salt and pepper. Use a 1 tbsp measuring spoon to scoop out the mixture into portions. Take a piece of cubed cheese and use a portion of mash to wrap into a ball. You should get 14-15 balls in total.
At this point I highly recommend placing them in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm them up before coating them.
In a small bowl, combine 1 tsp smoked paprika, 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp garlic powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Line up 3 large shallow dishes: the first with the flour and half of the seasoning mixed in, the second with the beaten eggs and the third with the Panko and the rest of the seasoning.
Coat the mashed potato balls in the flour, then the egg, then the Panko, ensuring they're fully coated at each stage (namely the Panko). You can do this a few at a time, depending on the size of your dishes.
In a pot suitable for frying, add enough oil to cover the height of the balls and heat to 180C/350F (a breadcrumb should rapidly sizzle). Use a slotted spoon to lower the balls into the oil (I do 4 or so at a time) and fry them for 2-3 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Use your slotted spoon to gently and continually move them around so they fry evenly. You might spot little dots of leakage, which is fine, but if one of them looks like it's about to split open, just remove it. Place the cooked balls on a wire rack above paper towels to catch excess oil.
Finish with parmesan and parsley then tuck in and enjoy!

Video

Notes

a) Potatoes - I recommend using something like a Maris Piper or Russet because they're nice and floury. Just another reminder that let the cooked potato cool right down, otherwise the balls are going to turn to mush from the excess steam.

b) Using leftover mashed potato - You can use leftover mashed potato for this recipe, just a few things to keep in mind:

You'll need around 1 1/2 cups mashed potato.
Ideally it's nice and fluffy, not super creamy in texture.
If it was made with butter you won't need the extra butter in the recipe.
Season to taste based on how much it was originally seasoned.

c) Cheese - I like using Red Leicester for the middle because it melts really nicely. You might find the centre isn't properly melted right after the balls have fried, but just let them rest for a few mins and the residual heat will melt the centre. You don't have to add a cube of cheese in the centre; they're still delicious without.

d) Air Fryer option - I have tried these in the air fryer and they do work pretty well. You'll need to toast the Panko in a tbsp of butter in a pan until golden first, just to give the breading a head start. From there, I recommend cooking at 190C/375F for around 8 minutes, or until golden and crisp (keep an eye on them as timings will differ).

e) Calories - Per ball assuming 14 in total, half the bread is picked up and 1 tsp oil per ball is soaked up.

Nutrition