Fried cheese balls – Keto version of Greek Tirokroketes
Fried cheese balls could be the tastiest bites you’ll ever try in Greece. In fact, if you ask me what is the food I would present to aliens if they landed in Greece, I would choose Tirokroketes. That is if the aliens would be ok with gluten, carbs and beer. Naturally, I am joking here. However, I am very serious about my connection with this unmatchable treat of my childhood!
Fried cheese balls, – Ketonisation process
The original version is, as you might guess, loaded with flour and gluten. Unfortunately, this is a thing that cannot be avoided in any cuisine when we talk about croquettes. The breading process has been Ketonised by many Ketonians. We simply replaced flour and bread crumbs with flaxseed, ground nuts, almond flour and even pork rinds. But in this version, I’ll go even further and add grated Parmesan.
So, there’s no reason we can’t make fried cheese balls Keto friendly. Furthermore, our binding agent will not be wheat flour but our old friend psyllium that has many health benefits and serves as the most natural gluten replacement.
How to make deep frying healthy
How to make deep frying healthyThis quick and easy recipe calls for deep frying. But, if you choose your frying oil carefully, you’ll be on the safe side. As we already know, nothing beats coconut oil when it comes to high temperatures. On the other hand, seems like the olive oil, if used for the first time, can also serve as a great frying oil. However, never reuse it. Once you’ve fried with it, throw it and stay safe!
Shall we jump to the recipe?
Tirokroketes - fried cheese balls
Ingredients
- 100 g (1/2 cup) Feta cheese crumbled
- 150 g (2/3 cup) Gouda grated
- 100 g (1/2 cup) Matured hard cheese grated
- 1 large egg free-range
- 1 medium egg white free-range
- 2 tbsp almond flour
- 1 tbsp coconut flour
- 1 tbsp psyllium
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp lemon juice organic
- 1 tsp black pepper freshly ground
Breading mixture
- 2 tbsp sesame flour
- 1 tbsp almond flour
- 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese finely grated
Oil for frying
- 200 ml (1 cup) coconut oil extra virgin
- 100 ml (1/2 cup) olive oil extra virgin
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients into a medium bowl, season well with freshly ground pepper and blend with your hands.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This will help the mixture to firm up a bit and make it easier to roll into balls
- Combine sesame flour, almond flour and parmesan cheese and place this mixture on a wide plate.
- Damp your hand in water and start forming cheese balls from the refrigerated cheese mixture. Dredge each ball in the mixture for breading.
- Heat the oil mixture until very hot and fry the balls in batches until they turn golden brown. If the surface of the pan is overcrowded then the temperature of the oil will decrease and your cheese balls will not be crispy
- Place the fried cheese balls on some kitchen paper to absorb the extra oil.
- Serve the cheese balls while they are still hot. You can sprinkle them with some extra lemon juice.
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