Fried Mashed Potato Balls
The following recipe and photography was provided by recipe developer and food photographer, Ashley Durand of Plate & Pen.
Fried mashed potatoes is a recipe I never dreamt I would make, but I’m always down for carbs, and with the holidays coming up, it’s time to change things around.
The secret to perfecting these balls of goodness is to keep the skins on, make them the day before, use an ice cream scoop and chill in the fridge.
I added wild rice, roasted garlic cloves and sweet and hot Cleveland Pickles to the potato mixture and roll them around in crushed panko.
There’s no lack of flavor here and to top it off, I have provided 3 holiday dipping sauces below for a real slam dunk!
Fried Mashed Potato Balls
Servings: 14 Balls
Ingredients
For the Mashed Potato Balls
- 5-6 medium red potatoes, quartered
- 1 cup cooked wild rice
- 1/2 cup sweet and hot pickles, diced
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or oat milk
- 4 garlic cloves, roasted
- 1 Tbsp. black pepper and sea salt
- 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
- 1/4 stick of butter
For the Frying Batter
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup of flour mixed with 1 tsp. cayenne, black pepper and salt
- 1/2 box panko, crushed to make finer
For the Horseradish Dill Cream Sauce
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 2 Tbsp. horseradish
- 2 Tbsp. green onion, minced
- 1 Tbsp. fresh dill, minced
- 1 tsp. black pepper
For the Honey Beer Mustard
- 1/2 cup beer mustard
- 3 Tbsp. honey
For the Brown Gravy
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 tsp. Better Than Beef Bouillon
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tsp. Kitchen Bouquet Browning Sauce
- 1/4 cup cold water mixed with 3 Tbsp. corn starch
Instructions
For the Mashed Potato Balls
- Boil the potatoes with skins on.
- Prepare the wild rice according to package instructions and store in the fridge.
- Drain the potatoes and mix with the remainder of the mashed potato ball ingredients, excluding the wild rice. Cover and set in the fridge over night.
- Remove bowl of mashed potatoes and wild rice from fridge. Combine and mix well.
- Using an ice cream scoop, mold the mashed potato and wild rice mixture into perfect balls. Finish the rolling with your hands and place on a large plate, or greased baking tray.
- Fill a 3-5 qt. pot with vegetable oil. Use only enough oil to cover the balls when frying, about 3 inches deep. Set to medium-high heat until the oil temperature reaches 350°F.
- While the oil is heating, prep the batter station. The first bowl is the seasoned flour, the second is the beaten eggs and the third is the crushed panko.
- Gently roll every ball (I did 2 at a time to make it quicker) in the flour to coat thoroughly, transfer to the egg and then cover entirely in the panko, lightly patting to cover the whole surface of the spheres.
- Transfer balls to the hot oil, about 4 at a time, for 2 minutes, moving them around to make sure the whole surface is evenly fried.
- Set balls aside a paper towel-lined plate and serve with dipping sauces.
Note: Make the mashed potatoes and the wild rice the day before you plan to fry.
For the Horseradish Dill Cream Sauce
- Mix all ingredients together.
For the Honey Beer Mustard
- Mix all ingredients together.
For the Brown Gravy
- In a deep saucepan, add chicken broth, beef broth, beef bouillon, garlic powder, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine.
- If you want a darker color, stir in the Kitchen Bouquet Browning Sauce.
- Combine the water and corn starch and set aside.
- Bring the gravy to a boil and whisk in the corn starch mixture. Continue whisking to ensure the mixture is blended. Allow the gravy to gently simmer until desired thickness is achieved.
- Remove from heat and swirl in a Tbsp. of butter before dipping.
