Jade: Bitemycroquettes

I tend to go on forever about what an amazing cook my mum is. And you know what, I do believe it's time for my dad to get some much deserved credit too. You see, if anyone loves experimenting in the kitchen, it's my papa. When we were still in school, my sister and I used to be secretly pleased whenever my mum had to go out of town because it meant pa would be doing the cooking. And as with all macho men, the terms less oil and low salt were considered almost blasphemous. So we'd have oozing soft boiled eggs for breakfast..salmonella who?; for lunch, pa's fried rice with not one, but 3 eggs, yolks included! And for dinner, glistening hunks of barbecued ribs bathed in pa's special marinade...Come to think of it..we still get secretly excited when my dad heads into the kitchen these days;)

One of his concoctions that I love but my mum loathes with a passion are his 'faux meatballs'..luncheon meat croquettes essentially..My mum is from the school of thought that meatballs should contain meat. Well I checked the can, and luncheon meat contains 62% of the stuff. I like tinned food. I also like tuna and sardines that come in a can. Don't judge me.

Pa's luncheon meat croquettes [ The taiwanese call it 'ke le bing'. Now 'ke le' in Mandarin means Coke and for years I could not understand how a soft drink was related to a meat and potato patty..Then it hit me the other day that it was just a really lousy literal translation of croquettes. So those of you who were confused like I was, there you go. Mystery solved.]

1 portion mashed potato [mine was leftover from the stew. I don't like wasting food]

Slightly less than half a can of Maling luncheon meat

1 shallot, finely chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

1 beaten egg

Panko breadcrumbs

Kewpie mayo to drizzle

1. Heat up some oil and sautéed shallots till soft. Set aside

2. Mash luncheon meat and mix with potatoes

3. Add cooled shallots, and season to taste

4. Chill for about an hour

5. Once the mixture has firmed up, shape into nice thick patties, dip in egg and coat generously with panko breadcrumbs

6. Heat up some oil. I hate deep frying so I shallow fried these, but if you have a deep fat fryer and don't mind grotty coronaries, go crazy with the oil.

7. Fry until the patty turns a nice golden brown

8. Drain, plate, drizzle with kewpie mayo..or any mayo for that matter.. and enjoy..crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside...Still not as good as the one pa makes though......then again, he doesn't have a problem with deep frying.