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Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes)
A thick béchamel with onion, nutmeg and finely ground ham, chilled until firm, rolled into small logs, coated twice in egg and cracker meal and fried deep gold, served with lime.
Cuban · medium · serves 8
prep 45 min · cook 30 min · plus 4 h hands-off time
~320 cal · 16g protein · 11g carbs · 24g fat · 1g fiber · 3g sugars · 7g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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A Cuban croqueta is a small cylinder, about the length of a finger, of very thick béchamel bound with finely ground ham, rolled in cracker crumbs and fried until deep gold. Outside it shatters; inside it is soft and creamy. The croqueta came to Cuba from Spain, and Cuban cooks made it their own with sweet cooked ham and a coating of galleta molida, crushed crackers, instead of breadcrumbs.
Croquetas are the little bite of Cuban life. They are passed round on trays before dinner at baptisms, birthdays and Nochebuena, sold by the dozen from cafeteria counters, and eaten any time of day. In Havana, cheap croquetas were once a fixture of cafeterias and restaurants. After 1968, when the state took over the last small private businesses, croqueta-making went with them, and home-style croquetas came back to the counters only when private cafeterias reappeared from 2011.
The trick is the béchamel. It has to be stiff enough to hold its shape once cold, so it is cooked until it pulls away from the pan, then chilled for hours before shaping. A double coat of egg and crumbs stops the croquetas bursting in the oil. They are served hot, with a squeeze of lime, often with saltine crackers on the side.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally nut-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 8
- 4 tbsp (55 g) butter
- 1/2 cup onion, grated or very finely chopped
- 1/2 cup (65 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) whole milk, warmed
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tbsp dry sherry, optional
- 450 g (1 lb) cooked ham, very finely ground in a food processor
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
- to taste salt and white pepper, go easy on salt; the ham is salty
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 1/2 cups cracker meal (galleta molida) or finely crushed saltine crackers
- 4 cups vegetable oil, for deep frying
- 1 lime lime wedges, to serve
Instructions
- 1Melt the butter in a heavy pan over medium heat and cook the onion for 3 minutes until soft and translucent. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes without letting it brown.
- 2Pour in the warm milk a little at a time, whisking hard after each addition, then add the nutmeg and sherry. Keep stirring for 5 to 8 minutes until the sauce is very thick and comes away from the sides of the pan.
- 3Stir in the ham and parsley and cook for 2 minutes more. Taste and season with white pepper, and salt only if it needs it. Spread in a dish, press plastic wrap onto the surface and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight until firm.✎ Chef’s noteThe mixture must be cold and stiff to shape. If it is still soft, stir in a spoonful or two of cracker meal.
- 4With damp hands, roll heaped tablespoons of the mixture into logs about 7 cm (3 in) long. Dip each in the beaten egg, roll in cracker meal, then dip and roll a second time.✎ Chef’s noteThe double coat seals them. A bare patch lets the filling leak into the oil.
- 5Heat the oil in a deep pot to 175C (350F). Fry the croquetas a few at a time for 2 to 3 minutes, turning, until deep golden all over. Drain on paper and serve hot with lime wedges.
Cuban tradition (from the Spanish croqueta).
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Havana. Havana has a Chinese quarter that the rest of the island does not. Contract labourers arrived from southern China from the middle of the nineteenth century, and the Barrio Chino and the restaurants around it left a mark on the capital's cooking you will not find out in the provinces.
🗺️
Cuba. Moros y cristianos means Moors and Christians, and the name describes the method: black beans cooked together with the rice so the grains take the colour. That is not the same plate as congri, which uses red beans, and neither is the same as serving beans over rice from a separate pot. Ropa vieja arrived by way of the Canary Islands, and the traditional mojo is sour orange rather than lime.
🌍
North America. North America's table began with Indigenous foodways, the "three sisters" of corn, beans, and squash, plus chiles, tomatoes, and cacao, then layered on colonial, African, and immigrant influences. From Mexico's UNESCO-recognized cuisine to the Cajun and Creole pots of Louisiana and the fiery jerk of the Caribbean, the region turns ancient staples into something new. Barbecue, tacos, gumbo, and mole all carry stories of migration and adaptation.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Cuba
Ropa ViejaBeef braised and shredded into a rich tomato-pepper sofrito, Cuba’s national dish, named "old clothes."
Moros y CristianosBlack beans and white rice cooked together in one pot with a cumin-scented sofrito until every grain turns dusky and savory, the everyday soul of the Cuban table.
Tostada Cubana con Café con LecheButtered Cuban bread pressed flat and crisp, cut into batons for dunking into sweet, milky espresso, the quintessential Havana breakfast.
Browse all Cuba recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
Make it a Cuba meal
MojitoDrink
Pastelitos de GuayabaDessert
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Frequently asked questions
What is Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes)?
A thick béchamel with onion, nutmeg and finely ground ham, chilled until firm, rolled into small logs, coated twice in egg and cracker meal and fried deep gold, served with lime.
Where does Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) come from?
Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) is a Cuban dish from Havana, Cuba.
Can Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes) take to make?
About 5 h 15 min in all: 45 minutes prep and 30 minutes cooking, plus 4 h of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 8.
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