Ten Fun Facts About the Dutch Croquette

Since 2014, National Croquette Day has been celebrated every year in the Netherlands on 9 October. That day coincides with the birthday of Johannes van Dam. This culinary journalist loved the croquette and wrote The Croquette Book.

The ‘kroket’ (croquette) is a deep fried roll with meat ragout inside, covered in breadcrumbs. The original Dutch croquette is made from beef or veal, but there are many different flavors like chicken satay, shrimps, goulash or even a vegetarian version. You can eat a croquette as a snack, but most of the time they are served on sliced white bread or hamburger buns with mustard on the side.

There are quite a few fun facts to tell about this typical Dutch snack.

1. The croquette is not a Dutch, but a French invention. In 1691 the cook of Louis XIV wrote a recipe for ‘croquets’.

2. Croquette is derived from the French word ‘croquer’, which means nibbling.

3. The first croquettes had the size of an egg.

4. Before the twentieth century the croquette was a luxury product for the wealthy bourgeoisie.

5. The Dutch eat croquettes from around the year 1830 onwards.

6. In the Netherlands, 300 million croquettes are eaten every year. That is an average of 25 per Dutchman.

7. Former Prime Minister Balkenende introduced the ‘croquette motion’: every municipal councillor is entitled to a croquette if the council meeting lasts until after 11 o’clock in the evening.

8. The croquette is the second most popular snack in the Netherlands. Fries are the most popular snack.

9. The largest croquette ever made was 1.3 metres long and weighed no less than 250 kilograms.

10. The world record for eating croquettes is 68 croquettes in one hour. Who challenges the record holder…?

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