Love shrimp croquettes? Then you should try these!
Nothing is quite as Flemish as shrimp croquettes. But if you eat vegan, you can forget about them. Mona Delagrange from Bruges was not willing to accept that: she developed croquettes that are just as delicious as shrimp croquettes, but one hundred percent vegan. The secret ingredient?
Seaweed! Mona was looking for something with a salty flavour, but completely plant-based. She spent some time fine-tuning the recipe and now has it down to a tee. Every two weeks, she makes almost 150 croquettes, which she sells through her webshop. It is a side job for the food science student. ‘Five years ago, I decided to become vegan,’ she tells Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws. ‘I had to give up shrimp croquettes, and that was quite hard for me.’
Secret recipe
Mona works one hundred percent traditionally, and she guards her recipe very closely. She starts with a stock whose flavour comes from the seaweed. The stock sets for a few hours, and then Mona turns it into 130 croquettes. They have all already been ordered and paid for through the website, and people can come and collect their order from her. The unusual croquettes are also available in the freezers of two shops in Bruges.
Super-healthy croquette
We should show seaweed a little more respect, Mona believes. It is super healthy: ‘It contains lots of omega-3 fatty acids, it is good for the planet and for people. However, many people are put off by the idea, and I want to change that.’ Fresh wakame salad is already fairly well established, and nori – the sheets wrapped around your sushi – is also widely eaten, but there are many more culinary uses for seaweed, and Mona wants to champion them. Her seaweed currently comes from Spain, because Belgian seaweed is not available. ‘In Spain, it is cultivated on a large scale and with respect for the environment.’
Mona’s croquettes are currently only available in Belgium.
Also read:
- This is the secret behind Sergio’s shrimp croquettes
- Common mistakes when preparing shrimp
- Sushi, no fish: how to make the most delicious vegan sushi
Source: Het Laatste Nieuws
