Makes 3 or 4 servings
These delicious cakes are quite easy to make in the middle of winter or anytime of the year. Serve them with a side of quinoa topped by sliced green onions. I have grown to love quinoa for its flavour. It’s a whole grain with great protein properties and cooks in the same time as rice. Quinoa was prized by the Incas for it nutritious value. Quinoa originally came from South America and is now grown in Western Canada and the USA. Quinoa seeds have a bitter-tasting coating called saponin that helps protect them from the birds. Most is rinsed off before seeds reach the market but some people are sensitive to the saponin so rinse it if desired. I have never rinsed my quinoa. So it’s up to the individual.
To cook quinoa:
1 cup (250 ml) quinoa added to 1 cup (250 ml) boiling lightly salted water. Cover and simmer on low heat about 18-20 minutes. Fluff it with a fork and leave it to cool part of a salad or any other dish or serve it hot tossed with some butter.
Tuna Fish Cakes
- 170 g canned solid tuna or lump crabmeat
- ½ cup (125 ml) Greek yogurt or mayonnaise
- 1 egg, whisked to blend
- 1 green onion (scallion), finely sliced
- 3 tbsp (45 ml)) finely diced red or green bell pepper
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) finely chopped parsley or dill
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) fresh lemon juice
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Generous pinch cayenne pepper or red chilli flakes
- ¾ cup (175 ml) Panko (Japanese bread crumbs) or 1 cup (250 ml) fresh bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) vegetable oil for frying
1. In bowl, combine tuna fish or crabmeat, mayonnaise, egg, scallion, bell pepper, herb and lemon juice. Add salt to taste (some canned fish products can be salty) and pepper plus cayenne pepper or chilli. Add Panko or fresh breadcrumbs and form fish cakes about 3/4-inch (3 cm) thick. Place cakes about 30 minutes or longer.
2. Heat a large frying pan with oil on medium heat. Fry 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Serve with herb sauce on the side or over the top of cakes.
* To make fresh breadcrumbs, place 1 – 2 bread slices in food processor and process until enough soft crumbs form
Herbed Yogurt Sauce
- 1 cup (250 ml) plain Greek yogurt
- 2 to 3 tbsp finely chopped fresh herbs – parsley or dill
- 1 – 2 tsp lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
Combine ingredients together. Serve with fish cakes.
