Fish Cakes (2024)

FAQs

How do you make fish cakes not fall apart? ›

Use a potato that is floury, starchy. Breadcrumbs will also work. Up the egg content if using. Especially if you are using pre cooked fish, all the sticky stuff that is contained within fish will have gone, so you need to replace this with a starch or some sort.

OVEN Fan 180°C / Electric 200°C / Gas 6 From chilled 18-20 minutes. From frozen 30-35 minutes Place on a baking tray on the middle shelf of a preheated oven for the time specified. Ensure product is thoroughly cooked and piping hot throughout. Do not reheat Not suitable for microwave cooking.

Fish cakes are made from ground fish and flour or starch that is formed into small loafs and then steamed or fried. Fish cakes are used in a variety of Japanese dishes such as soups and stews, appetizers and boxed lunches. In the olden days, this fish cake was formed around bamboo (chiku) skewers and cooked.

Eggs and cracker crumbs will help bind everything together below a drift of spice. Make sure to leave some time to chill the resulting patties in the refrigerator – the cold will help them set up so they don't fall apart in the sauté pan.

Refrigerate The Mix, Use A Sheet Pan

The cooler temperature of the mix will help everything stick together better when the patties are pan-fried, crisping them up nicely. If you have a lot of salmon patties to make, you can even forgo the pan altogether and bake them on a sheet tray in the oven.

Add vegetable oil to a frying pan until it around 1cm deep. Heat this until a small piece of fishcake dropped in starts to bubble. Fry the fishcakes a few at a time until the base is golden, flip them and repeat with the other side. Keep flipping until the fishcakes are a deep brown colour (but not burnt).

TIP: Make sure your mixture is not to wet, you will need to form patties from it. If it is too wet, add a little flour.

My trick here is to let them stand in the colander for a few minutes after you drain the water. This dries out the potato flesh making them extra fluffy and preventing the fish cakes from falling apart when cooking.

Adding egg gives the Thai fish cakes a rubbery texture which some people like. I recommend trying these fish cakes without the egg binder though. The fish patties stay together anyway so no binder is needed.

Because of its high fat content, whole milk is better than water or wine at absorbing flavor. It readily draws in the essence of the herbs, garlic, or any other aromatics you might throw into it, taking on the qualities more quickly and intensely.

What is the pink stuff in fish cakes? ›

This processed roll is primarily made of frozen surimi (processed, pureed whitefish), while the pink swirl comes from food coloring.

It contains plenty of omega-3 and counts towards your two recommended portions of oily fish per week.

A classic choice is breadcrumbs, but you could integrate crushed up crackers, almond flour, or even mashed (or smashed) potatoes into your fish cake mix. Not only will these ingredients help to hold your fish cake together; they'll help to keep your cakes from becoming dense pucks of protein.

But there are a few ways to help put that problem to rest. Firstly, make sure you're using something to bind your ingredients together – like an egg. Secondly, use a firm fish when making your fish cakes, and thirdly you can always add cornflour or panko breadcrumbs to help your fish cakes stay together.

Drizzle fish with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place on a rimmed baking sheet, skin side down if you've left the skin on. Roast fish for 10 minutes per inch of thickness, until the fish is opaque and tender when pierced with a fork but before it starts to flake.