Tasty Tuna Fishcake Recipe

If you are looking for an easy tuna fishcake recipe, this one is simple to make and very tasty. I like to pair it with sweet potatoes to add a Caribbean flavor to the place. For fish cakes tuna is always a good choice because it is tasty. I tried fresh tuna but actually prefer to use canned tuna because it’s more moist. Flavorwise, they aren’t too different, but obviously canned is a lot more budget-friendly!

Salmon is often used to make fishcakes, both the fresh kind and the canned kind, but tuna is also popular. When making fishcakes it is usually better to use either leftover cooked fish (if it needs to be used up) or canned fish. Save the fresh filets for other recipes because fishcakes have other ingredients in them and canned fish is just as good in there.

Serve this tuna fishcake recipe with tomato and lemon wedges or with some mixed salad leaves or mesclun (mixed baby salad leaves). Because you are serving these as an appetizer, it’s best to limit the amount each person gets and not serve an overly fussy garnish so you don’t make it too filling. I like to serve these nice and hot from the pan.

Victoria Haneveer

Fish Cakes Tuna and Onions

Fish cakes can be simple, complex, or somewhere between the two. This recipe features tuna and green onions, as well as polenta and sweet potato, for an unusually tasty result in every mouthful.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Starter

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

 

• 300 g (10.5 oz) tuna in spring water, flaked
• 2 green onions (spring onions), chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 egg
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 100 g (3 1/2 oz) polenta
• 600 g (1 1/3 lbs) sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

Method

 

1. Simmer the sweet potatoes for 20 minutes, then drain and mash.
2. Add the green onions, tuna and egg.
3. Season with pepper and mix well.
4. Divide the mixture into 8 pieces and shape them into patties.
5. Put the polenta on a plate and use it to dip the fishcakes until they are coated all over.
6. Heat the oil and fry the fish cakes on each side until they are golden.
7. Serve with a tomato salad and lemon wedges.

Fishcakes used to be one clever way of enjoying fish on a budget since the fishcakes could be made with canned or leftover fish, and they were often bulked out with potato, breadcrumbs or other ingredients. These days there are so many ways to make them, and you can use any kind of fish. Add potato or breadcrumbs if you wish, or even seafood, cheese, nuts and other ingredients.

Choose from Thai or Chinese fishcakes, or stick with the traditional British kind. Fishcakes can be fried or baked, coated in batter, breadcrumbs or, in this case, polenta, to yield a lovely crunch on the outside while keeping the filling juicy and succulent. This tuna fishcake recipe is a keeper.

You might also like to check out these winter appetizers or some of these simple yet satisfying  seafood appetizers.

Image courtesy of Annie Mole, on Flickr.com