NOTE: Sorry I got this out late. My allergies have really been tough lately!
It's a Friday in Lent. For me, and, well, every Friday, that means it's fish day. I think I've finally found something I can dress up or down and change around enough so that I have a simple go-to recipe for when I'm stumped about what to eat on Friday. And I usually have all the ingredients on hand unless it's just before a shopping day.
First things first. Wash your hands. Since this is a home kitchen, I don't wear gloves, but I do wash my hands thoroughly and often. I use Hibiclens periodically. It was recommended by my daughter's pediatrician. That's what I used this morning just because I haven't refilled the regular liquid soap dispenser. But anyway, however you do it, wash your hands, because I'm telling you right now I don't stand on ceremony. We're going to be shaping these tuna patties by hand. No special tools needed. Just your mitts. So be prepared.
I'm not going to put a picture of little bowls of ingredients and go through the measurement of each one because I don't measure very much. You start with two cans of tuna which you have thoroughly drained and one cup of bread crumbs. I like to make my own bread crumbs. We're going to put in two large eggs in a bit, and that's pretty much all I measure for this. Pretty much everything else is to taste, but I'll give you can idea of what I do. I dice up about half of an onion, it depends on how much you like onion. I have this vegetable chopper thing (I might do a post about that later on) that can dice things up really small. If you dice it really small it cooks up nicely with the patty so it's not too raw when you've fried these up. Then the dumping of the spices starts. I do tend to measure out 1/2 teaspoon salt just because I don't like too much salt but the rest is pretty much sprinkle in. Things like: garlic powder, onion powder, turmeric, chili flakes, parsley, etc. The things you like. No more than about one teaspoon of each I should say. Go easy on the hot spices if you're not into the hot foods so much. Things like cumin also go good with tuna. Again, pick and choose according to your taste. I also like to sprinkle in some Chipotle Tabasco. I love that stuff. Maybe any amount up to about two teaspoons? Maybe more, I just pour it in. I go heavy on the parsley, too, as the dried parsley flakes I've got tend to be a bit bland. Beat up your eggs separately and then pour those in, and mix everything up. Get everything distributed evenly. Almost forgot! The cheese. Cheese is important. The first time I made these I had some Gouda on hand and shredded that up with a grater and dumped it in. Somewhere around four ounces. Again, to your taste. The 2nd and 3rd time I made these I only had the plastic can sprinkle Parm on hand, but that turned out reasonably well, probably about 1/2 cup of that. I usually put that in before the eggs but don't stress too much about the order you put things in. Just make sure it's mixed well before you start making the patties. Also, the original recipe I got the idea from (I got this idea from The Cooking Foodie's Tuna Patty recipe, but mine is quite different) called for rolled oats instead of bread crumbs. If that's what you've got, try it. I guess cracker crumbs or maybe a crushed up corn flake cereal would work too? Anything that you would put into meatloaf as a filler would probably work. Who knows? I've been baking a lot so I usually have bread crumbs on hand. Just go for it.
| Form the stuff into patties. It's hard to tell you how much to use for each patty, I fill up my palm, probably 1/4 cup or a bit less worth of the tuna mixture, then I flatten it out and form it into a round patty about 1/4 to 1/2 inch think. Somewhere in between those two measurements. Make it as thin as you can but have it still be a pretty solid patty. Like I said at the start, I just use my hands. I have a tray or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper ready for the formed patties. I do all the patties first and then start frying them. In fact, I've taken to making them earlier in the day and keeping them in the fridge until I'm ready to cook them at dinner time. They take about 3-4 minutes per side, fried on med-high in some olive oil. I usually get about 9 of them out of this recipe. I'm sure I flip mine more than once just because I want to make sure they're pretty evenly browned on both sides. Place cooked patties on paper towel to drain. They're good warm or cool, and they freeze well and re-heat well. Just look at your finished patties for a moment. Easy, peasy. But what to serve with them? |   |
I recently made a huge batch of Polenta and spread it in a rectangle casserole dish and chilled it and cut it into pieces. For some reason in my mind I've associated this Polenta with the Tuna Patties. Maybe it's because the pan is already hot and the Polenta is so good fried up in some olive oil. Crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside. Just make sure the pan is still hot before you put the Polenta in or you'll get a mushy but partially crispy mess.
Since it's Lent, and Fridays in general are penitential for us, I try to keep things simple and not flashy. The Polenta fits the bill perfectly. A salad would also be good, or some sliced tomato. I also make a sauce out of mayo, tomato paste and sweet relish to put on the patties. Hot sauce is also a popular condiment for these. Cocktail or tartar sauce would probably also be good but I don't tend to keep these things on hand.
Since it's Lent, and Fridays in general are penitential for us, I try to keep things simple and not flashy. The Polenta fits the bill perfectly. A salad would also be good, or some sliced tomato. I also make a sauce out of mayo, tomato paste and sweet relish to put on the patties. Hot sauce is also a popular condiment for these. Cocktail or tartar sauce would probably also be good but I don't tend to keep these things on hand.
Well, there's the long and short of it. I hope if you try these, they work out great for you. The main thing is not to stress, and to make them to your taste.
PLEASE NOTE:
Since this is Lent, I'm kind of taking a halfway break from some social media and online things. To that end, this is going to be my last post until Lent is over. Have a blessed Lent, and pray very hard for our world. Things are more complicated than the MSM would have you believe and many everyday people are going to be hurt because people at the top want to play games with people's lives. Ciao for now.
PLEASE NOTE:
Since this is Lent, I'm kind of taking a halfway break from some social media and online things. To that end, this is going to be my last post until Lent is over. Have a blessed Lent, and pray very hard for our world. Things are more complicated than the MSM would have you believe and many everyday people are going to be hurt because people at the top want to play games with people's lives. Ciao for now.
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