Fish Cakes (Burmese)

I don't have a food processor, so I always find these a little labour-intensive as I have to grind the fish by hand. But, with the appropriate appliances, this is a very easy dish to make. Very different from what I grew up calling "fish cakes", which really seem to be more like fish croquettes with their mashed potato and crispy breading. Both are good, but I think I'd give the edge to these Burmese fish cakes with their mouth-watering aromatics and the tendency to let the fish really take centre stage and shine.

Fish Cakes

From Burma: Rivers of Flavor by Naomi Duguid

Ingredients

• 225g tilapia (or other white fish) fillets, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. minced shallots
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp. minced ginger
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• canola (or other neutral) oil, for frying

Directions

1. Combine fish chunks, shallots, garlic, ginger, and salt in a bowl or food processor. Mash, grind, or process the fish until it's broken down and the mixture is as smooth and homogenous as possible.
2. Lightly oil a plate and set it next to you.
3. Working with ~1 Tbsp. of the fish mixture at a time, shape it into a smooth ball, flatten it into a disc about 4cm across, and set on the oiled plate.
4. Once all of the fish mixture has been used up, heat ~0.5cm of oil over medium-high heat.
5. Carefully pick up a fish cake and slide it into the oil. Keep adding patties to the pan until it starts seeming too crowded to add more.
6. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.
7. Once patties are cooked through and golden on both sides, remove from pan and allow to drain off excess oil. (You can hold them over the pan in a spider for a minute or fit a small rack over one side of the pan/wok where they can sit and drain.)
8. Transfer cooked fish cakes to a plate to cool.

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Variations

Fish Balls

Ingredients

as above

Directions

1. Make fish mixture as above.
2. Working with ~1/2 Tbsp. of fish mixture, shape it into a small ball and set it on the oiled plate. Repeat until all of the fish mixture has been used.
3. Bring a pot of broth or water to a boil.
4. Drop the fish balls in and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. Fish balls may be eaten immediately or frozen for later use.

FODMAP-Friendly Version

Ingredients

• 225g tilapia (or other white fish) fillets, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. minced scallion, green parts only
• 1 tsp. minced ginger
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• Garlic Oil, for frying