tuna rissoles

Easter is coming up so today’s recipe is a fish recipe. Fish is a bit expensive here where we live, so our fish for the week is more often than not a tin of tuna.

A tin of tuna is $1.99, add the vegies and egg and this dish is around $4.00 (maximum, I’m being generous here) plus salad for a family of four.

I love my tuna rissoles, we make enough to have on sandwiches during the week. The recipe has been adapted from the Family Circle Cooking, A Commonsense Guide (salmon patties), although my version is quite different from what you will read in the book. I like to hide vegetables in my cooking to add to the nutritional value and bulk up the recipe to make it go further. Serves 4.

Method

1. Cook rice until tender. Drain. (Can use leftover rice).
2. Combine the tuna, rice, onion, vegetables, parsley and egg in a bowl. Squeeze in the juice from 1/2 a lemon and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir well to combine, breaking up the tuna chunks. Use your hands to mix it really well, smushing it all together.
3. If the mixture is too wet, add some breadcrumbs to get a consistency that holds together. Roll golf ball size amounts into patties or rissoles, press lightly to flatten.
4. Roll the rissoles in breadcrumbs until well coated. Place the rissoles in the fridge for 1/2 hour to firm up.
5. Heat oil in a fry pan to moderately high heat and cook rissoles until golden. Drain on paper towel.
6. Serve with salad or vegetables and mayonnaise.

Variations

• Use brown rice rather than white for extra fibre. The brown rice will need longer to cook.
• Instead of rice, try mash potato, about two medium spuds, or three small ones.
• Substitute salmon for the tuna or some gently steamed white fish.
• For a more lemony flavour, add more juice or grate some of the lemon rind into the mix.
• Add other types of vegetables such as corn kernels to the mix to bulk it up and make it go further.
• For an adult flavour, add some chopped capers and serve with a garlic aioli.
• I like to cook with macadamia nut oil as I have an inexpensive supply of freshly cold pressed oil (not chemically extracted). Macadamia nut oil has a lovely nutty flavour, is 85% monounsaturated (olive oil is about 75%), good for lowering cholesterol, has a high smoke point (210°C) so is good for frying (oh, and is native to Australia and is grown here where I live!) I also like to add a little butter for flavour.

Have you read these posts?

1. tuna noodle bake
2. Best Ever Rissoles
3. Tuna Mornay Plus
4. Tuna Burritos
5. Easy Fried Rice