Try this tasty Asian dish with rice salad side
Ingredients
For the fishcakes:
- 450 g15¾ oz fresh tuna
- 1 tbsp Thai red curry paste
- 1 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
- 1 lime leaf, finely sliced
- 2 spring onions, chopped
- 1 medium egg, lightly beaten
- Sunflower oil for frying
For the coriander dipping sauce:
- 1 /2 red chilli, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 small clove of garlic, crushed
- 2 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1 tbsp chopped coriander
For the salad:
- 400 g14 oz Thai fragrant (jasmine) rice
- 4 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp caster sugar
- 1 bunch of spring onions, finely sliced
- 1 /2 red pepper, cut into 2.5 cm strips
- 1 /2 cucumber, halved lengthways, deseeded and finely sliced
- 2 long red chillies, halved, deseeded and finely sliced
- A large handful each of basil, mint and coriander leaves
Method: How to make Tuna and coriander patties with coriander dipping sauce and Asian rice salad
To make the salad:
Place the rice in a sieve and rinse under cold water for a couple of minutes (this removes any excess starch, which can make the cooked rice gloopy and heavy). Place the rice in a saucepan with a pinch of salt and 550ml water.
Bring to the boil and cover with a tight fitting lid. Reduce the heat to low and leave the rice to cook for 10 minutes before removing the pan from the heat. Don't lift off the lid. Just leave the rice to continue cooking in the pan for a further 5 to 10 minutes. Fluff up the rice with a fork then tip out onto a baking tray, loosely spreading it to cool down. The rice should only take about 15 minutes to reach room temperature then place it in the fridge to chill.
Once the rice is cold, gently heat the rice vinegar, caster sugar and a pinch of salt in a small pan, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Transfer the rice to a large bowl and stir in the sweetened rice vinegar along with the spring onion, red pepper, cucumber, chilli and herbs. The salad is now ready.
To make the dipping sauce:
Mix everything together and leave for about 30 minutes for all the flavours to infuse.
To make the fishcakes:
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blitz briefly to form a smooth paste. Divide into about 16 balls, and flatten each one to a dish about 6 cm in diameter.
Heat oil in a frying pan of about 1 cm depth. Fry the fishcakes in batches for about 1 minute each side until golden. Drain on kitchen paper and serve with the rice salad and coriander dipping sauce.
