When you have had a taste of a Maritime Fish Cake it is hard to deny the amazing taste and comfort it brings. I have searched for a traditional Maritime Fish Cakes recipe for a long time and found a variation of this one in a NY Times cooking post.
The secret to amazing Maritime Fish Cakes is poaching the white fish (Cod or halibut) in a milk bath. This gives the fish a nice creamy texture. It locks the moisture into the fish and prevents the drying out of the fish cake. Furthermore, it is a very British cooking method. The Maritimes is a British settlement granting a subtle nod to the ancestry.
Serve these cakes with Maritime Chow for the complete traditional serving.
Traditional Maritime Fish Cakes
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Ingredients
- 1 lb of Halibut
- 1 cup of white milk
- 3 Medium Russet Potatoes
- Salt and Pepper
- 3 Tbsp Butter
- 3 Green Onions thinly sliced
- 3 Eggs
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp fresh parsley
- 1/4 tsp lemon zest
- 1 cup dried bread crumbs
- 4 tbsp of vegetable oil
Instructions
- Soak your halibut in the milk for an hour in the fridge.
- Place milk and fish in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 7 minutes until fish is cooked and flakes easily. Remove from milk, set aside to cool.
- Peel, slice, and boil the potatoes until soft. Drain and process through a ricer to remove any lumps. Add the butter, salt and pepper and mix.
- Add the green onions, flaked fish, Worcestershire sauce, lemon zest fresh parsley and 1 egg. Mix to throughly combine.
- Using a small slider hamburger press or your hand, form the fish cakes into 8 equal portions and flatten to about 1.5″ thick placing on a parchment covered baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and set in the fridge to firm up for about an hour.
- Place the remaining 2 eggs in a shallow bowl and whip with a fork. Add the breadcrumbs to a separate shallow bowl.
- When the cakes are easy to handle, dip both sides into the egg mixture then dredge in the breadcrumbs. Set aside and repeat for all cakes.
- Place the vegetable oil in a shallow fry pan and fry the cakes until brown on both sides. approx 2=3 minutes per side.
- Serve warm.
Notes
To freeze these cakes, after you have coated them with the bread crumbs, place them in a freezer ziplock with wax paper dividing each cake. Freeze for up to 3 months.
