Mankind has been dealing with leftover rice for a long time. While some common uses for old rice are fried rice and congee (rice porridge), rice cakes are also a great way to clean out the fridge. Many variations of rice cakes are made using leftover rice that’s pressed together and steamed or pan-fried. When ingredients are mixed into the rice cake, they often take on a different name, fritter.
In putting together this recipe, I looked to create a dish that has an ideal macronutrient ratio (40% fat, 30% protein, 30% carb), which I achieved by mixing in fish and an egg yolk, and pan-frying them in coconut oil. They came out great, and I plan on using this recipe as a baseline for future creations.
Serves two
1 lb cooked white fish meat (catfish, cod, halibut, etc)
1 cup warm, cooked white rice
1 egg yolk
1 shallot, minced
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
1/4 tsp turmeric
Update: after going through my notes I realized that I initially didn’t highlight the importance of using warm rice when putting everything together. I apologize to anyone that made the fritters and had issues with getting the cakes to stick together!
I apparently was so excited to take this picture that I forgot to include the turmeric. Sorry about that.
During next week’s post I’ll write an in-depth description of how I got my white fish meat (I got them from these two beauties above). But for now you could use any filets of white fish that you get at the market. Canned fish works okay as well.
Combine all of your ingredients and form into six flat cakes. Put them in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up a little.
The rest is easy – warm up a couple tbsp of coconut oil in a skillet or frying pan on medium/high heat, the fry the cakes until golden brown, flipping once. It should take about three minutes per side. You could probably bake them at 400 degrees for about 10-15 minutes as well.
That’s it! Super easy and tasty meal or quick-fix snack when you’re looking for a healthy and satisfying snack. Feel free to experiment with add-ins, like scallions, garlic, ginger, chopped dried mushrooms, etc.
The Domestic Man 
Woah these would be awesome to bring for a post workout meal. Carbs, protein and omega 3’s? Snap.
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Yeah dude, I was thinking the same thing.
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just to clarify……..the fish is also pre-cooked right??
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Sharon, you’re right, I meant pre-cooked fish. I’ll make the change now. It’s funny, I can stare at a recipe all day and miss the most basic concepts sometimes! Thanks for the catch.
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no problem!! thanks for recipe!
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I didn’t think rice was allowed in Paleo
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I follow a Perfect Health Diet (perfecthealthdiet.com) approach to eating Paleo, which includes safe starches like white rice.
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Thanks I am new to this so will read more about all the rules on Paleo & Primal
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I love how much thought you put in to it
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I really want to make this like now. I am trying to eat more fish in general because chicken and stuff is becoming a bit bland. Thanks for the great idea!
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I don’t eat white rice. Could this work with cauliflower rice?
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Amy, yep, cauliflower rice should be okay. You might want to steam it first to make sure it cooks through when frying.
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Two questions: would tilapia work? What about salmon? The kids are generally not fond of white fish, but will eat salmon…ok three questions: any chance I could put this in a lunchbox and not make my kid sick? I know little about fish except that we need to eat more.
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Hi Kelly, I wouldn’t put fish in a lunchbox unless it’s been cured (i.e. shelf-stable smoked salmon) or dried. Salmon or tilapia would work fine with this recipe!
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This is smart cooking! And pretty fish… looking forward to that next post :)
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Does the fish have to be cold?
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Sorry for the late reply, the fish should be at least mostly cold.
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I tried to make these but they wouldn’t hold together. I added another yolk but that didn’t help. Then I put the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes to see if it would firm up enough to make patties. That didn’t help, either. I guess I’ll just press it into a greased casserole and bake it. Any ideas on this problem?
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Sheila, the only thing I can think of is that the heat wasn’t high enough on your skillet?
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Soooo tasty looking. I think leftover chicken and tomato salsa, jalapeno would be great too. I’m gonna try it.
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Rayca, you’re right, that does sound pretty good!
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This came out YUK for me. Fried rice and fish is what I got. How do you make rice stick together? One egg yolk sure didn’t do it. Wet hands didn’t do it. Oh well.
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Guys, I went back to my notes for this dish and realized that I had used warm rice. After looking at a few other similar recipes that I found, it looks like warm rice helps bind better than cold rice. So I’m adjusting the recipe a bit to highlight this change. I’ll also be sure to try this recipe again in the near future to make sure that I’m doing it right. I apologize for anyone that had issues getting the cakes to bind!
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its realy very deliciouse with simple sizling
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