A glass of bubbles in one hand, a smoked salmon cakes in the other. That sounds like a beautiful way to kick off the New Years Eve celebrations. The key to these little starters is to keep them bite sized. When you’ve got a busy schedule, these cakes help maximise time. You can make them in advance and pop them in the fridge. Then simply panfry and serve once your guests have arrived! The original recipe for these smoked salmon cakes was beautifully crafted from leftovers in the fridge – a little mash, some salmon and voila! This great appetiser was born. I adore resourceful recipes that are adapted over the years.
If you have some smoked kawahai, trevally or even smoked trout, replace the salmon and it’ll be equally delicious! Drain your potatoes well as they are the key to light, fluffy cakes. I like to mix a little cream through the mash, just a tablespoon. It helps gives the cakes a little fat to hold together and a little flavour. I am fond of the yoghurt sauce, however for the dairy-free among you, it can be swapped for a mayonnaise. That said, a good squeeze of lemon is classic and unwaveringly good.
Ingredients
- 300gm potatoes, boiled and mashed together with a little cream
- 300gm smoked salmon, flaked
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, diced
- 1 spring onion, finely sliced
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 cups breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup unsweetened Greek yoghurt
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 handful fresh dill, roughly chopped
Instructions
Put mashed potato, smoked fish, quarter of a cup of mayonnaise, zest from 1 lemon, 1 clove garlic, spring onions, parsley, salt and pepper in a bowl. Gently mix together and shape into 30 little patties. Chill for half an hour then dip in egg and coat lightly in breadcrumbs. Pop back in the fridge for 10 minutes or so to firm them up.
In a blender, whizz together the greek yoghurt, second bunch of garlic cloves, lemon juice and fresh dill. Blend until smooth, season to taste.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large frying pan and fry fish cakes in batches for a minute each side or until golden. Serve with a dollop of the yoghurt and a sprinkling of fresh herbs. A small piece of smoked salmon on top is a lovely touch too, but completely optional.
