If you follow me on Instagram you will know I have been experimenting with different ways to make Sri Lankan style fish cutlets. Particularly baked fish cutlets, in my effort to make them healthier. These baked fish cutlets are perfect for parties, picnics or barbecues and work well accompanied with a dip or chutney.
What are Sri Lankan style fish cutlets?
Fish cutlets are savoury snacks.
When I was young, my mum used to make these when we had guests over for dinner. We would eat these as our pre-dinner snack. My mum would have a production line of bowls and plates going for mashing and mixing the fish, potato and spices, moulding the cutlets into evenly shaped balls, coating with bread crumbs, before taking on the task of deep frying.
Are fish cutlets always deep fried?
Most recipes for Sri Lankan fish cutlets will call for deep-frying. I have been experimenting with making baked fish cutlets to cut down on calories. This recipe works the best yielding a crispy crumb, with a soft and spicy filling. I hope you like it.
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Baked fish cutlets, healthy Sri Lankan food
- Prep Time: 120
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 24 – 28 cutlets 1x
- Category: Starter, snack
- Cuisine: Sri Lankan
Description
This recipe for baked fish cutlets is a healthier version of the traditional Sri Lankan recipe for fish cutlets which are normally deep fried. Sri Lankan baked fish cutlets are perfect for parties, picnics and barbecues, best served with a dip or chutney.
Ingredients
- 500g potatoes
- 425g tinned fish (mackerel or tuna)
- 1 red onion, finely chopped
- 2 green chillis, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Juice of one freshly squeezed line
- Vegetable oil spray
- Plain flour for coating
- 1 or 2 eggs (beaten)
- 120g Panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil.
- Peel and cut the potatoes into quarters before placing gently into the boiling water. Boil the potatoes until a skewer glides easily through the potato chunks. Take the saucepan off the flame, drain the potatoes and set aside.
- Drain the tinned fish, tip into a colander rinse with cold water, removing any stray bones.
- Tip the fish into a bowl, along with the potatoes, and using the back of a fork, mash the fish and potatoes together.
- Now add the onion, chilli, spices, fresh coriander, salt, and lime juice and mix together until fully incorporated.
- Pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees Celcius.
- Start to shape the cutlets. Take a fistful of the fish and potato mix, and mould into a ball (about the size of a golf ball), before flattening the top and the bottom until you have a fat stubby, chubby disc.
- Mould all the fish cutlets, set aside before you start the task of coating and baking.
- Coat the base of a large solid bottomed frying pan with a couple of squirts of vegetable oil spray.
- Tip Panko breadcrumbs into the frying pan, an on low heat gently cook them until they turn a golden brown. Then tip the toasted breadcrumbs onto a plate.
- Now assemble your cutlet coating production line.
- You will need two plates – one for the flour, another for the breadcrumbs, a bowl for the beaten egg and a couple of baking trays (sprayed with cooking spray).
- In this order, coat each of the cutlets with flour, egg, then breadcrumbs before placing directly on the baking tray.
- Spray the cutlets with the vegetable oil before baking for around 30 minutes at 200 degrees Celcius. Halfway through, turn the tray around, to ensure the cutlets are browned evenly.
- Take out of the oven, and leave to cool, this will help to firm up the crispy coating.
- Serve with beetroot raita – recipe coming next week.
Notes
- To save time, flour all the moulded cutlets before dipping them in egg and coating with breadcrumbs
- The flattened disc shape makes the cutlets easy to store.
- Once cooked these cutlets can be frozen, and reheated before serving.
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