When my son and I traveled to Asia in 2019, we flew in through Bangkok. From there, we booked flights, cars, and busses to hop around Southeast Asia. Arriving in Bangkok through China was a bit of a nightmare… on China’s end, not Thailand. We arrived over 5 hours late and were absolutely exhausted. We only had two nights in Bangkok… reduced to one and a half after arriving so late… before jetting off to Vietnam for a week.
With one full day in Bangkok, the plan had been to hit the major sites and then go on a food tour in the evening. We ended up sleeping most of the day and saw most of the major sites via boat on our way to our food tour. Unfortunately, the boat was so slow and stopped so often that we missed our group and had to circle back to our hotel. In hindsight, I’m bummed that we missed the food tour, but I also remember just how jet-lagged we were and were not that upset about getting another good night’s sleep… honestly, heading to bed early again that evening allowed us to be fully charged and on Asian time by the time we got to Vietnam the next day.
Unfortunately, I love Thai food. Thai, Vietnamese, and Indian foods are probably my favorite Asian cuisines. Although, I will argue that Korean, Japanese, Filipino, Chinese, Indonesian, Taiwanese…. etc., etc., etc., all come a close second. Sooooo, what the heck am I saying. I love Asian food! And I love the opportunity to explore any and all Asian food cultures! So in that respect, I regret not having the chance to go on that food tour.
We finished out trip in Thailand on Ko Samui, so we still had an opportunity to explore some of Thai food culture. Just not in the same way you can experience a culture’s food cuisine when in a major city. I mean, you don’t go to New Jersey to experience New York food… even if we make it better 😉.
So, this dish I call “Asian” fish cakes, but in many ways, they’re embodying many of the flavors of Thailand. Red curry, fish sauce, lemongrass, cilantro, scallions, lime, and ginger. I know a lot of fish cake recipes call for breadcrumbs, as I do in my crab cake recipe. But I instead opted for panko crumbs… Similar, yes. Yet, I feel like panko keeps these fish cakes feeling lighter and flakier. Breadcrumbs certainly have their use, but when using a light, flaky fish like cod, I didn’t want to weigh it down with the packed weight of breadcrumbs. And honestly, you don’t need them!
Making these fish cakes could not be easier. I pulverized all of the ingredients in a food processor before forming patties and frying them. I mean, what could be easier?
There are so many ways you could serve fish cakes, but I decided to make it with a light spring mix salad. I made a delicious Asian-inspired salad dressing with soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, lemongrass, ginger, sesame oil, fish sauce, honey, clam juice, and lime juice. I know none of that sounds like it should go on top of a salad, but it all actually comes together really nice for a fresh, zesty, Thai-flavored salad!
Then, to top off the fish cakes, I made a simple sriracha aioli using yogurt instead of mayonnaise. The mayonnaise adds to the zest flavoring of the lemon juice while also cutting down on unnecessary calories!
Even though my son and I missed out on experiencing the heart of Bangkok food culture, I still try to bring those flavors home on a regular basis. Although my food may not be “authentic,” the Asian fused dishes I make on a regular basis are still delicious and reminiscent of these beautiful cultures. I look forward to returning to Asia to further explore their cultures and, of course, their food. And next times, I’ll be sure to carve out extra time to ensure I make that Bangkok food tour!
Enjoy!
Asian Cod Fish Cakes with Spring Mix Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 27 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Asian, Seafood
- Cuisine: Dinner
Ingredients
Fish Cakes
1¼ lb cod fillets
6 scallions, cut into four or five pieces
handful fresh cilantro
3 garlic cloves
1 cup panko
2 TBs red curry paste
1 TB fish sauce
1 TB brown sugar
1 TB ginger paste
1 TB lemongrass paste
1 large egg
zest & juice of 1 lime
pinch of salt & pepper
2 TBs olive oil
Salad
5 oz container of spring mix lettuce
¼ cup soy sauce
2 TBs Thai sweet chili sauce
2 TBs lemongrass paste
1 TB ginger paste
1 TB sesame oil
1 TB clam juice (substitute with chicken broth, if desired)
1 TB honey
½ TB fish sauce
handful cilantro, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
zest & juice of 1 lime
salt & pepper
Sriracha Aioli
½ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1 – 2 TBs sriracha sauce
½ lemon, juiced
pinch of salt
Instructions
Make the Salad
In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, lemongrass paste, ginger paste, sesame oil, clam juice, honey, fish sauce, cilantro, garlic, and lime zest and juice. If desired, season with additional salt and pepper.
Toss the salad with the dressing in a large bowl. Set aside.
Make the Sriracha Aioli
In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt with your desired amount of sriracha sauce. Add in the lemon juice and a small pinch of salt. Whisk together and set aside.
Make the Fish Cakes
Add the scallions, cilantro, and garlic cloves to a large food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add in the panko, curry paste, fish sauce, brown sugar, ginger paste, lemongrass paste, egg, lime zest and juice, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Pulse the machine a few times to roughly mix.
Add in the cod and pulse until the fish is blended with the other ingredients and the fish flakes are no larger than half an inch to an inch in size. (NOTE: You want to ensure the fish is chopped enough to fully mix with the other ingredients but not be as mushy as baby food. Feel free to use a spoon to scrape along the edges of the bowl before pulsing further to ensure you aren’t over blending it).
Form the mixture into eight even patties. In a large frying pan or cast iron pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot, carefully swirl the oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Add in half of the fish cakes and cook about 2 to 3 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. If needed, lower the heat to medium to prevent burning. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and swirl to coat the pan. Cook the remaining fish cakes 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Plate the salad and serve two fish cakes per plate. Top with sriracha aioli, if desired. Enjoy!
Keywords: seafood Saturday, Thai fish cakes, Asian fish cakes, cod fish cakes, Asian cod fish cakes, Thai cod fish cakes, Asian salad dressing, Asian salad
