Newfoundland fish cakes. A delicious comfort food tradition that is part of our collective culinary culture. Made from the simplest of ingredients like potatoes, fish and onions.
Newfoundland fish cakes
Originally published January 2009.
UPDATE: April 2015. I added new photos of this recipe today, intended for mine second cookbook this autumn.
As of January 30, 2009
Today's dish and photo are from 13-year-old guest chef Laura Taylor. Hailing from Conception Bay South, Laura was looking for tips on how to make fish cakes the traditional Newfoundland way.
She chose fish cakes as a traditional Newfoundland meal to complete an assignment for her class for 8th grade social studies at Vila Nova School.
Newfoundland fish cakes. Photo 2009.
She is a French immersion student, hence the photo label Gateau de Poisson.
This very simple dish has been a staple on many kitchen tables in Newfoundland, who knows how long? Probably hundreds of years as the simple ingredients were readily available from land and sea.
I also picked up a great brunch idea for this traditional favorite by incorporating fish cakes into a version of Eggs Benedict! Get my acronym Hollandaise Sauce Recipe here.
Fish cakes Eggs Benedict
Newfoundland fish cakes, a traditional favorite.
I remember my grandmother cooking them in large cast iron pans in the rendered fat when she made crunches. For our non-local readers, scrunchions are a very traditional accompaniment to several traditional Newfoundland dishes.
It is simply cured, fat-backed pork that is diced into small cubes and then fried until crispy to make up most of the fat.
I like to use Russet Potatoes for this recipe. They tend to hold the fish cake mix together better.
It is good for my heart to know that our classroom dining culture is still alive and well. You did a great job Laura I think they look delicious.
If your social studies teacher doesn't give you an A on this one, tell them to take me on! 😉
Mt Scio Savory is traditional in this recipe, but there are some suggested substitutions in the recipe notes below.
A brunch idea and a simple lower sodium substitution.
One of my brunch favorites uses these traditional fish cakes in a new way by adding eggs and hollandaise sauce. Sometimes I also add some crumbled, crispy cooked bacon, because what's not better with bacon ?!
Newfoundland fish cakes
If you don't like salt fish or are just trying to reduce sodium in your diet, fresh or frozen cod can be easily substituted.
Fresh cod is a staple of Newfoundland cuisine.
The only thing to look out for is the seasoning of the potato mixture. It will likely take a little more salt to taste and make up for some of what was lost in the substitution.
Taste as always and adjust the spices accordingly.
Looking for more Newfoundland recipes?
If you'd like to see more traditional recipes from our province, check out this collection on some of ours The most popular Newfoundland recipes.
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Newfoundland fish cakes
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Preparation time:
30 minutes
Cooking time:
15 minutes
Total time:
45 minutes
Newfoundland fish cakes. These traditional Newfoundland fish cakes have been made from the simplest of ingredients like potatoes, salted fish and onions for countless generations.
ingredients
-
1½ pounds of salt-dried cod (see note below for replacing fresh fish)
-
¼ cup butter
-
1 small chopped onion
-
6 cups of mashed potatoes
-
1 beaten egg
-
2 tbsp dried savory (optional) (see notes for substitution information)
-
½ teaspoon black pepper
manual
- Soak the cod in cold water overnight.
- Let the cod simmer in boiling water for about 15 minutes. Drain the water from the fish and let the fish cool to near room temperature.
- When the fish is cool, use a fork to peel it into small pieces.
- Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat.
- Add the onions and cook until tender.
- Add the fish flakes along with the mashed potatoes, egg, pepper and savory.
- Mix until well mixed, then shape into small cakes and roll in flour.
- Fry the fish cakes in rapeseed oil over medium heat until golden brown on both sides.
- Serve with scrunchions if desired.
Remarks
If you don't like salt fish or are just trying to reduce sodium in your diet, fresh or frozen cod can be easily substituted.
The only thing to look out for is the seasoning of the potato mixture. It will likely take a little more salt to taste and make up for some of what was lost in the substitution.
Taste as always and adjust the spices accordingly.
Savory is a very traditional herb for this recipe, but if it's not readily available you can substitute other herbs that go well with fish, such as parsley, dill, or even tarragon if you like.
The prep time does not include the overnight soaking time for the dried cod. Scrunchions are ½ inch cubes of hardened pork fat that are fried and made into a crispy texture. The scrunchions and melted fat are served over the fish cakes.
The nutrition information provided is calculated automatically by third-party software and is intended as a guide only. The exact accuracy cannot be guaranteed. For recipes where not all ingredients may be used in full, e.g. In the case of meat coatings or sauces or dressings, for example, the calorie and nutritional values per serving are probably a little lower than stated.
suggested products
Rock Recipes is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Affiliate Program, an affiliate advertising program that allows us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and related websites. Our product recommendations apply almost exclusively to those we are currently using or have used in the past.
Nutritional information
yield
18th
Serving size
G
Amount per serving
Calories 179Saturated fat 1gcholesterol 73 mgsodium 2689 mgcarbohydrates 9gFiber 1gprotein 25g
