Thai Fish Cakes with Dipping Sauce

Gluten free - grain free - dairy free - sugar free - nut free
    Just for a change, I thought I'd post something that doesn't involve chocolate! I know many people like to eat fish at Easter, so here's a wonderful non-traditional way to cook up some fish. I found this recipe in an old Australian Masterchef magazine, contributed by Hayden Quinn. I've not made many changes to the original. I've increased his quantities, using 1kg of fish rather than his 600g, as I've found this makes enough fish cakes for two whole meals for our family of 4. I freeze half of it and it makes a wonderfully quick and easy meal for a night where I'm pushed for time. I re-heat them in my foccacia maker/ grill-press and they crisp up wonderfully! You could also re-heat them in the oven.
     There's a great dipping sauce as part of the recipe, too. I usually serve the fish cakes will a little salad/salsa on the side, consisting of diced tomato, spring onion, cucumber, red capsicum, avocado and maybe some fresh steamed corn. I dress the salsa with a simple mix of olive oil, lime juice and salt and pepper. If you don't have lime juice, balsamic vinegar works well too. Yum!

Ingredients

• 1kg boneless fish fillets (flathead, baramundi, hoki/blue grenadier)

• 2 cloves garlic

• 2 cm piece fresh ginger, roughly chopped (or two teaspoons minced)

• 2 kaffir lime leaves, centre vein discarded (optional if you don't have them)
• 2 spring onions, white part only

• 1 tablespoon red curry paste (this quantity keeps the flavour fairly mild. Add more if you like spicy)

• 3 tablespoons fish sauce

• 2 small or 1 large egg (or egg replacer )

• 120g green beans, ends trimmed

• 2 tablespoons chopped coriander, and extra for garnish

Method

• In a large food processor, blend garlic, ginger, kaffir lime leaves and spring onions until finely chopped. Add fish and blend well.

• Add curry paste, fish sauce and eggs and blend well.

• Add beans and coriander and blend until just combined, so beans don't totally disintegrate.

• Take small handfuls of the mixture and form them into patties about 5cm in diametre. I say this recipe serves 8. It makes about 32 fish cakes, depending on the size you want to make them.

• If not cooking immediately, cover patties in plastic wrap and refrigerate.

• When ready to cook, heat a barbeque or heavy-based frying pan on medium-high heat. Heat a thin layer of oil (I use coconut oil), and cook fish cakes for about 2 minutes on each side- until golden and just cooked through. Serve with the dipping sauce, salsa, and garnish with fresh coriander.

Make the dipping sauce by combining the following in a small bowl:

•  1/4 cup fish sauce

• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon rapadura or coconut sugar or natvia

• 2 cloves garlic, crushed

• 2 cm piece of ginger, finely grated

• 1 red bird's-eye chilli, thinly sliced (optional!)

• Juice of one lime

• Lebanese cucumber, de-seeded, finely diced