Smoked Trout Cakes with Wild Rice

Ook. So listen. Smoked fish. And wild rice. It's happening. These were inspired by a walleye cake I had while up north (it's a term Minnesotans use for the Northern part of the state - so original) at this amazing restaurant. The fish was caught while in Door County. 

Do you know about wild rice?? My sister lives in Steamboat, CO and after she had made a Wild Rice Soup and served it for her co-workers they were all befuddled by the black flecks of chewiness. Quinoa, they guessed? Nope. Wild rice people. Know it. Eat it. Love it.

Flaking your fish will be a science. The amount of flakiness depends on the texture desired in your personal fish cake world. I flaked mine into a medium flake and after stirring it with all the ingredients the texture was almost like a canned tuna...not very chunky. If you want a chunkier texture, add the fish in at the end. 

Other fish would work well in this recipe. I think walleye would be an obvious choice, but salmon might work, too.

And here is the star. Wild rice. Cooking wild rice is soooo simple. In a heavy bottom pot, add about 4 cups of water, 1 cup of wild rice and a teaspoon of salt. Over medium-high heat bring up to a rapid boil. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 45-60 minutes. Your house will smell like rotten. That's just part of making wild rice. Get over it. 

Forming into cakes was easy enough. The dough wasn't obnoxiously sticking to my hands. We were friends. It was a quick process. Make a little indent in the center to ensure even cooking. 

I believe my cakes were drowning in a olive oil bath. Don't add as much as I did. I poured in about 4 tablespoons. You should add maybe 2. You're so smart.

Printable Recipe Here

Smoked Trout Cakes with Wild Rice

yield: 6 cakes

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 22 minutes 

2 cups smoked trout, flaked

1 carrot, shredded (about 1/2 cup)

2 green onions, chopped finely (about 2 tablespoons)

1/2 cup wild rice, cooked

3/4 cup panko

1/4 cup pecans, chopped coarsely

1/4 cup mayo

1 lemon, juiced (about 3 tablespoons)
1 egg
2 tablespoons Parmesan, freshly grated

1/4 cup Italian parsley, chopped finely

8 dashes Tabasco 

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Olive oil, for frying

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl gently combine fish (Note: If you prefer your fish cakes to have a chunkier fish texture, add the trout in last after you've given all the other ingredients a good stir), carrot, green onion, wild rice, panko, pecans, mayo, lemon juice, egg, Parmesan, and parsley. Season with Tabasco and salt and pepper.

Using your hands shape about 1/2 cup of the mixture into a patty, making an indentation in the middle of the patty to ensure even cooking. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet (preferably cast-iron) over moderate heat, until oil is shimmering and almost smoking. Add patty's to the hot oil and cook on both sides until golden brown, about 4-6 minutes. Place cooked patty's on a cookie sheet and move to preheated oven to completely cook through, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and serve with tartar sauce or chipotle mayo. 

Chipotle Mayo 

yield: 1 cup dip

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

1 cup real mayo 

1 tablespoon ground chipotle pepper

In a small bowl combine mayo and chioptle pepper thoroughly. Refrigerate until ready to serve.