Even though we've all been living through the sticker shock of rising grocery costs, it's still very possible to eat well on a budget, especially when there's a can of tuna in the pantry. No, you don't have to eat tuna sandwiches every day (even though that might not be so bad). Instead, you can easily make a can of tuna into a batch of tuna patties. It only takes a few ingredients to transform standard-issue tuna into a gourmet appetizer or burger. Sometimes, however, it can be hard to get everything to stick together long enough to cook them. If you find that your tuna patties tend to fall apart, you don't need to start over or add more tuna: You just need to add an extra egg to the batch.
Tuna from a can or pouch is usually one of three kinds of fish:albacore, yellowfin, or skipjack,all of which are pretty soft and flaky when they're packaged. Sometimes, even if you follow a recipe for tuna patties that includes eggs, they'll still fall apart. Adding an extra egg won't change the flavor of your tuna patties, it'll simply give you more sticking power when it comes time to cook them.
Most of the time, when patties are made from animal protein, it's typically some sort of uncooked meat. Burger patties, for example, or salmon cakes, are made with raw beef or fish. This is because when meat is uncooked, it's easier for them to hold together since the raw proteins glom onto each other and keep the patty sticky. Then, when they're cooked, the proteins harden and stick together. This isn't the case with tuna patties made with canned tuna because the meat is already cooked. If you were making patties from raw tuna, you'd have a little more sticking power from the uncooked proteins, but since the fish is already cooked, they tend to fall apart when you get them on the stove. To fix the problem, you just need to add a little extra raw protein, and the easiest place to get a protein fix is from an egg.
ADVERTIsem*nT
Adding an egg to a batch of tuna patties is a little extra insurance that things will stay together, especially if you tend to measure your other ingredients by eyeballing them. All you have to do is mix the egg with your other ingredients, and when the patty starts to cook, instead of falling apart, it will firm up and come together as the proteins coagulate, according to The Accidental Scientist.
More Tuna Patty Troubleshooting
For most cases of crumbling tuna patties, a little extra egg protein is all you need. There are other ways you can troubleshoot, however, if an egg isn't enough to keep your patties in one piece. It's a good idea to add a little extra breadcrumbs or whatever your recipe uses for a binder when you add your egg, for example. Breadcrumbs will absorb some moisture from the mixture, which will firm things up before you cook anything and make it easier to form solid patties.
It's also a good idea to chill your tuna patty mixture in the fridge for about 20 minutes before you do any cooking. This will help them stick together better and keep them firm while you're cooking and flipping your patties on the stove or the grill.
If you're really having a hard time keeping your patties together, even after adding an egg and breadcrumbs and chilling the mixture down, make sure that you're draining the tuna properly before mixing it with other ingredients. Squeeze out every drop of oil or water that you can manage so that the protein in the eggs has something to stick to when you mix it in with the fish. And if all else fails, you can always use a sheet pan to cook your patties so that you don't have to do a lot of flipping on the stovetop.
If you find that your tuna patties tend to fall apart, you don't need to start over or add more tuna: You just need to add an extra egg to the batch. Tuna from a can or pouch is usually one of three kinds of fish: albacore, yellowfin, or skipjack, all of which are pretty soft and flaky when they're packaged.
To fix the problem, you just need to add a little extra raw protein, and the easiest place to get a protein fix is from an egg. Adding an egg to a batch of tuna patties is a little extra insurance that things will stay together, especially if you tend to measure your other ingredients by eyeballing them.
Tuna patties fall apart when they have too much moisture in them. By pressing as much of the liquid out of the canned tuna as possible, you'll ensure that the mixture is dry enough to hold together.
How to Serve Tuna Patties. My favorite way to serve tuna patties is on a bed of greens, like a salad, with a little of my Comeback Sauce. But you could also stuff the tuna cakes into a pita with some tomatoes and greens, and a little tartar sauce.
The first reason is that by the time you flip your burger to cook the second side, you'll have one side of your burger cooked and solid enough to hold the other side in place. Secondly, constantly scraping the patty up off the grill and plopping it back down is bound to break it apart!
Binding burger patty with a combination of eggs and breadcrumbs will provide better results than using them individually. Mixing ingredients thoroughly is important for binding a burger patty. It is advisable to use your hand to shape the mixture into balls and then flatten them using a spatula.
Add 1 egg yolk per pound of hamburger. It won't add appreciably to the fat content and will bind the meat beautifully. The other thing you can do is add canned, drained, crushed black beans or chickpeas to the hamburger. The starch from the beans will bind the meat together and add an interesting taste.
If you add too much egg, for instance, or the canned fish isn't properly drained, the mixture will be too wet and the cakes will fall apart. Too many breadcrumbs, on the other hand, will make your cakes dry and crumbly.
Add diced apples, raisins, or dried fruit to the basic recipe. Add diced fennel, shredded cabbage, diced cucumbers, or any other crunchy vegetable. Add a dash of curry powder, dukkah, harissa, chopped fresh herbs, or any other spice mix in your cupboard.
Start by doctoring up a can of tuna with mayonnaise, lemon, and cilantro—think spicy tuna with the spice on the side. Then add rice and crunchy seasoned carrots and cucumber for the perfect balance of flavor and texture. Serve with your favorite condiments such as soy and hot chili sauce.
There are a few ingredients you can add to burgers to help hold them together, such as eggs, breadcrumbs, grated cheese, or even cooked grains like quinoa or rice. These ingredients act as binders and help keep the burger patties intact while cooking. Some folks add a little bread crumbs.
"Chill your burgers for at least an hour before you cook them," says senior food editor, Barney. "This will help them keep their shape when they're cooking and stop them falling apart." You can also freeze them before cooking.
Introduction: My name is Greg O'Connell, I am a delightful, colorful, talented, kind, lively, modern, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
