SAWCLicious: Tilapia Fish Cakes

It is already summer but if you are in the Benelux area, you are probably one of the people who would complain about summer. Simply because there is no summer in this side of town. I may be an exception cause I'm enjoying summer as it is: cold, cloudy, and rainy. People find me really weird. I guess, one of the things I learned when I moved to Brussels is how to appreciate simple things in life. I appreciate the cold as I never had it all my life unless of course I take a plane to another country or drive 10 hours to reach the mountain top. 

One of the things that I also appreciate is when I get to see local food that I'm familiar of. Don't get me wrong, I love Belgian food. Their fries, pasta, mussels, steak are really delicious but it is still different to eat a home-cooked meal the one that you grew up familiar with. So when I was in Delhaize for my grocery, I was so giddy to find they have frozen tilapia. I was too excited, I bought 2 kilos of it! I practically ran out of ideas to cook my tilapia considering that I'm eating alone.

So, the other day, I had some friends over and I thought why not try to make some fish cakes out of it. It turned out to be really good! I received a two thumbs up from my friends and I promised Pia, I will share this recipe. 

Tilapia Fish Cakes 

Ingredients

• 4 frozen tilapia fish fillets
• 1/2 cup Japanese Panko Bread Crumbs
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp. dill
• 3 tsp. Dijon mustard (I used the gourmet dijon mustard)
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• Salt & Pepper

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 200 Celsius. Place the tilapia fish fillets in an oven-proof dish and season with salt and pepper. Cover with aluminum foil and place in the oven for 10 minutes.
2. Once cooked, flake the fish fillet using a fork and let it cool.
3. In a bowl, mix bread crumbs, fish, mayonnaise, egg, dill, mustard, sugar, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Form the mixture into small pancakes and chill for at least 1 hour.
4. Pan-fry the fish cake around 3-5 minutes at each side to have the golden brown color. Best served with salad.