Orange Creole Tuna Cakes: Canned Tuna Gets a Fancy Pants Makeover
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Orange Creole Tuna Cakes
I love Costco. There is just something really satisfying about buying in bulk. There is never a shortage of hungry mouths to feed around here, so things like a 4 pound can of tuna go into the cart without the blink of an eye.
Today I was looking at one of those nifty recipes companies sometimes print on their product labels. Usually they’re dubious at best, but this one piqued my interest. What saved a potentially horrendous recipe was some inspiration from a container of Orange Creole Compound Butter I had sitting in my fridge.
Compound butter is simply butter that has seasonings and usually some form of acid added to it. It’s often used in French cooking as a finishing sauce for meats.
David Stemmle, creator of Headstart Gourmet, has created a line of compound butters modeled after classic French sauces Beurre Blanc and Beurre Rouge, and a fun Orange Creole flavor with a nice kick to it.
Headstart Gourmet's Compound Butters
Each tub contains half a bottle of wine, resulting in an intensely rich flavor. In short, Headstart Gourmet just made life a little easier. Not only can these butters be melted into a quick sauce, they can also be used as a spread, or created into a concoction all your own…like Orange Creole Tuna Cakes!
To be honest, I wasn’t all that sure this experiment would end well. After all, I was working with plain old, cheap, canned tuna. No sushi grade ahi here. That is what makes this recipe so darn satisfying. It tastes like a fancy shmancy Asian Fusion crab cake with the hints of orange playing off the Creole heat, and a subtle crunch of peanuts. No joke.
Humble makings of Fanciness
Orange Creole Tuna Cakes
Ingredients:
Costco-sized 66.5 oz. Chunk Light Tuna in Spring Water, drained
4 oz. container of Orange Creole Compound Butter (Headstart Gourmet)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 cup finely chopped celery
2 ½ cups seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ cup crushed peanuts
salt & pepper to taste
Preparation:
Bring compound butter to room temperature. Mix half of it into the tuna. Reserve remaining half to use as a finishing sauce.
Sautee chopped onion in olive oil until soft and caramelized; season with salt and pepper to taste. Add to the tuna mixture, and combine with the remaining ingredients. Form mixture into patties.
Heat a lightly oiled pan or griddle. Cook the patties until browned on both sides, flipping once.
Gently melt the remaining compound butter in a saucepan or microwave and drizzle over the finished tuna cakes.
(Serves 12)
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Great recipe! I love it when simple ingredients get transformed into gourmet dishes that are so delicious!
Excellent work you’ve done there I reckon!
I’m usually not a fan of canned tuna for the same reason I don’t like stringy pulled pork — it’s dry. Or maybe I’m just hypersensitive to such texture.
But looking at the ingredient list, I have a feeling I’m SO going to like these tuna cakes. Will definitely have to give it a try.
Yes yes, give it a try! these are not too fishy or dry at all…i was really surprised by how tasty they came out
Mmmm, tuna. That sounds wicked good, I wish I could get my girlfriend to eat tuna, then I could make them. Heh. Hmm… I wonder if they would freeze…
haha, i would make these and not tell her what’s in it…you may have a convert. and i do think they would freeze well.
You really showed the versitility of Headstart Gourmet compound butters.
We’re looking forward to creating a tasty dish with the White Wine Compound Butter
Let me know what you come up with! OR check out website for cool recipe.
I happened to love tuna fish, actually made some earlier this week. I will ahve to try this recipe one day.
Thanks for sharing!
Now this is an original recipe. That would probably be AWESOME in a salmon cake!!!
the recipe sounds lovely. i wonder how much of a difference there is when you use really nice canned tuna…. that’s a slippery slope, though, isn’t it?
the beauty of this, is that you don’t need fancy tuna
grab the chicken of the sea with confidence!
i’m glad you didn’t melt cheese on it from the cheese show. my brain might have exploded.
That tuna cake looks tasty. I like the sound of those butters.
this is so yummy and healthy!
Costco rules! I’m impressed by what you did with the monstrous can of tuna. Looks great!