Since I was a kid, I remember watching my mother making with love and dedication, the popular and traditional pataniscas, to be eaten with the richest tomato rice.
Apparently the pataniscas had their origin in the city of Lisbon. The first reference to pataniscas appears in the book “Cozinha Regional Portuguesa, by Maria Odete Cortes Valente, in 1973. In this book the recipe described tells us about shredded cod and a batter made with flour, milk, salt, pepper and parsley.
In 1998, in the book “Comeres de Lisboa” by António Manuel Couto Viana and Ceferera Carrera, the recipe is presented to us a little differently, and that is where the egg and chopped onions are included.
Today, there are the many versions of pataniscas, and cod has given way to other ingredients such as fish or shellfish, and of course, 100% plant based versions. Despite all the versions, two things cannot be missing from a patanisca, at least for me, are they the onions and parsley. Patanisca that is patanisca lives from these two ingredients that give it not only its flavor but also its characteristic aroma.
There are those who like them more fluffy, others who prefer them flat, the most important thing is that they are well fried, dry on the outside and tender on the inside.
EASY | DELICIOUS | AROMATIC | IRRESISTIBLE | HIGH IN PROTEIN | CRISPY AND TENDER
I´ve been wanting to make a recipe of plant based pataniscas to share with you for so long, but as there are so many and so good I wanted to make something that would make them different and special.
So, and with the emergence of tuna vegan alternatives, I decided to make 100% plant based “tuna” fritters!
The “tuna” used was Plantuna in Water from Unfished. A product made from soy protein and seaweed oil, which gives it the aroma and taste of the sea. It is a product that also provides essential nutrients from traditional fish such as protein and omega 3! To be honest, this product surprised me a lot! I wasn’t expecting something that was so similar to tuna (even the can). Despite obviously having differences, the similarities are undeniable especially when incorporated into recipes. A worthy alternative to the table of all those who chose to leave the fish off the plate.
To the “tuna” I also added the courgette, to bring extra moisture, the finely chopped red pepper, the onion and parsley, obviously, and flakes of nori seaweed to bring even more the sea flavor to these fritters.
Anyone who has already made plant based pataniscas knows that to glue all these ingredients you need a key ingredient, and that ingredient is chickpea flour. This flour has the power to agglutinate all the ingredients in order to give shape to the patanisca. Basically, it ends up having the function of the traditional flour and egg batter. It’s a very fine flour with a neutral flavor, so don’t be afraid to use it.
This recipe is quite simple, and you will only need to cut and grate the ingredients, mix everything and then fry.
I chose to eat my pataniscas with tomato rice, because I LOVE it, but you can choose what you prefer. Even with bread these pataniscas look amazing!
Check out the ingredients list!
1 courgette (220gr) grated
1/2 chopped red pepper (110gr)
1 chopped onion (120gr)
1 handful of chopped parsley
2 grated garlic cloves
2 cans of Plantuna in Water by Unfished
1 tsp nori seaweed flakes
2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt and black pepper to taste
200gr of chickpea flour
1 cup and 1/2 of water
3 tbsp ground flaxseed
1 coffee spoon of baking soda
2. tsp of apple cider vinegar
Vegetable oil for frying
1 courgette (220gr) grated
1/2 chopped red pepper (110gr)
1 chopped onion (120gr)
1 handful of chopped parsley
2 grated garlic cloves
2 cans of Plantuna in Water by Unfished
1 tsp nori seaweed flakes
2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt and black pepper to taste
200gr of chickpea flour
1 cup and 1/2 of water
3 tbsp ground flaxseed
1 coffee spoon of baking soda
2. tsp of apple cider vinegar
Vegetable oil for frying
1- Start by grating the courgette and garlic and chopping the onion, pepper and parsley. Put everything in a bowl.
2- In the same bowl, add the two cans of Plantuna, the nori flakes, turmeric, salt and pepper. Wrap everything with a spoon.
3- In another bowl, place the chickpea flour and water and stir with the whisk, until you get a smooth and thin cream, completely free of lumps. Pour the cream over the veggies mixture and mix well until you get a homogeneous result.
4- Add the ground flaxseed and wrap again.
5- Add the baking soda and the apple cider vinegar on top. Let it react and slowly mix until incorporated in all the dough.
6- Put a frying pan on the heat with a little vegetable oil. When the oil is very hot, reduce a little, add small portions of dough with the help of a tablespoon, giving shape to the fritters. Let it fry on one side, for about 1 minute, or until you can turn the patanisca so that it can also fry on the other side. Repeat this process until all the dough is finished.
7- Serve immediately with a delicious tomato rice.
1- Start by grating the courgette and garlic and chopping the onion, pepper and parsley. Put everything in a bowl.
2- In the same bowl, add the two cans of Plantuna, the nori flakes, turmeric, salt and pepper. Wrap everything with a spoon.
3- In another bowl, place the chickpea flour and water and stir with the whisk, until you get a smooth and thin cream, completely free of lumps. Pour the cream over the veggies mixture and mix well until you get a homogeneous result.
4- Add the ground flaxseed and wrap again.
5- Add the baking soda and the apple cider vinegar on top. Let it react and slowly mix until incorporated in all the dough.
6- Put a frying pan on the heat with a little vegetable oil. When the oil is very hot, reduce a little, add small portions of dough with the help of a tablespoon, giving shape to the fritters. Let it fry on one side, for about 1 minute, or until you can turn the patanisca so that it can also fry on the other side. Repeat this process until all the dough is finished.
7- Serve immediately with a delicious tomato rice.
*This recipe was supported by NaturallyGreen.pt
*You can find PlanTuna by Unfished in the Naturally Green online store with a 10% discount whenever you use the code TAVG.
* Chickpea flour cannot be substituted.
*This recipe was supported by NaturallyGreen.pt
*You can find PlanTuna by Unfished in the Naturally Green online store with a 10% discount whenever you use the code TAVG.
* Chickpea flour cannot be substituted.
Tag @things_about_a_vegan_girl on instagram and hashtag it #thingsaboutavegangirl so we can see all the masterpiece you made!!!
Tag @things_about_a_vegan_girl on instagram and hashtag it #thingsaboutavegangirl so we can see all the masterpiece you made!!!