Thai fish cakes

Special equipment • food processor

Serves 4

Ingredients:

10oz (300g) peeled and deveined cooked shrimps, coarsely chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole

small handful of fresh cilantro

2 fresh red Thai or other hot chile peppers, seeded

generous splash of Asian fish sauce, such as nam pla

generous splash of soy sauce

small handful of fresh basil leaves

juice of 2 limes

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3–4 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

sweet chili sauce (to serve)

wild arugula leaves (to serve)

Method:

1 Combine the shrimps, garlic, cilantro, chiles, fish sauce, soy sauce, basil, and lime juice in a food processor, and process into a coarse paste. Add the egg and plenty of salt and pepper, and process again.

2 Heat a little oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Scoop 1 tbsp of the mixture, then carefully slide it into the pan and flatten slightly; it should be about ¾in (2cm) thick. Repeat until all the mixture has been used. Cook for a minute or two on each side until golden. You may need to cook in batches, adding more oil as needed. Drain the fish cakes on a plate lined with paper towels.

3 Serve hot with a drizzle of sweet chili sauce and some arugula leaves.

Thai fish cakes