This one was a complete shot in the dark. I had been flipping through an older cookbook- one of those infamous church organization cookbooks-and I saw this recipe for Tuna Patties. I don’t know what made me look at it more than once, but when I did, I saw that there were very few ingredients, and made a mental note of how much tuna I needed to make it. Fast forward a few days…Andy needed something to do, and I had a basement pantry that needed to be organized. So he went to work, cleaning and organizing my Kitchen Annex. (And de-spidering, a big must with a basement pantry!) As I walked past him while he was working, my eyes caught site of a large pouch of tuna that I didn’t even know we had! I made a note of how big it was, consulted my cookbook, and put Tuna Patties on the menu.
Yesterday was the day, and I went back and forth a little while on how I was going to serve them, and ultimately, decided that they needed to go on a bun. If I was going to convince my kids to even take a bite, they needed to resemble the infamous Crabbie Patties. Earlier in the day, I took the time to put together a batch of Beautiful Burger Buns, adding an egg wash and sesame seeds to the buns. The tuna patties themselves came together in a flash. With everything else prepared, these are easily a 15-minute dinner! I mixed everything together, and pan-fried it into patties. That’s it. They were served up on a bun-with ketchup for the kids, tartar sauce for the grown-ups, and we had a surprisingly delicious dinner with very little effort.
Abigail ate her entire tuna burger, and Zander made a good effort before deciding that he didn’t care for the tuna- but he’d already taken a good eight or ten bites. Andy and I were both pleasantly surprised. These were very good- and yes, they tasted like tuna, but more than just a tuna sandwich. We will most definitely keep these Tuna Patties on the radar for a quick and easy dinner- or lunch for that matter! These were a great way to use up a pantry staple that really needed to be used before it expired. If you find yourself with a surplus of tuna- try these out, you won’t be disappointed.
Tuna Patties
1 12-ounce pouch tuna (or the equivalent of canned tuna, well-drained) 24 saltine crackers, crushed 2 eggs, beaten 1/4-1/2 cup milk 2 Tablespoon finely chopped onion 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley 1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce salt and pepper to taste 2 tablespoons oil for frying Tartar sauce and buns for serving (optional)Directions:
In a bowl, combine the tuna, saltines, eggs, 1/4 cup milk, onion, parsley, worcestershire and salt and pepper. Mix together well. Add more milk, if needed, to give the mixture a moist meat-loaf like consistency.
Heat oil to medium heat in a non-stick skillet. Shape the tuna mixture into six patties, and pan-fry over medium heat until both sides are nicely browned- about 4 minutes per side. Hold finished patties in a 200ºF oven while cooking the rest.
Serve with tartar sauce and buns, if desired.
I make these all the time for my gang. We call them Tuna Burgers and normally have them with fresh french fries or mac-n-cheese. I make mine a with stuffing to save on a couple of steps.
We love them and tend to have them more than regular hamburgers.
Blue, I love the idea of using stuffing mix- I bet that adds a great flavor. Andy surprised me yesterday by asking specifically to have these again- and with tuna on sale this week at two cans for 88 cents, that’s a real bargain of a dinner!
We made these tonight and they were a hit. My little three-year old fish hater even ate one! I will be adding this to my notebook. Thanks!
That’s great Tamara! I’m so glad that you tried them and enjoyed them as well! That’s cool that your fish-hater ate one too- tuna is a great, inexpensive source of protein. I sure wish my little guy would come around.