059 / 75 · A Little Meat or Fish

Sardine and Onion Fritters with Tomato Rice

12 sardine-onion fritters, 3 per person, with one-quarter of the tomato rice · Active 35 min · Total 55 min

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Sardines and finely sliced onions make crisp-edged batter fritters, with tomato rice alongside to turn them into dinner. Keeping the fish in a few visible flakes makes the fritters more interesting than a smooth fish paste. Two cans provide the fish for twelve small fritters, and the rice is cooked separately so its texture stays predictable.

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Ink and gouache sardine onion fritters with a generous serving of red tomato rice.

Drain and inspect the fish

Choose plain sardines rather than a strongly flavored sauce version, then drain them thoroughly. Check each piece and remove anything you do not want to eat before flaking. The recipe uses the drained fish weight, so the number of cans may vary with pack size. Pat away excess liquid; wet fish can loosen a batter that is intended to hold together in small spoonfuls.

Make small fritters instead of one large pancake

Thinly sliced onion cooks more readily than chunky pieces inside the batter. Fold the flakes in gently and divide the mixture into twelve roughly equal portions. Three skillet batches give enough space for their edges to set before turning. If the first fritter spreads too far, wait for the pan to regain a moderate heat rather than adding unmeasured flour to the whole bowl.

Finish rice in a reduced tomato sauce

The rice absorbs plain water in its own saucepan, while tomatoes reduce with onion in another. Combining them at the end avoids guessing how much liquid a particular can of tomatoes contributes. A few red streaks are fine; the goal is coated grains rather than a thick tomato porridge. Serve the rice promptly and refrigerate any planned leftovers quickly, following the shorter rice storage window rather than the general three-day guidance for the fritters alone.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup long-grain white rice, rinsed and drained (200 g dry)
  • 1 2/3 cups water for rice (400 ml)
  • 3 medium onions (300 g prepared), divided: 200 g very thinly sliced for fritters and 100 g finely chopped for sauce
  • 4 tablespoons neutral oil (60 ml), divided: 1 tablespoon/15 ml for sauce and 1 tablespoon/15 ml for each of 3 fritter batches
  • 1 garlic clove, minced (3 g prepared)
  • 1 can crushed tomatoes (14 oz/400 g)
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano (0.5 g)
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine salt (4.5 g), divided: 1/4 teaspoon/1.5 g each for rice, sauce and batter
  • 2 cans plain sardines in water or oil, well drained (240 g drained total)
  • 2 large eggs (100 g without shells)
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour (80 g)
  • 1/4 cup milk (60 ml)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (1 g)

Set out

2 medium saucepans with lids, 12-inch/30 cm skillet, mixing bowl, knife and board, spatula, measuring jug, food thermometer

Allergens

fish, egg, wheat, milk. Check labels and substitutions.

Make it

  1. Put rice, 400 ml water and 1.5 g salt in one saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and rest covered for 10 minutes; check that the rice is tender.
  2. Meanwhile, heat 15 ml oil in the second saucepan. Cook the chopped 100 g onion for 5 minutes. Add garlic for 30 seconds, then tomatoes, oregano and 1.5 g salt. Simmer uncovered for 10–12 minutes until thick enough to coat the rice, stirring regularly.
  3. Check and roughly flake the drained sardines. In the bowl whisk eggs, flour, milk, the final 1.5 g salt and pepper into a thick batter. Fold in the sliced 200 g onion and sardines. Divide the mixture visually into 12 portions, about 55–60 g each.
  4. Heat 15 ml oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add 4 spoonfuls of batter and flatten gently to about 3 inches/8 cm across. Cook for 3–4 minutes per side, until golden and fully set at the center, at least 160°F/71°C. Repeat twice with the remaining batter and the remaining 2 portions of oil, keeping cooked fritters hot in a low oven if needed.
  5. Fold cooked rice into the reduced tomato sauce and stir over low heat for 2–3 minutes until steaming throughout. Serve one-quarter of the tomato rice and 3 fritters per person.

Use drained weight

Two cans is a shopping guide rather than a promise about every brand. Buy enough to supply the stated 240 g drained fish and use plain fish without a costly ready-made sauce.

Ingredient labels

Check sardine and tomato labels for unlisted sauces or allergens. The base uses plain sardines, eggs, wheat flour and milk.

A useful detail

Cook rice in water separately from the tomato sauce. The fritter batter is thick and needs modest spoonfuls so the onion and egg cook through before the outside darkens.

Another way

  • Use 240 g well-drained canned mackerel instead of sardines, checking and flaking it in the same way.
  • Use 200 g dry small pasta instead of rice, cooking by its package and draining before folding into the sauce. This changes the timing and removes the rice-specific storage rule.

Keep it well

Cool rice promptly in shallow containers, ideally refrigerating within 1 hour. Store fritters separately and refrigerate them within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C. Keep both at 40°F/4°C or below and use the rice-containing meal within 24 hours. Reheat once to 165°F/74°C throughout and eat promptly; do not save reheated rice for another cycle.