Crispy Rice Cakes
I volunteered to work at Meatopia in 2023 for Whittle and Flame, the charcoal makers. I had a great time. One of the perks of the job was being fed by some of the chefs I was supporting. One of those chefs, Paul Asher, was doing a Thai dish that he served with griddled rice patties.
Inspired by Paul, I came up with these crispy rice cakes, taking his idea but adding Japanese spices and prepping the cakes on a plancha, as opposed to a direct cast iron griddle.Â
They were a real hit with Mrs MeatSmokeFire, so we’ve made them several times since.
Cooking surfaces
or
BBQ Temperature
Ingredients
For the rice cakes
- 1 cup glutinous rice (sticky rice)
- Water to cook in as per the rice packet instructions or your rice maker
- 2 spring onions, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- Either 1 tbsp mirin, or 2 tsp sugar (if you’re using sugar, dissolve it into the rice wine vinegar by heating it gently)
- Shichimi Togarashi (Japanese 7 spice mix)
- 3 tbsp ground nut oil for frying
For the dipping sauce and garnish
- 125ml cup rice vinegar
- 125ml low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 thinly sliced spring onions
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon minced fresh ginger root
Method
To make the dipping sauce – this is best done an hour before serving
- Pop all the ingredients into a bowl and mix together.Â
- Set aside to infuse.
To cook your rice cakes
- We use a Yum Asia rice cooker to make our rice. Otherwise, you can do it as per the instructions on the packet.
- Set up your Big Green Egg with either a cast iron skillet or plancha. Set the temp to 250°C.
- When the rice is cooked, fold in your sliced spring onions, rice wine vinegar, and either mirin or sugar.
- With wet hands, divide the rice into four and shape it into burger-sized patties.
- Oil your plancha or skillet and add the rice cakes.
- Sprinkle over a little Shichimi Togarashi. It’s spicy, so take it easy.
- Turn after 5 minutes, sprinkling the other side with the spice.
- Keep turning until you have golden brown rice cakes that are crispy on the outside but gooey on the inside. This will take about 15 minutes.
- Serve with some sliced spring onions and the dipping sauce.
Other serving ideas
These rice cakes can be served as a bed for some Japanese marinated steak.
I think they’d also work well with some torched and pickled mackerel.
