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1
Cook the Rice
20 Mins
Simmer, ~95°C (200°F)
Rinse 200 g of dry rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Put it in a saucepan with 400 ml of cold water, bring to a boil, then cover, turn the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Take it off the heat and rest, covered, for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Leave the lid on to keep it warm while you make the cakes.
Do not lift the lid while the rice simmers — the trapped steam is what finishes the grains.
Done when: Grains are tender and separate, with no water left in the pan.
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2
Poach and Flake the Snapper
10 Mins
Gentle simmer, ~90°C (195°F); fish cooked to 63°C (145°F)
Put the snapper chunks in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a gentle simmer — never a rolling boil. Poach for 6–8 minutes, until the fish is opaque all the way through and flakes easily. Drain well, let it cool just enough to handle, then flake it into a bowl with a fork, picking out any small bones as you go.
Drain the fish thoroughly and press it lightly — wet fish makes a loose mixture that falls apart in the pan.
Done when: Fish is opaque white and flakes into small, even shreds with no raw, glassy centre.
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3
Mix and Shape the Cakes
10 Mins
No heat
Add the beaten eggs, flour, 80 g onion, cilantro, 10 g garlic, 2 g salt and the black pepper to the flaked fish and mix with your hands until everything holds together. Rest the mixture for 5 minutes so the flour hydrates, then shape it into 12 flat, round cakes, each about 7 cm across and 1.5 cm thick. Lay them on a tray lined with baking paper.
Wet your hands lightly before shaping — the egg mixture is sticky, and wet hands keep the cakes smooth.
Done when: 12 even cakes that hold their shape when lifted and do not crack at the edges.
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4
Make the Tomato Sauce
15 Mins
Medium heat; simmer ~95°C (200°F)
Heat the 10 ml of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the 60 g onion and 5 g garlic for about 3 minutes until soft and fragrant, then add the chopped tomatoes and 1 g salt. Simmer gently for about 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the tomatoes collapse into a thick, spoonable sauce. Keep it warm over the lowest heat.
If the tomatoes are pale or sharp, simmer 2 minutes longer — time, not sugar, is what sweetens a tomato sauce.
Done when: Sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon and no longer watery.
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5
Fry the Cakes Golden
12 Mins
Oil at 175°C (350°F); fish cooked to 63°C (145°F)
Heat the frying oil to 175°C (350°F). Slide the cakes in 4 at a time and fry for about 3 minutes per side, until deep golden brown and crisp all over. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack, not paper towels, so the crust stays crisp. The tortas de pescado are done when the centre is hot, opaque and flakes cleanly.
Fry in small batches — crowding the pan drops the oil temperature and the cakes soak up oil instead of crisping.
Done when: Deep golden and crisp outside, hot and opaque inside, with no raw fish in the centre.
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6
Serve in Sauce with Rice
3 Mins
Serve hot, ~60°C (140°F)
Spoon a ladle of the warm tomato sauce onto each plate, set 3 hot cakes on top of the sauce, and add a mound of the fluffy rice alongside. Serve at once, while the crust is still crisp.
Sauce under the cakes, not over them — pouring sauce on top softens the crust you just fried.
Done when: Cakes are crisp, sauce is hot, and the rice is steaming.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Spoon the warm tomato sauce under the crisp cakes at the table, so the crust stays golden while the sauce waits underneath, with the rice fluffy alongside. The photo shows the cakes with a spoonful of white sauce over wilted greens — a serving variation; the recipe below serves them in the traditional tomato sauce.
El Salvador
1h 15m
