Fried Spinach Patties Recipes

EASY FRIED SPINACH

Steps:

• Melt the butter with the canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat until it stops bubbling. This allows the water from the butter to evaporate. Add the garlic; cook and stir for about 2 minutes, until it is just beginning to brown. Put in the spinach leaves and cook for about 5 minutes while stirring, until the leaves are dark and are about 1/4 of their original size.

FRIED SPINACH PATTIES

Steps:

• Boil frozen spinach and drain well. Hand squeeze off excess water from spinach. Cook rice until done and rinse rice well. Drain and hand squeeze off excess water. Mix together spinach, rice, eggs, salt and pepper. Add Romano cheese and bread crumbs. Mix well. Make small thin patties out of batter and fry in a little oil until both sides are brown.

PAN FRIED SPINACH

Steps:

• In a skillet over medium heat, fry the bacon until evenly brown and crisp. Drain, crumble, and set aside.
• Melt the butter and heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Mix in the crumbled bacon, garlic, and onion. Cook and stir 2 minutes, then mix in the spinach until evenly coated with the butter and oil. Cover skillet, reduce heat to low, and cook 5 minutes, stirring often, or until spinach is tender. Season with salt and pepper to serve.

SPINACH PATTIES RECIPE

Steps:

• Add 2 inches of water to a pasta pot. Place the deep steamer inside the pot, add the spinach, place on the stovetop and turn the heat to high. Once the water starts to boil, it only takes a few minutes for the spinach to wilt.
• Once the spinach leaves are wilted, lift the steamer and set it at an angle over the pot (suspended. See post for a photo) to allow the water to drain and the spinach to cool.
• After a few minutes, transfer the spinach to a food processor. Pulse the processor a few times until the spinach is processed.
• Add the processed spinach to a mixing bowl and add cheese, eggs, matzo meal, salt and black pepper. Mix all of the ingredients together (if the mixture is too wet, add a little bit more matzo meal).
• Heat about 1/2 inch of canola or vegetable oil to a 12-inch nonstick pan.
• When the oil is hot, lower the heat to medium-high and use your hands or two regular tablespoons to form small patties from the mixture and lower them to the oil.
• Fry the patties for a few minutes on the first side. When you notice that the bottom starts to become golden, flip the patties and fry for a few minutes on the other side.
• Once the patties are ready, remove them from the oil and set on a cooling rack or on a plate lined with a paper towel. You can stop here and just eat them fried in a sandwich, as a meal or an appetizer (try making a garlic dip to go with them), or you can freeze them (see the notes section for more info on freezing). Or you can make the sauce and cook them in the sauce.
• To make the sauce, heat olive oil in a 12-inch nonstick pan. Lower the heat to medium-high, add the minced garlic and fry it for a couple of minutes (to make sure it doesn't burn, stir it constantly).
• Add the chicken stock (or vegetable stock), lemon juice, cilantro, salt and pepper. Stir and cook until the sauce comes to a boil (this should take a couple of minutes).
• Add the patties to the pot (I usually can't fit all of them so I just add as many as I can), cover the pot and cook for 5-7 minutes.
• Turn the heat off and let the patties cool for a few minutes before serving with white or brown rice, bulgur wheat, quinoa, or special bread.

FRIED SPINACH

Steps:

• In a large heavy saucepan or deep-fat fryer, heat 3 or 4 inches of oil to 350/F. Preheat the oven to very low and put a paper towel-lined roasting pan in it to warm. Standing well away from the top of the pot in case the oil spatters, take a handful of leaves at a time and throw them into the hot oil for about 30 seconds, or until crisp and bright green. Remove with a skimmer or tongs to the towel-lined pan and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Fry the remaining spinach in the same way. (The spinach can be kept at room temperature after frying for up to 2 hours, then reheated in a low oven just before serving.)

STIR-FRIED SPINACH WITH GARLIC

Steps:

• In a large wok over medium heat, heat oil. Stir-fry salt and spinach for 1 minute. When spinach has wilted add sugar and garlic and stir-fry 2 to 3 minutes more. Plate spinach, serve warm or cold.

SPINACH-POTATO PATTIES

Steps:

• Simmer potatoes in water to cover 20 to 30 minutes, until tender. Drain. Meanwhile, stem and finely chop spinach. Place in a large bowl with chili, cilantro, garam masala, cayenne, black pepper, salt and lemon juice. Add potatoes. Mix all ingredients, squeezing with your hands. There will be small chunks of potato.
• Spread bread crumbs on a plate. Form spinach-potato mixture into 12 3-inch patties, using 1/2 cup of the mixture for each. Or use 1/4 cup each for 24 patties. To shape, pack mixture into a metal measuring cup, and tap out onto plate. Coat on both sides with crumbs. Arrange patties in a single layer on a baking sheet, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet. Fry as many patties as will fit comfortably in the pan, turning once, until browned, about 4 minutes a side. Repeat with remaining patties, adding more oil as needed. Serve with chutney.

SPINACH-AND-FETA PATTIES

Steps:

• Bring 1/2 cup water to a simmer over medium-high heat in a large skillet or saucepan. Add spinach, cover, and cook until wilted and tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain in a colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much moisture as possible with your hands (or use a ricer to press out excess). Coarsely chop spinach and transfer to a large bowl.
• Heat oil in a medium heavy-bottomed skillet, such as cast iron, over medium. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but no color has developed, about 6 minutes. Transfer to bowl with spinach and let cool completely.
• Stir in flour, egg, nutmeg, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Fold in feta. Form mixture into golf-ball-size rounds, then flatten slightly into 1-inch-thick patties. Transfer to a parchment-lined tray and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours or, loosely covered, up to 1 day.
• Pour a scant 1/2 inch oil into skillet. Heat over medium until oil shimmers and bubbles form instantly around a breadcrumb dropped in (350°F on a deep-fry thermometer). Working in batches, fry, flipping once and adjusting heat as needed to maintain a level temperature, until crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes.
• Drain on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; keep warm in a preheated 200°F oven while frying the rest. Serve warm, with dipping sauces.

SEPHARDIC SPINACH PATTIES

Steps:

• 1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and, if using, the garlic and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the spinach, matza meal, salt, pepper, and, if using, the nutmeg. Stir in the eggs. If the mixture is too loose, add a little more matza meal. The mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for a day.
• 2. Shape the spinach mixture into patties 3 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, with tapered ends. In a large skillet, heat a thin layer of oil over medium heat. In batches, fry the patties, turning, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. Serve warm, accompanied with lemon wedges.
• Sephardic Spinach Patties with Cheese (Keftes de Espinaca con Queso):
• Add 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Muenster, Swiss, Gouda, or Cheddar cheese; or 1/4 cup grated kefalotyri or Parmesan cheese.
• Sephardic Spinach Patties with Walnuts (Keftes de Espinaca con Muez):
• Substitute 1/2 to 1 cup finely chopped walnuts for the matza meal.
• Italian Spinach Patties (Polpettine di Spinaci):
• Add 3/4 cup raisins soaked in white wine for 30 minutes, then drained, and 3/4 cup toasted pine nuts.

SPINACH FRITTERS (RACHAEL RAY)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together the spinach, onion, eggs, the flour and cumin; season with salt and pepper.
• Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a frying pan. Spoon heaping tablespoons of the spinach batter into the oil. Cook the fritters until crisp and browned, about 2 minutes on each side.

SPINACH PATTIES

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and, if using, the garlic and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the spinach, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and, if using, the nutmeg. Stir in the eggs. If the mixture is too loose, add a little more bread crumbs. The mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for a day.
• Shape the spinach mixture into patties. In a large skillet, heat a thin layer of oil over medium heat. In batches, fry the patties, turning, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. Serve warm, accompanied with lemon wedges.