Okara "Crab" Cakes
Okara can be used in many ways; you can add it to baked goods, use it as an egg substitute, add it to soups and stews, or mix it into veggie burgers. Ever since I started making soymilk, I've experimented a lot with okara, but the following is my all-time favorite okara recipe. In fact, it's so good that I would actually consider making soymilk just to get the okara to make "crab" cakes. They're spicy, creamy, and crunchy all at the same time, and they taste so much like crab that it's scary!
Okara "Crab" Cakes
(click for printer-friendly recipe)
See the note at the end of the recipe for using tofu instead of okara.
2 slices whole wheat bread, broken into large pieces
1/2 cup minced celery (use a food processor to chop all vegetables quickly)
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, minced
1/2 green pepper, minced
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 1/2 cups okara (about what you get from making one batch of soymilk in a soymilk machine)
1/2 cup oatmeal (the quick kind, not instant)
1-2 tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
1 tsp. nori or dulse flakes (may use other flaked sea vegetable)
In a food processor or blender, whirl bread pieces into fine crumbs. Place on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until dried and toasty. Remove from oven and set aside.
In a non-stick skillet, cook celery, onion, carrot, pepper and parsley until softened, about 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, combine okara, sautéed vegetable mixture, oatmeal, and seasonings. Mix well and set aside to "rest" for 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Using about 1/4 cup for each cake, form mixture into about 15-20 patties about 2 inches across and 1/2 inch thick. Coat each side of the patty with bread crumbs and place on a nonstick baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Carefully turn cakes over and return to the oven to bake until second side is toasty and browned, about 15-20 minutes.
These are delicious served with spicy cocktail sauce or vegan tartar sauce; they also make an excellent sandwich on French bread.
Note: If you don't have okara, you can use tofu instead but you may need to add more or less oatmeal. Drain and mash the tofu well and add oatmeal until the mixture will hold together when you try to make it into patties.
Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 195 Calories (kcal); 5 g Total Fat; (22% calories from fat); 8 g Protein; 35 g Carbohydrate; 0 mg Cholesterol; 154 mg Sodium; 15 g Fiber; 3.5 Weight Watcher's points
For more info on okara, check out Ellen's Kitchen.
Tags: vegan recipes vegetarian cooking food fat-free Eat to Live
Labels: Southern cooking, soy










31 Comments:
So what gizmo do you use to make soy milk? And do you make all of your own soy milk?
I've been considering it so that I can make my own tofu--the stuff our Coop is selling now could be used in place of bricks, great for grilling but not much else.
When I saw the title, I could have sworn it said Okra Crab Cakes! I was thinking, how in the world to you get okra to taste like crab?
Woohoo! Thanks for posting this. I just recently began making my own soymilk again... I used to make okara "bacon" burgers all the time. A couple days ago I tried to throw together a burger (but I used a really funky binder that ruined it).. I will make these, probably tomorrow since I'm making soymilk tonight! Can't wait.
Milinda, I use the SoyQuick soymilk maker, and it works great. I got a special deal on it that included the tofu making kit. If you've never tasted homemade tofu, you are in for a real treat. I swear, it is better than even the freshest stuff you can buy in stores. If you decide you might want to buy one, email me and I'll give you some tips on getting the special deal.
And no, I don't make all our soymilk; quick as it is, the soymilk machine still takes more time than I would want to spend if I had to make all the soymilk we consume.
Jennifer--I worried that people would read it that way! :-)
Melody--the "bacon" burgers sound interesting. Care to share the recipe?
This looks delicious, but I definitely don't have a soymilk maker. Is it really worth it to buy one of these? I really rely on soymilk for my daily calcium and worry that homemade soymilk wouldn't provide as much as the storebought kinds do. Although I've always wanted to try it out. What ingredients are required to make your own. Thanks for the help- I'd really love to make these burgers.
-Teresa
This sounds so good. I used to really like crab cakes. I still buy old bay seasoning. I would love to try homemade soy milk and tofu.
This photo is just phenomenal! I'm so jealous of your photographic talents Susan.
I have heard that you can buy okara at Asian stores. Has anyone ever been able to find it?
Thanks for the recipe; it looks wonderful.
Thank you so much Susan! I hate throwing out okara, but it seems I always have more than enough. Usually I throw it in a lentil loaf or something, but this recipe sounds fantastic!
Oh good, I've been wanting to try making something out of it! (although we always say "it's not really wasted if it goes in the compost...") These sound great.
Hey.. I have to say I'm really glad you actually post these recipes. I was getting so sad seeing amazing photographs of food that looked great and finding nothing but a link to where I could buy the book. :-P
Crab Cakes?!
Seafood was THE hardest thing for me to stop eating. I'm so excited to try this recipe I'm going to print it out right now.
Thank you!!
Teddy
I have to try this, Susan! It looks so good, and I have been missing seafood after all these years-- don't know why! I have a SoyQuick as well and it is great.
Susan, I only got 4 oz. of okara out of a batch of soymilk-- I do rub the skins off, but that can't amount to much! Should I add tofu to top it off?
Is that 4 fluid ounces, Bryanna, or 4 ounces by weight? I usually come out with about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of okara, and that includes what I get my straining the milk with a gold coffee filter after it's made. That last, strained bit is more fluffy and weighs less than the okara that comes out of the machine's filter.
I think I would go by volume and not weight and add enough crumbled tofu to make a total of 1 1/2 cups.
It was weight, Susan, so I will take your advice and top it up with crumbled tofu to make 1 1/2 cups. Thanks! Bryanna
I am having problems finding Old Bay Seasoning. I'm still looking, but in case I have problems, can you suggest any substitutes? If not I totally understand LOL!
I'm not sure of what you could buy to substitute for Old Bay, but I did find this recipe online:
OLD BAY SEASONING
1 tablespoon celery seeds
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
6 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon whole cardamoms
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 whole cloves
1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon mace
In a spice grinder or small food processor, combine all of the ingredients. Grind well and store in a small glass jar. Best if used within 6 months (date your jar).
I hope that helps!
Yes it did help. However, I made a few phone calls and managed to find the Old Bay Seasoning at one of the local stores. Trying the recipe tonight!!!
Great recipe. One note: original old bay seasoning, the stuff in the yellow can, has A LOT of sodium, like 160 mg/.25 tsp (the first ingredient is celery salt...)! I of course did not realize this until after I added it to the mix, so I am making up a double batch without adding any more old bay. You may want to note that in the recipe, especially for us Eat-to-Livers who are avoiding salt. Next time, I'll make up some old bay based on the the recipe above and give the can to my parents. It does smell fabulous though!
LOVE LOVE LOVE the Okara Crab Cakes!
Hubby whipped up a batch last night for dinner with me as his "gopher". Another hit!
In the words of my 3YO daughter... "I lubbed my trab takes!"
Thanks so much for posting these recipes and making cooking fun for those of us who are less "adventurous". You have made cooking fun again.
I made these tonight, my husband thought for sure there was some kind of seafood in it, since it didn't have the texture of crab cakes he was stumped, but really liked them. They are a hit and I made a bunch and froze them so we can have some whenever we please. Thanks for this great recipe!
For those who haven't been able to find a way to use okara, it is just great in pancakse. Use 1/4 cup okara and 1/4 cup cake flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1/4 cup of water for a 145 calorie treat.
Cal
I just made this recipe for my cooking club...I loved it! I can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch today.
Where to find Okara
In case you are wondering how to get okara without owning a soy milk machine, I know you can make it with blender. Soak your soy beans over night, the skins will come off very easily next morning, then blend them with water and filter it through cheese cloth, there is your okara!
For baking, you can buy powder form okara from Japanese stores or online. If you live close to a big Asian market (LA or Atlanta), they do have fresh okara.
So I'm not sure what I did wrong, but when I made my cakes, it didn't brown well in my oven. I left a couple to just fry in the fry pan but those had a funny taste because I don't think the okara cooked all the way through. I was pretty sure that this wasn't worth the effort again. I did save all the baked cakes and had one again tonight for dinner after browning/warming it up in my fry pan with a little bit of oil. It tasted fantastic! But what did I do wrong?
Anonymous, I don't know what happened. Have you checked the temp in your oven, though? It sounds like they didn't get cooked enough, so you might want to turn up the heat or leave them in longer--if you try them again.
"Sue said...In case you are wondering how to get okara without owning a soy milk machine, I know you can make it with blender. Soak your soy beans over night, the skins will come off very easily next morning, then blend them with water ..."
For the benefit of the idiots among us (I'm including myself here) "blend them" means blend the beans NOT the skins, yes?
This is a great site!
Hi Jan--that's actually a good question! Discard the skins and blend the beans with water. Sue didn't say this, but the okara should still be cooked. Actually, if you're going through the trouble of soaking, blending, and cooking soybeans, you're basically making soymilk. Do a Google search and you should find a few recipes you could follow.
Hi Susan. Just wanted to say, on your recommendation, I bought a SoyQuick Soy Milk Maker and am very happy with it. Today I made tofu for the first time and to my delight it actually turned out! (I tried from scratch on the stove once--what a nightmare that was!) I also made a variation on your okara crab cakes. I seasoned them with galangal, lemon grass, garlic, shallot and bird chili instead of Old Bay and celery--Thai style! And served them with steamed spinach and a peanut sauce. Yum!
Just wanted to say I am making these right now! So glad you have some okara recipes, since I just got a soymilk maker, and I was surprised to read about how healthy the leftover pulp is (and happy to put it to good use!) I love your okara cookies.
I used panko bread crumbs mixed with some paprika, garlic, onion, and parsley since I didn't have fresh parsley on hand. I also left out the celery and pepper (laziness!) and added a tablespoon of vital wheat gluten to help it hold together better...and a little shot of soy sauce. The batter is really good, and these will be great for later. I'm going to freeze them, but will be happy to try them later, maybe even in some club rolls for sandwiches. Thanks for the recipe!
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