Salmon fish cakes

Ideally you need a good quality frying pan when making fish cakes, so I decided to make some to test out the new 26cm Green Earth Textured Ceramic Nonstick Frying Pan that I have just received free from Ozeri to review.

I was really pleased to be offered the chance to review this product, as it is a bigger version of the 20cm Ozeri frying pan that has become a firm favourite in my kitchen since I reviewed it last year. You can read that post here, but there was one difference this time. This pan came with a pan protector to use to protect the surface of the pan, if stacking other items on top of it. What a great idea.

Pan Protector

As a pro with my existing 20cm pan, I already knew that I just needed to season the new pan with half a teaspoon of olive oil and to cook at a low heat, due to Green Earth Pans being a better conductor of heat than traditional pans, otherwise the food may burn.

Seasoning the pan

So here is my recipe for salmon fish cakes. You’ll see that it encompasses three variants, in order to suit all members of the household. We’ve got the traditional potato ones, both with and without leek, plus ones made with sweet potato.

Ingredients (makes 8-10)

350g potatoes
350g sweet potatoes
1 212g tin pink salmon
1 egg
2 tbsp plain flour
20g leek
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp olive oil

Method

Peel and chop the potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Chop the leek.
Bring two saucepans of water to the boil.
Put the potatoes and leek in one pan and the sweet potatoes in the other.
Cook for about 10 minutes until they are soft enough to mash.
Meanwhile drain the tin of salmon and place the fish in a bowl.
Remove any skin and bones from the fish.
Mix egg and 1 tbsp of the flour into the fish.
Season with salt and pepper.
Remove the leek from pan and put aside.
Drain the sweet potatoes and return to the pan.
Drain the potatoes and return to their pan.
Mash the sweet potatoes.
Mash the potatoes.
Mix half the fish into the potatoes and the other half into the sweet potatoes.
Dust the other tbsp of flour across a board.
Put half of the potato fish mixture onto the board.
Roll in the flour and form into 2 patties, approx 2cm high.
Mix the leek into the remainder of the potato fish mixture.
As before, form into 2-3 more patties.
Put all of the sweet potato fish mixture onto the board.
Form into 4-5 patties.
Add olive oil to frying pan.
Heat gently and put 4 patties in the frying pan.
Cook gently for about 4-5 minutes until golden underneath.
Turn over and repeat to cook the other side.
Put aside whilst you cook the other patties.
Serve hot with your choice of vegetables and enjoy.

And the verdict on the pan. Absolutely fantastic. The fish cakes did not stick in the slightest, so were very easy to turn, half way through cooking. And we got a thumbs up all round from everyone for the fish cakes too.

Now let me remind you what I found out last time. I discovered that the Ozeri Green Earth pans are one of the first non-stick frying pans to be free of harmful heavy metals and chemicals. This is due to the GREBLON ceramic coating which is 100% PTFE and PFOA free. I had never realised that previously when cooking at high temperatures that toxic fumes were probably being released into the environment. I have been making a conscious effort since, to cook at lower temperatures, although still struggling to get my other half to remember to do the same.

You can order this Frying Pan via Amazon.  Currently the price has been reduced from £44.99 to £24.99.  This is very good value in my opinion for such a quality item. And I can add that a year on, my existing 20cm pan is still looking in good condition.

I’ve already mentioned that it also comes in a 20cm size, but there is a third size too, the biggest version at 30 cm.

Ozeri is a manufacturer of products for contemporary homes. I have also previously reviewed their Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scales and their Salt and Pepper Grinder and been very pleased with both of those too.

Disclosure.  This post is a review of a product I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

My review of Ozeri Green Earth Frying Pan

Ozeri is a manufacturer of products for contemporary homes and is an established brand in the USA, presently looking to expand into the UK. I’m very pleased with both their products that I have previously reviewed, namely the Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scales and the Salt and Pepper Grinder. So when their distributor Moderna Housewares contacted me again, to see if I would review another Ozeri product, I was happy to help out. I selected the 30cm Green Earth Textured Ceramic Nonstick Frying Pan from a choice of 2 Ozeri products to review, since my existing large frying pan is nearly the end of its useful life.

So I was very pleased to receive my free Ozeri Frying pan, although it turned out to be the 20cm model, rather than the 30cm one that I was expecting.  It was well packed and came with an instruction leaflet. My first thought on getting it out of the box, was that it looked sturdy.

On reading the box and leaflet, I discovered that it is one of the first non-stick frying pans to be free of harmful heavy metals and chemicals. This is due to its GREBLON ceramic coating which is 100% PTFE and PFOA free. I had never realised that previously when cooking at high temperatures that toxic fumes were probably being released into the environment. Not a nice thought to dwell on, as I imagine some of that went straight into the food being cooked and then eaten by my family.

I followed the instructions to season the pan with a tiny amount of oil and then decided to test it out by frying an egg. I used a lower heat as per the instructions, as it advised due to the Green Earth Pan being a better conductor of heat than traditional pans, that high heat could cause food to burn. I was pleased to see that the pan sat well-balanced on the hob, as I tend not to use my existing 20cm frying pan very often, because that has a dangerous tendency to unbalance and tip. The egg cooked perfectly and glided out of the pan onto the toast. Full marks to the non-stick surface. And the pan was easy to clean in hot soapy water with a soft cloth.

It also advised that high heat can accelerate the gradual decline of the pan’s non-stick properties. And the pan is oven safe to 180 deg C. Hand washing is preferred rather than dishwasher. I cook on gas, but it said that it is induction stove safe.

I can hear you asking why is the surface textured rather than smooth? The box claims that an elevated texture creates air pockets which distribute heat underneath food to enhance cooking. And that a patterned surface helps prevent food bonding for superior non-stick performance and easy cleaning.

You can order this Frying Pan via Amazon.  Currently the price has been reduced from £39.95 to £24.95.  I only know one other high quality pan brand and that is much more expensive, so this is very good value in comparison in my opinion. Buy for yourself or as a gift.

It comes in a range of sizes, namely 20cm, 26cm or 30cm and there are also similar designs with a smooth non-stick surface rather than textured. I don’t believe it comes in any colours other than green. I will have to investigate further to see if they also make saucepans, as after finding out about the heavy metals and chemicals, I would prefer to replace all my pans in the near future.

Disclosure.  This post is a review of a product I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

My review of Ozeri Salt and Pepper Grinder

Ozeri is a manufacturer of products for contemporary homes and is an established brand in the USA, presently looking to expand into the UK. Last year I reviewed one of their Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scales and I’m still very pleased with it and have now disposed of my old bathroom scales. So when their distributor Moderna Housewares contacted me again, to see if I would review another Ozeri product, I was happy to help out. I selected the Salt and Pepper Grinder from a choice of 3 Ozeri products to review, as this looked quite neat and my existing salt and pepper mills do not match each other.

So I was very pleased to receive my free Ozeri Salt and Pepper Grinder.  It was well packed and came with an instruction leaflet. It is simple to open to fill and it has a hidden funnel to assist with the filling.  But you do need do be careful with alignment of the funnel when filling. First time I didn’t notice that I had misaligned it and ended up filling both compartments simultaneously with salt. So I had to tip the salt out and start again. It was my fault as the instructions are very clear about the importance of aligning it. But I found it easy to fill second time. Also it can be cleaned, just by wiping with a damp cloth which is good for those of you who like me, grab it when you are halfway through rubbing fat into flour. And it has a clever feature, I’ve never come across before where you can adjust buttons hidden underneath to make the ground salt and pepper either finer or coarser. Then to use, you simply twist the top clockwise for pepper and anti-clockwise for salt.

Filling the grinder

You can order this Salt and Pepper Grinder via Amazon.  Currently the price has been reduced from £24.99 to £9.95, with the RRP being £29.99.  Very good value at £9.95 in my opinion, but I don’t think I would have been prepared to pay the original price. Buy for yourself or as a gift.

Disclosure.  This post is a review of a product I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

My review of Ozeri Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scale

Ozeri is a manufacturer of products for contemporary homes and is an established brand in the USA, presently looking to expand into the UK.

I received a free Ozeri Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scale in the post today, via their distributor Moderna Housewares.  I had selected this item out of a choice of 4 Ozeri products to review, as my existing bathroom scales urgently need replacing.  My digital ones under-report my weight by about half a stone – very complimentary but I want to know my actual weight. Replacing the battery did not resolve this and my older analogue set has lost its pointer, so I have to peer very closely to see what it says.

Ozeri Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scale

So I was very pleased to receive the Ozeri Precision Pro II Digital Bathroom Scale.  It was well packed and came with an instruction leaflet and 2 AAA batteries ready to insert.  As with most bathroom scales, it recommends to use on a hard floor surface and if you move it to another location, it will recalibrate with no intervention required.  I was impressed to see it had a blue LCD display making it easy to read your weight – I haven’t seen bathroom scales with this feature.  And it is larger than other bathroom scales, which I hope will prove useful in the future, when I attempt to weigh my suitcase before heading to the airport.  The scale turns off automatically after about 10 seconds inactivity, conserving battery life. It is a sleek modern design, constructed of impact-resistant tempered glass.

Ozeri Precision Pro II Digital Kitchen Scale

However I was disappointed to see it didn’t have a stones weight option, which is what I am used to using.  The default option is pounds, so I assume the product is targetted at the American market, since Ozeri is an established brand in the USA.  It does have a button underneath to switch to kilos, but I couldn’t seem to get this to function.  So I had to resort to a calculator to divide by 14, to convert to stones.

My son testing out the Ozeri Bathroom Scale

Its sensors can cope with weights upto 440 pounds, which is over 31 stone.

My young son and I both tested the product several times in quick succession and it gave quite consistent weight readings, which was an issue with my current digital bathroom scales. In my opinion, this is a great product, so long as you’re happy to weigh yourself in pounds.

You can order this Bathroom Scale via Amazon.  Currently the price has been reduced from £29.95 to £18.95 so very good value.  Buy for yourself or as a gift.

Disclosure.  This post is a review of a product I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.