Siba’s lunchbox-friendly fish cakes

• 2 T canola oil
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 spring onion, roughly chopped
• 1 t butter chicken curry spice or mild curry powder, heaped
• 375 g butternut peeled, cooked and mashed (it should be dry, not too wet)
• 60 g flour, plus extra for dusting
• 120 g panko breadcrumbs
• 4 x 170 g cans tuna in brine, drained
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 T smoked BBQ sauce
• Woolworths tartare sauce, for serving
• Seasonal fruit on skewers, or a green salad, for serving

1. Heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the onion for 4 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and spring onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the curry powder and stir for 30 seconds, taking care not to burn the spice.
2. Add the mashed butternut and stir and until combined. Add the flour, a heaped spoonful at a time, and stir well. Stir in the drained tuna until well combined. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Switch off the heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly until cool enough to handle. In a tray or plate, mix the extra flour and breadcrumbs. Heat a nonstick pan with enough oil for shallow frying. Shape 2 T spoonful of the mixture into a ball using your hands. Repeat with the remaining mixture.
4. Dust the fish cakes in the breadcrumb-and-flour mixture flattening them slightly to form mini fish cakes. Cook each one oil 1½ minutes on one side and 1 minute on the other.
5. Gently remove from the pan and drain on wire rack lined with kitchen paper. Allow to cool completely before packing into an airtight container to refrigerate or pack for lunch.

Cook's note: These budget-friendly fish cakes star butternut and canned tuna - a pantry staple in my house. Everyone at home loves them, from my husband to the littlies, so they're great for lunchboxes for the whole family.

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