Tofu Tsukune (Baked Chicken and Tofu Patties) (Wheat-Free)
豆腐のつくね焼き（小麦なし） · Tofu no Tsukune-yaki
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Tsukune are Japanese minced-meat patties, most often made with chicken and familiar from yakitori menus. In this preschool version, ground chicken is stretched with firm tofu, so the patties come out light and tender enough for small mouths, and finely minced carrot, onion, and hijiki seaweed are sautéed and folded right in, where children hardly notice them. Instead of breadcrumbs, potato starch holds everything together, which keeps the recipe free of wheat flour, and baking the patties in the oven means no standing at the stove flipping them one by one.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 60 gfirm tofu
- 10.5 gcarrot
- 10.5 gonion
- 0.5 gdried hijiki seaweedShort, black strands of dried seaweed with a mild, earthy flavor that are soaked before simmering. Substitute: Dried wakame or arame.
- 30 gground chicken
Seasonings
- 2.3 gvegetable oil
- 4.5 gsweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu)Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- 4.9 gpotato starch (katakuriko)Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
- 0.3 gsugar
- 0.6 gsoy sauce
- 0.2 gsalt
- 1.5 gvegetable oil
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- dried hijiki seaweed (干しひじき)
- Short, black strands of dried seaweed with a mild, earthy flavor that are soaked before simmering. Substitute: Dried wakame or arame.
- sweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu) (調製豆乳)
- Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- potato starch (katakuriko) (かたくり粉)
- Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
Directions
- 1
Briefly boil the tofu, then crumble it finely in a colander and drain off the water thoroughly. Soak the hijiki in water to rehydrate it, then tip it into a colander and drain.
- 2
Finely mince the carrot and onion, combine them with the hijiki, and sauté well in the oil.
- 3
Add the tofu from step 1, the sautéed vegetables from step 2, the ground chicken, soy milk, potato starch, sugar, soy sauce, and salt, and mix well until the mixture becomes sticky.
- 4
Toss the mixture back and forth between your palms to knock out the air, shape it into rounds, and arrange them on a baking sheet brushed with oil. Bake in an oven preheated to 200°C (390°F) for about 20 minutes.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 156 kcal | 312 kcal | 156 kcal |
| Protein | 9.8 g | 19.5 g | 9.8 g |
| Fat | 10.5 g | 21 g | 10.5 g |
| Carbohydrates | 7.7 g | 15.3 g | 7.7 g |
| Fiber | 1.4 g | 2.7 g | 1.4 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 0.6 g | 0.3 g |
| Calcium | 69 mg | 138 mg | 69 mg |
| Iron | 1.2 mg | 2.4 mg | 1.2 mg |
| Potassium | 229.5 mg | 459 mg | 229.5 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 156 kcal | 9.8 g | 10.5 g | 7.7 g | 1.4 g | 0.3 g | 69 mg | 1.2 mg | 229.5 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 312 kcal | 19.5 g | 21 g | 15.3 g | 2.7 g | 0.6 g | 138 mg | 2.4 mg | 459 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
