How To Hide Vegetables And Make Something Delicious For Your Kid: The Cautlet
The Cautlet is not a recipe; it is an essential answer to two of your most pressing questions: can I bread and “fry” basically everything? (Yes!) and is there a way to stick/hide vegetables in there? (Probably!) The cutlet is the form that aids that first part; riced cauliflower solves the second.
Less is more is the motto here: ingredients are few; taste and chew are simple and fulfilling. There’s no pan-fry; I keep the bad staff to a minimum here. While easy, this one requires some precision: execution is paramount; time will be of the essence. Don’t sleep on the prep and fridge time: there’s a lot of loose material–that cauliflower rice especially–that needs time to condense and cohere in order to stay intact when cooking.
- 1/2 lb Ground Pork (can also use sausage meat)
- 2 oz Cauliflower Rice (i.e., about one-fourth of a package of frozen cauliflower rice)
- 1 Egg
- Panko Breadcrumbs and/or Unseasoned Breadcrumbs (recommended: bit of both)
- Teriyaki sauce or marinade
- If frozen, allow ground pork to thaw. Cook the frozen cauliflower rice for approximately half of the time listed on the instructions—ie, thawed but not quite steaming. Allow to cool.
- Add the pork to a large bowl, breaking apart if in clumps or pressed together; break apart and then add cauliflower rice and a glug of the teriyaki to the bowl. Mix and blend bowl contents together with your hands until meat and rice are combined in one big heap. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes. (Feel free to leave it in the fridge all day or overnight!)
- Once cold, take out the pork-cauliflower mixture and one large and flat container. Grab a chunk of the meat-cauli mixture and, in the palm of one hand, flatten the meat with the other hand until you have a thin and round patty; place in your container. Repeat for the remaining mixture, then return to a freezer for about 10 minutes or the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- When ready to cook, line up two flat and shallow containers next to one another. In the first, crack in the egg and whip until blended; in the second spread your breadcrumbs.
- Take out your pork-cauliflower mixture and place it next to the container with the egg. Dip each patty into the egg mixture, letting excess egg drip off; then roll the patty through the breadcrumbs until coated. Transfer patty to a pan; repeat for remaining meat mixture.
- Put a small amount of oil into the base of your air fryer*, or coat its surface with cooking spray.
- Heat at 400 for seven minutes. (If you have a particularly powerful air fryer, like ours is, set temp to 375 and heat for the same amount of time.)
- Remove from heat and squeeze lemon over the top of each patty before serving.
The crisp exterior-moist interior of the caultlet means you can go ahead and cut it up the same way you do with chicken nuggets. A sauce is not needed, but feel free to use one if it encourages or familiarizes the dish; my son really enjoys it with hoisin and mustard. (The gallery photo below shows it dotted with ketchup, mustard, and mayo.) You can also make a tenderloin sandwich (see photo) by placing a patty on a lightly toasted slider bun and spreading ketchup and mustard over the top.
Though the end result will look like a chicken patty, ground pork meat may feel different on the tongue to your child, especially if you use a coarser sausage blend. If the texture difference is an issue for your child, add a small amount of mayo when you mix the meat and cauliflower rice.
- * Prefer an oven cook? Heat oven to 425 and cook for seven minutes. Check doneness: if not quite cooked through, flip patties and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Brad (the Dad) is the founder and Chief Recipe Officer of New Dad's Kitchen. His own cooking/feeding journey started humbly during his son's infancy, preparing and managing his son's bottle intake in order to support his wife; it has since blossomed into a full-on passion to feed his child and family delicious and healthy meals that can satisfy both a toddler and his very tired parents.
