Healthy Mexican-Inspired Dinner with Tuna, Tortillas, and Jicama Fries

Here are three cheap and delicious recipes you can make for lunch or dinner, and have together or separately. I was reminiscing about the Summer I lived in Oaxaca and studied Spanish.

First up: Tuna y Pappas Cakes (canned tuna and potatoes).

There are a few ways to make this. Options are below. Here’s how I made mine, more or less as taught to me in Oaxaca.

Ingredients

1) 6 ounces canned tuna, drained.

2) 3-4 small red potatoes

3) pico de gallo

4) egg (or egg white or egg substitute)

Directions

1) Dice the red potatoes.

2) Pan fry them (I use cooking spray) until they are cooked and browned.

3) Mix the tuna, the potatoes, and the pico in a bowl. (Add the potatoes and pico a little at a time. The pico is to taste, the potatoes you don’t want to overload the cakes, and how much you need depends on your preference and the size of the potatoes. Have fun experimenting).

4) Add about 1 tbl egg (or variation) and mix everything together.

5) Form into patties. I did two 3 ounce patties.

6) Air Fry the patties on 370F for about 10-12 minutes. Optional to flip halfway through (carefully).

7) Eat & be happy.

Options:

1) Some recipes call for mashing the potatoes. I prefer more texture in mine, so I dice instead.

2) Some recipes call for corn and/or other add-in’s, or simply diced onion. Just enjoy experimenting.

3) You can also pan fry the patty. I had better luck with the air fryer. I liked the taste better and the patty held together more easily.

4) You can wrap the tuna cakes in a tortilla (recipe below), if you want and serve with the jicama fries (recipe below). You can serve the cake as a patty on a bun. Or you can simply enjoy as it is, which is what I do, with the fries on the side and some roasted bell peppers.

Next up: Jicama Fries

Ingredients

1) Jicama. You’re going to want a bunch, because you will fall in love with how good these are. And they are lower in carbs and calories than potatoes, so you will probably find yourself eating more “fries” than you might otherwise.

2) Salt and Cooking Spray to taste

Directions

1) Peel the jicama

2) Slice into 1/2-inch slices (or thicker/thinner based on the type of fries you like)

3) Line the air fryer basket with a parchment paper lining (optional)

4) Spray jicama with cooking spray on all sides and arrange the jicama in the basket.

5) Air fry at 400 until browned and crisp. About 20-25 minutes, stirring the jicama every 8-10 minutes.

6) Salt to taste.

7) Eat & be happy.

Last up: Homemade Tortillas

Ingredients

1) 3 Cups King Arthur Keto Wheat Flour

2) 1.5 teaspoons Baking powder

3) 1/2 teaspoon Salt

4) 1.5+ Cups Hot water

Directions

1) Mix the dry ingredients together.

2) Add the water a little at a time, mixing with a fork or your electric mixer. (I used an electric mixer.)

3) Your dough should be soft and somewhat moist (not too dry, not too sticky).

4) Once mixed, set the dough aside for about 15 minutes.

5) Divide the dough into pieces, depending on how many tortillas you want and what size.

6) Roll each piece on a floured surface as thinly as possible. Heads up, the Keto flour can be sticky and hard to roll. You can use any flour, I just like the nutrition profile of this one so I’ve been playing with it. You might get thinner tortillas with a traditional flour.

7) Spray a skillet with cooking spray and heat. Cook each tortilla in the pan until it starts to develop brown spots, flip and repeat on the other side.

8) Eat & be happy.

Enjoy!