Meatless Oatmeal Patties

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Gather the ingredients from the list. Use plain old-fashioned rolled oats for this — instant oatmeal won't work. Instead of eggs, potato acts as the binder. If you want to keep the patties lighter, you can skip the breadcrumb coating.

2. Step 2:

   

   Rinse the oats well and cover them with boiling water. Let them sit for half an hour so they swell up. Drain and squeeze out the oats — but don't wring them completely dry, since the mixture needs to stay moist.

3. Step 3:

   

   Wash and peel the potato and cut it into large pieces.

4. Step 4:

   

   For a pleasant aroma and flavor, we'll add garlic. Peel the cloves.

5. Step 5:

   

   Peel the onion and cut it into large pieces.

6. Step 6:

   

   Put the potato, garlic, and onion in a blender and grind them. If you don't have a blender, you can run the vegetables through a meat grinder.

7. Step 7:

   

   Combine the ground vegetables with the oats, and season with salt and ground black pepper to taste. Mix the mixture well.

8. Step 8:

   

   If you're frying the patties without a coating, just spoon the mixture into the pan. But to get neat, good-looking patties with a crisp golden crust, dredge them in flour or breadcrumbs. With hands dampened in cold water, shape the oat mixture into patties and coat them all over in the breadcrumbs.

9. Step 9:

   

   Pour the vegetable oil into a skillet and heat it well, then add the patties. Fry them on both sides until golden, 3–4 minutes per side over medium heat.

10. Step 10:

    

    Then cover the pan and keep the patties over the heat for another 5 minutes so they cook through and turn light and fluffy. Take them off the heat; if they seem to have soaked up a lot of oil, set them on a paper towel to blot the excess. Transfer to a serving plate and serve. Enjoy!