Recipe: Cal Peternell’s Mushy Rice Pancakes

The newest cookbook from Berkeley’s Cal Peternell, the former Chez Panisse chef and bestselling author of “Twelve Recipes” and “Almonds, Anchovies and Pancetta,” is a creative guide to making food disasters delicious. “Burnt Toast” (William Morrow, $26) will help you rescue that extra crispy toast or over-roasted  vegetables — or in this case, mushy rice.

“I am not a breakfast snack eater, but I do love savory pancakes,” Peternell says. “These are great with dollops of yogurt sauce and any chutneys or pickles you might have on hand.”

Mushy Rice Pancakes

Makes 12 three-inch pancakes

INGREDIENTS

2 cups overcooked rice

1½ cups flour (rice flour, all-purpose or a combination)

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine sea salt or kosher salt (if needed)

2 teaspoons ground turmeric

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

Crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Olive or vegetable cooking oil

1 egg

4 scallions, green and white parts, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stems

1 tablespoon chopped mango pickle (optional)

Plain whole-milk yogurt (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Put a baking sheet in the oven and heat the oven to 200 degrees, for keeping the pancakes warm as you cook them in batches.

Taste the rice for saltiness — often overcooked rice can be a little salty, too. This will determine how much salt you add to the batter. In a medium bowl, stir together the rice, flour, baking soda, salt (if needed), turmeric, cumin, paprika and red pepper flakes. Add ¼ cup oil and the egg, and stir in enough water to form a loose, pancake batterlike consistency — the precise amount of water depends on how wet your rice is, but start with 1¼ cups and add more as needed. Stir in the scallions and cilantro and the mango pickle, if using.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat, add a tablespoon of cooking oil and fry up a tester cake to taste and make any needed adjustments. Fry spoonfuls of the batter until the edges of the pancakes are brown and bubbles are forming in the centers, about 4 minutes. Use a spatula to turn them and fry the other side. Hold the finished pancakes in the oven while you fry the rest. Eat hot, with dollops of yogurt, if you’d like.

— Cal Peternell, “Burnt Toast And Other Disasters: A Book of Heroic Hacks, Fabulous Fixes and Secret Sauces” (William Morrow, $26)