Instead of egg, use bread to bind the meat.
Dice stale bread and toss on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake at 350°F until golden, about 15 minutes.
Grind dry (but not moldy) bread crusts in a food processor and store for up to 6 months in an airtight container.
Instead of flour, use stale bread, most classically in your favorite gazpacho recipe.
IN ADDITION TO brining with salt and pickling with vinegar, I have a lot of respect for the practice of pickling by using bran, the part of the grain that is usually thrown away. I am inspired by the ancient Japanese practice of nuka, using discarded rice bran to pickle old wrinkly vegetables such as radishes, eggplant, and cabbages. The vegetables go into the bran dried up, and come out crunchy and pickle-y! Classically, a ceramic pickling vessel, such as one with a drop lid, is used as a “nuka pot,” but you can improvise with a pot and use a slightly smaller lid. The main thing is that the nuka needs to be “turned” to condition it first. I like to experiment with using different types of brans such as wheat or buckwheat, and also by pickling unusual things in a nuka, such as roasted ugly potatoes. Serve them with a slice of melted brie inside.
Use your hands to make the nuka, but be sure they are washed so that the initial process is clean.
2 pounds rice bran
¼ cup salt
A few scraps of kombu for seasoning and pepper flakes, optional
2 cups water
Vegetable scraps, such as carrot peels, celery leaves, and radish roots
Equipment: ceramic covered pickling pot (the “nuka” pot) that will hold at least 2 quarts of nuka without being full to the top.
Mix the bran, salt, and any seasonings in the pot. Add the water and mix thoroughly. Leave in a cool, dark cupboard for 4 days.
Meanwhile, start to collect your vegetable scraps. You’ll need 1 to 2 cups to start. Clean them and rub with salt.
After 4 days, bury the scraps in the nuka to form the initial basis of fermentation. Let ferment, turning the nuka with clean hands daily for 3 days. Pick out and discard the scraps, as they are only used for starter purposes.
Add the scraps or other chunks of vegetables that you want to pickle, such as daikon radishes, Asian cabbages, or even eggplant slices, and continue to turn the nuka every day, checking the vegetables for taste. For a nuka to be fully mature will take 6 months, but you can start eating the vegetables a few days after the initial conditioning.
When the temperatures are warmer, pickling will only take about 12 hours, whereas when it is below 45 degrees, it could take 3 days or more.
The vegetables will become more salty and sour the longer they are left in, so it is best to taste them as they are fermenting so you can adjust for your own temperature, conditions, and taste preferences.
Over time the nuka base will become like the starter “mother” for yogurt, sourdough, or kombucha makers.