How to Make Fish Balls
Homemade fish balls made from mackerel, simmered in a light broth with Chinese seaweed, lettuce, and scallions.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 whole mackerel with bones and head about 2 1/2 lbs. (1.2 kg)
- 2 teaspoonssalt
- 1 teaspoonground white pepper
- fish bones discard the fish head, chopped into 3 pieces
- 1 canchicken broth
- 4 cupswater
- 1 oz 30 gChinese seaweed, 紫菜
- 1 tablespoonsoy sauce
- 1 teaspoonsesame oil
- white pepper and salt to taste
- garlic oil
- some shredded lettuce leaves
- 1 stalkscallion cut into rings
Instructions
Instructions
- Rinse the whole mackerel under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
- Place the fish on a cutting board. Using a very sharp knife, fillet the fish by cutting along the backbone from the tail toward the head on one side, then repeat on the other side to remove both fillets. Remove and discard the fish head. Set the remaining fish bones aside and chop them into 3 pieces (these will be used for the broth).
- Use a spoon to scrape the fish meat off the skin of each fillet (scrape from tail toward head). Discard the skins. Use the spoon to scrape any remaining meat off the fish bones. Put all scraped fish meat into a bowl.
- Transfer the fish meat to a clean chopping board. Using a Chinese cleaver or large sharp knife, chop the fish meat continuously for about 10 minutes until it becomes slightly sticky.
- Add 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon ground white pepper to the chopped fish. Continue chopping for another 10 minutes, until the mixture becomes a smooth fish paste.
- Wet your hands with water. Scoop a level tablespoon of the fish paste and shape it into a ball in your palm. Repeat until all the paste is used, re-wetting your hands as needed to prevent sticking.
- In a 5-quart soup pot, combine 1 can chicken broth, 4 cups water, and the 3 chopped fish-bone pieces. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low–medium and simmer for about 20 minutes to develop flavor.
- Remove and discard the fish-bone pieces from the pot. Increase heat to bring the broth back to a gentle boil. Carefully drop the prepared fish balls into the boiling broth.
- Add 1 oz (30 g) Chinese seaweed (紫菜), 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 teaspoon sesame oil to the pot. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt and white pepper to taste.
- When the fish balls float to the surface and are firm and cooked through, turn off the heat.
- Divide shredded lettuce leaves among serving bowls. Ladle the fish-ball soup into the bowls, drizzle with garlic oil to taste, and garnish with the scallion rings. Serve immediately.
Notes
I’ve got to say, while a food processor can definitely speed things up, I recommendusing a cleaverto chop the fish by hand. It gives your fish balls a much better texture. You want the fish finely chopped, but with some texture to it—not a smooth paste. This way, your fish balls will stay nice and bouncy when you cook them.
Don’t rush the chopping!It might feel like a lot of work, but the more you chop, the better the texture will be. Aim for about 10 minutes of chopping and take your time with it. This step is key to getting that perfect bounce.
Fish balls cook super fast, so add them to the soup just before it starts boiling. When theyfloat to the top, that’s your cue to turn off the heat. Don’t overcook them, or they’ll get tough—keep an eye on them.
Don’t rush the chopping!It might feel like a lot of work, but the more you chop, the better the texture will be. Aim for about 10 minutes of chopping and take your time with it. This step is key to getting that perfect bounce.
Fish balls cook super fast, so add them to the soup just before it starts boiling. When theyfloat to the top, that’s your cue to turn off the heat. Don’t overcook them, or they’ll get tough—keep an eye on them.