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Homemade Chinese Fishballs Recipe

Published 29/04/2019, updated 03/05/2020 26 Comments

Chinese fishballs are little glossy rounds of bouncing deliciousness, perfect in soups, noodles, sambals and stir fries.
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chinese fishballs in soup
Chinese fishballs with noodles
chinese fishballs in soup
Chinese Fishballs in soup

Chinese fishballs. I can’t live without them. Little glossy rounds of bouncing deliciousness, fishballs are mild in flavour, making them a wonderful ingredient in all sorts of dishes in East and South East Asia. You’ll find them in soups, in noodles, in sambals and in fried rice.

The good news is, you can easily make them at home.

Homemade Chinese Fishballs Recipe

You may have heard, you may have read, that Chinese fishballs can be tricky. Too soft, too hard, not bouncy enough and a myriad of other scenarios.

Let me put your mind at ease. Just follow the recipe, and you’ll be playing mini basketball with those fishballs in no time at all!

All you need to make Chinese fishballs at home:

  • white fish
  • salt
  • water
  • white pepper

Some people add egg to their fishball paste, or cornflour as binders. You’ll find that this is more so in Chinese fishballs in China, as opposed to Chinese fishballs in Singapore and Malaysia, where I come from. As you can see from the recipe below, I don’t bother with either, as that’s how I grew up eating them.

What fish to use to make Chinese Fishballs?

Traditionally, wolf herring (ikan parang) or Spanish mackerel (ikan tenggiri) is used to make fishballs. However, for those of us who don’t have access to either, any type of white fish will do the job perfectly; tilapia, bass, catfish, grouper or cod. The tastier the fish, the tastier your fishballs.

Chinese fishballs with noodles
Chinese fishballs with noodles

How to make bouncy Fishballs?

The trick is in the mixing of the paste. The traditional method is to mix it all up, then to throw the paste down onto your kitchen counter from a height, about 60-70 times! Not unlike when making kebabs without binders in them.

But honestly, when it comes to fishballs and meatballs, I’ve found that your food processor, with a paddle attachment, does the job perfectly, quicker and much better!

More Balls on LinsFood!

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    Indonesian Bakso (meatballs)
  • pesto meatballs
    Baked Pesto Meatballs
  • Chinese Meatballs
    Chinese Meatballs

Another traditional method is also to first scrape your fish meat from its skin, then mince it all up with a large knife.

Yeah, not something I bother with either. I get my fishmonger to prepare the fish, then get it all minced in the chopper when I get home. Because that’s what the chopper is for!

How to shape Chinese Fishballs

This part, I stick with tradition. All you do, is scoop up the meat, and squeeze a small ball through your thumb and forefinger, just like I showed you when making the Chinese meatballs. However, roll them up like regular meatballs if you’re more comfortable with it.

Fishcakes and fish rolls

You can also shape the paste as a roll or a regular fishcake, like those small Thai ones. Fishcakes and fish rolls are also very popular and common garnishes or ingredients in noodle and soup dishes.

fishballs on skewers
Fried fishballs on skewers are a very common street food. This was taken in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

How to use Chinese Fishballs

  • As garnish for noodles and fried rice
    As mentioned above, fishballs make a great garnish for noodles and fried rice, especially when they are fried. After you’ve boiled them (recipe below), just lightly fry for a minute or so in a little oil, to brown and crisp the outside.
  • As an ingredient in fried rice, fried noodles and stir fries
    Slice them up in half or quarters and add them to your stir fries towards the end, and heat through before serving up.
  • Great in Asian style soups
    I quite often drop fishballs or meatballs into the soups we have, just to add some “bite”. They are great in any miso soup.
  • Fried or grilled, on skewers, just like satay, as in the image above. They make great finger food too.

LinsFood Recipes that are Fishball Friendly

Here are some examples of dishes you can use fishballs and meatballs in. Head on over to the Chinese page and the Singapore/Malaysia page for more ideas.

  • Mee Siam Kuah all served up
  • Miso Soup with Prawns and Udon Noodles
    Miso Soup with Prawns and Udon Noodles
  • Homemade laksa recipe
    My Mum’s Laksa

Let’s get our aprons on!

♥ And if you like the recipe, don’t forget to leave me a comment and that all important, 5-star rating! 😉 Thank you! ♥ 

Lin xx

Homemade Chinese Fishballs

Chinese fishballs are little glossy rounds of bouncing deliciousness, perfect in soups, noodles, sambals and stir fries.
5 from 22 votes
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Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: chinese fishballs, chinese food, fish recipes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 (Makes about 15-20 fishballs, depending on size)
Calories: 121kcal
Author: Azlin Bloor

Ingredients

  • 500 g white fish
  • 1 Tbsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground white pepper
  • ½ cup water

Instructions

  • Mince the fish in a chopper.
  • Place all the ingredients in a food processor, if you have one, and mix on low for 2 minutes. Then increase he speed to medium and continue mixing for a good 3 minutes until you have a sloppy, gloopy mix.
    Alternatively, place all the ingredients into a bowl, and mix throughly with your hands. Then, pick the whole mixture up and throw it down onto the counter (or chopping board) from about a foot up. Do this about 60 times, by which time the fish paste will have achieved that springy consistency synonymous with fishballs.
  • Have a large bowl of iced water to drop the fishballs into.. And a smaller bowl of cold water to dip your hands into periodically, to stop the paste from sticking too much to your hands.
  • Form little balls with the paste, either with the traditional method (see video on how to roll Chinese meatballs, below) or the usual way by rolling the between your hands. Drop the balls into the large bowl until you’re ready to cook them.

Cooking the Fishballs

  • Bring a large saucepan of water, with 1 Tbsp salt added, to boil. Lower the heat to medium, then slowly drop the fishballs into the boiling water, no more than 10 at a time.
  • The fishballs are done when they float up, perhaps 2-3 minutes.
  • Fish them out with a skimmer or slotted spoon and set them aside while you get the rest done. They are ready to be added to whatever recipe you want to use them in. See examples above.

Nutrition

Calories: 121kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 1811mg | Potassium: 378mg | Fiber: 1g | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg
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Comments

  1. Jas says

    12/06/2020 at 2:28 pm

    5 stars
    Thank you Azlin for the easy to follow recipe. Do you think these fishballs freeze well? was thinking to double the quantity if they freeze well. thanks

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      12/06/2020 at 3:46 pm

      Hi Jas, yes, they freeze very well. That’s what I do, instead of making them all the time. I’m happy to keep them in the freezer for a month.

      Reply
      • Alice says

        16/06/2020 at 6:14 am

        Do you freeze them raw or after you boiled them?

        Reply
        • Azlin Bloor says

          16/06/2020 at 8:45 am

          Hi Alice, you freeze them raw.

          Reply
  2. Linda Teo says

    09/03/2020 at 2:27 am

    Can’t wait to try but sodium level of 126% is scary. Do you think I can reduce the salt from 1tbsp to 1tsp ?

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      09/03/2020 at 10:08 am

      Sure, Linda, definitely. I like my fishballs to have their own flavour, instead of being bland. Try the 1 tsp and see what you think.

      Reply
  3. Jaye says

    17/12/2019 at 8:16 pm

    Just FYI – you need to change the weight in your recipe. 1000g is NOT 1.1 lb! that’ll confuse a lot of people!

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      17/12/2019 at 11:20 pm

      Hi Jaye, I’m not sure where you got 1000g from.
      My recipe doesn’t say 1000g (which I would’ve written as 1 kg, anyway). It clearly states 500g.
      450g = 1 lb
      500g = 1.1 lb, rounded off.

      Reply
  4. Jim Holster says

    16/05/2019 at 2:54 pm

    5 stars
    Great recipe, thanks. Just made them for lunch, which was your prawn noodle soup, and these were great in them. Cheers.

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      27/07/2019 at 9:21 am

      A pleasure, thank you. Glad you liked them.

      Reply
  5. Kenta says

    05/05/2019 at 3:07 pm

    5 stars
    Although I prefer whole fish, I liked this fishballs called “tsumire” (つみれ), which is made of 秋刀魚 (sardines?) when I was a kid. The taste is very fishy and I loved it grown up. I wonder why people use white fish for this, but probably goes well with white pepper.

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      10/05/2019 at 11:12 am

      I love sardine balls too.

      Reply
  6. Matt Fowler says

    02/05/2019 at 3:40 pm

    5 stars
    Thank you, I’m looking forward to trying this recipe.

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      27/07/2019 at 9:22 am

      5 stars
      A pleasure.

      Reply
  7. Maria says

    30/04/2019 at 6:10 pm

    What I love most about your recipes is how easy they are to follow! Wonderful tips on making these yummy fishballs. They look so soft, almost fluffy!

    Reply
    • Sarah H says

      02/05/2019 at 3:41 pm

      5 stars
      I agree!

      Reply
  8. Mandy Fuller says

    29/04/2019 at 12:51 pm

    5 stars
    Thanks Azlin, I loved the video of the meatballs. Looking forward to the fishball video. Bookmarked to try soon.

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      30/04/2019 at 5:58 pm

      Thanks Mandy, hopefully, I’ll get the video up this weekend.

      Reply
    • FoodLover says

      14/01/2020 at 3:45 am

      Hi Lin, just to clarify, with the fish in the food processor, do you use:
      1. the knife blade to pulse then mix; or
      2. the paddle to mix?

      Reply
      • Azlin Bloor says

        14/01/2020 at 10:07 am

        Hi Foodlover, initially, in the chopper (with blade) to mince. Then in a food processor with a paddle attachment to mix.

        Reply
  9. Jim Aster says

    29/04/2019 at 11:50 am

    5 stars
    Can’t decide between bouncing my balls or using a processor 😉

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      30/04/2019 at 5:57 pm

      Lol, can’t take you anywhere!

      Reply
  10. Sara Goldstein says

    29/04/2019 at 11:44 am

    5 stars
    yummy. love these 🙂

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      30/04/2019 at 5:57 pm

      Me too!

      Reply
  11. Dean Geersen says

    29/04/2019 at 11:43 am

    5 stars
    Awesome! i’ve always wanted to know how to make these.
    thanks

    Reply
    • Azlin Bloor says

      30/04/2019 at 5:57 pm

      Good to hear, let me know how it goes.

      Reply

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LinsFood | by Azlin Bloor

Hey folks, I’m Azlin Bloor; former chef, culinary instructor and mum of 4.
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