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Learn how to make fish balls and a delicious fish ball soup with this easy, step-by-step recipe. With detailed instructions and a video guide, you’ll make perfectly bouncy fish balls every time. Whether you’re craving a comforting bowl of fish ball soup or looking for a versatile ingredient for other dishes, this recipe has you covered!
Simple Fish Ball Recipe
If you’ve ever wanted to make homemade fish balls from scratch, this recipe is for you! I know it can seem like a bit of work, but trust me, it’s totally worth it. There’s something so satisfying about making your own fish balls, and the key to perfect ones is fresh, high-quality fish that gives you that bouncy, flavorful texture without the fishy taste.
Once you’ve got the right fish, this simple, step-by-step process will guide you to bouncy, delicious fish balls. I’ve included pictures in the gallery to make everything even easier, and I’ve also got a video guide to walk you through the process—just in case you need that extra visual help!
Once your fish balls are ready, the possibilities are endless. You can enjoy them in a comforting fish ball soup, whip up some Thai Fish Cake, or even throw them into a Chinese Hot Pot. Trust me, these homemade fish balls will make your dishes so much better! And don’t forget to check out my Chinese Hot Pot recipe for a tasty way to use them!
How To Choose The Best Fish
Living in Southern California, right by the Pacific coast, you’d think fresh fish would be easy to find. But, unfortunately, that’s not the case. Most of the fish available here is frozen, and many don’t look fresh at all—red eyes, oozing blood, and that overly fishy smell. It can be hard to find good fish unless you’re at a Chinese restaurant, where they serve live fish from tanks. Otherwise, I usually eat Steamed Fish at Chinese restaurants, those alive ones and swimming in the tank. Occasionally, I do come across decent salmon or deep-sea fish, but they’re not the type I typically use for making fish balls.
To make the best fish balls, fresh fish is essential. You want fish that gives you that bouncy texture without the fishy taste. After some trial and error, I found a great mackerel (马鲛鱼) that works perfectly for making fish balls. I’m not a fish expert, but I always ask my local fishmonger for recommendations. Fish like mackerel (马鲛鱼), 西刀鱼 (this one might go by different names, but it’s commonly known as Spanish mackerel or seer fish), and eel (鳗鱼) are great options for making fish balls.
Keep in mind that the best fish for making fish balls may not always be easy to find in Western countries, so don’t be afraid to ask around or visit different markets. It might take some searching, but once you find the right fish, you’ll be well on your way to making amazing fish balls from scratch!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Fish Balls
- Whole mackerel
- Ground white pepper
- Salt
Fish Ball Soup
- Fish bone
- Chicken broth
- Chinese seaweed
- Soy sauce
- Water
- Sesame oil
- Salt
- White pepper
Toppings
- Scallion
- Garlic oil – You can make the garlic oil by stir-frying some minced garlic with heated oil.
- Lettuce
For all the details on each ingredient, be sure to check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
How To Make Fish Balls
Alright, first things first—grab your fish and give it a good rinse with cold water. Pat it dry with a paper towel to get rid of any excess moisture. Now, take a sharp knife and start filleting the fish. Work along the bones, starting from the tail and moving up toward the head. Do the same thing on the other side.
Next, grab a bowl to put the fish meat in. Take a spoon and gently scrape the fish meat off the skin of the fillet, starting from the tail and working your way up. Scrape until you’ve got all the meat off the skin, then just toss the skin aside. Don’t forget to scrape the fish meat off the bones too—use your spoon to get every bit of it!
Alright, now take all that fish meat and put it on a chopping board. If you’ve got a Chinese cleaver, that’s your best friend here! Start chopping the fish meat—just go at it for about 10 minutes. You want to break it down really well, so don’t rush it. It’ll help get that perfect texture for the fish balls!
As you chop, you’ll notice the fish starting to get a bit sticky, and that’s totally normal! Once that happens, sprinkle in some salt and pepper, then keep chopping for another 10 minutes. The more you chop, the smoother and stickier the fish will get, and soon enough, it’ll turn into a nice fish paste.
Now, wet your hands with a little water to keep the paste from sticking. Take about a tablespoon of the fish paste and roll it between your palms to shape it into a ball. Just keep going like that until you’ve got a nice little batch of fish balls ready to cook!
How To Make Fish Ball Soup
Grab a 5-quart soup pot and toss in the chicken broth, water, and fish bones. Bring it to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat to medium and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. You want the soup to get nice and flavorful, so just let it do its thing!
Once the 20 minutes is up, take out the fish bones. Turn the heat back up to high, and gently drop the fish balls into the soup.
Now, toss in the Chinese seaweed, a splash of soy sauce, a little sesame oil, and season with salt and pepper to taste. When the fish balls float to the top, you know it’s time to turn off the heat.
Now, ladle the soup into your bowls, add the toppings (scallions, garlic oil, and a bit of lettuce), and you’re all set! Serve it up hot and enjoy right away. It’s comfort in a bowl!
Secrets To Perfect Fish Balls And Soup
- I’ve got to say, while a food processor can definitely speed things up, I recommend using a cleaver to 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 they float 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can use a food processor to chop the fish, but I recommend using a cleaver for the best texture. Chopping by hand gives the fish a coarser, bouncy texture perfect for fish balls. If you use a food processor, don’t over-process it. You want finely chopped fish with some texture, not a smooth paste!
Yes. Just store them in the fridge for a few hours or freeze them for later. When you’re ready to serve, just cook them fresh, and they’ll taste just as good!
Chicken broth works great for the base, but if you want a more intense fish flavor, feel free to use vegetable broth or fish stock instead.
Yes. Feel free to toss in some veggies like bok choy, napa cabbage, or mushrooms for extra flavor and texture. Just add them in during the last few minutes of cooking, and you’re good to go!
Just store the soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to enjoy, reheat it gently on the stovetop. Just be careful not to overcook the fish balls—they can get a little tough if you heat them too long.
This recipe is only 211 calories per serving.
What To Serve With Fish Ball Soup
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Other Recipes You Might Like
How to Make Fish Balls
Ingredients
- 1 whole mackerel with bones and head, about 2 1/2 lbs. (1.2 kg)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
Fish Ball Soup:
- fish bones, discard the fish head, chopped into 3 pieces
- 1 can chicken broth
- 4 cups water
- 1 oz (30g) Chinese seaweed, 紫菜
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- white pepper and salt to taste
Fish Ball Soup Topping:
- garlic oil
- some shredded lettuce leaves
- 1 stalk scallion, cut into rings
Instructions
Fish Ball:
- Clean the fish and rinse with cold water, pat dry with paper towels. Filet the fish along the bones from the tail up towards the head using a very sharp knife. Repeat on the other side.
- Get a bowl to put the fish meat. Using a spoon, scrape the fish meat off the skin of the fish filet, from the tail upwards. Scrape until all meat is off the skin. Discard the skin. Use the spoon to scrape off the fish meat off the fish bone, too.
- Place all the fish meat on a chopping board, using a Chinese cleaver (preferably) to chop the fish meat, for about 10 minutes.
- The fish will become slightly sticky as you chop. Add the salt and pepper and continue chopping for another 10 minutes, the fish meat will become a fish paste.
- Wet your hands with some water and take a tablespoon of the fish paste onto your palm and shape them into fish balls.
Fish Ball Soup:
- Get a 5-quart soup pot, put in the chicken broth, water, and fish bones. Bring to boil over high heat, and then let it boil on low to medium heat for about 20 minutes or until the soup is flavorful.
- Remove the fish bones, turn to high heat and drop the fish balls into the Soup.
- Add the Chinese seaweed, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper to taste. When the fish balls float to the top, turn off the heat.
- Transfer the fish balls soup into serving bowls, add the Toppings and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- I’ve got to say, while a food processor can definitely speed things up, I recommend using a cleaver to 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 they float 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.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
You are so right on the fishes found at the grocery store here in Southern California, back in Singapore, fishes are fresh and they taste so good! Sigh….really miss the taste of “real” fish.
Oh! By the way, I’ve got some basa fillet left. Can I make fish balls out of them?
Basa is too dry and not oily, you need oily fish to make good fish balls.
I have found that the real fish name is Spanish Mackarel that makes the best fish ball like back in Malaysia.
Cool thanks!
Tried before Mackarel type and its taste very fishy no matter i tried to eliminate its fishy flavor. Unless naybe its canned already. 100% not recommendable from me. Better check google just i did and found many options to be sure because there’s a various situations and availabilities of having such fish to be use in making fishballs. enjoy!
Hello Bee, I do very much appreciate letting you know how much I love your website! I am from Switzerland and particularly love Asian food, nonetheless, Asian noodlesoups with homemade fishballs!
I am really horrified to hear that you have such trouble to find good quality fish – I didn’t imagine, as you live close to the sea – I think that this is absolutely horrible for you! Here in Switzerland we luckily still find frozen fish, of good quality. I usually make my fishballs in various ways such as including shrimp, squid or monkfish… even also makerel or a mixture of various fish. Yummmy! Thank you for your mails and recipes – allways a great inspiration! Luv Esther
Thanks for your support Esther. :)
I make my fishballs by using a kitchen ware called vorwerk thermomix TM31. This kitchen ware cost around a โฌ1000.
My kids love fish balls. Wondering to make fish balls, don’t know what kind of fish to use. Mackerel (saba) can be found in Japan very easily will make this recipe, Thanks!!!!
wow….never knew it is soooo easy to make one by yourself!thanks for the recipe Bee!:-)
Happy trying and cooking!
Hi,
Can I store in a fridge/freezer the fish balls to use when I want to? How do I do that.
Thanks
Nelson
This recipe is for fresh and not store.
Dear,
Me want to know after make past or granulate the fish,How to presurve it to use long time?Is there use any presaurvative ? And also want to know how to make packet for use one year after? please inform me.
Thanks,
M.A.Sattar.
You cook right away.
Thanks for sharing the thorough recipe! To report my experiments with tilapia and flounder, both turned out very powdery with very loose texture.
I had some of the best fish balls and calamari balls in Macau, so I really wanted to re-create them at home. However, it’s really difficult to get fresh fish here in Beijing. I tried to make the fish ball twice, first time with frozen flounder fillet and the second time with “fresh” tilapia (whole fish). I added some Shaoxing wine while making the balls, but they still taste very fishy.
Couldn’t agree more with you that not to use flakier to make fish balls. Hoping to find a replacement for mackerel, but couldn’t so far.
Yes, Maggie, those two fish you tried wouldn’t work because they are too dry and flaky with no oil content. The key is finding a great fish…which is not easy. :(
Hi Maggie, hope you managed to find the fish eventually. Iโm in Beijing (4 years later than you) & Iโve chanced upon the fish two years ago at #78 sanyuanli fish stall.