Fish ball
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| Fish ball | ||
|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese: | 魚蛋 | |
| Mandarin | ||
| Hanyu Pinyin: | yú dàn | |
| Cantonese | ||
| IPA: | [jʊ11 tɑn35] | |
| Jyutping: | jyu4 daan2 | |
Fish balls (Chinese: 魚蛋 or 魚丸 and sometimes written as 魚旦 at food stalls) is a common cooked food in southern China and overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia, with its origin from the cuisine of the Chaoshan region in eastern Guangdong. As the name suggests, the food is balls made with fish meat that has been finely pulverized. Gourmet fish balls are pulverized by hand. Fish balls are a type of food product made from surimi (魚漿).
Nearly all meatballs (pork, beef, fish, etc...) made in Asia differ significantly in texture to their counterparts with European origins. Instead of grinding and forming meats, meat used for making meatballs is pounded. This is also often the case for fillings in steamed dishes. This process is what lends a smooth texture to the meatballs. Pounding unlike grinding uncoils and stretches previously wound and tangled protein strands in meat.
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[edit] Hong Kong
There are two kinds of fish balls in Hong Kong. One is smaller in size, yellow in colour, usually made with cheaper shark meat, and is sold in "strings" (串), each "string" containing five to seven fish balls "strung" on a bamboo skewer. Usually sold at food stalls, each skewer costs between five to seven Hong Kong dollars, depending on the area where it is sold. There are many stalls which support themselves just by selling this kind of fish ball, similar to hot dog stands in the United States. The fish balls can be either spicy (often called curry fish ball, though it is doubtful whether curry is used to make the spicy sauce) or not, at the same price. It is often eaten with steamed rice roll (豬腸粉), another common Hong Kong food. It is one of the most popular and representative "street foods" (街頭熟食) of Hong Kong.
The other kind is bigger in size, white in colour, made with more costly fish meat, and has a considerably different texture and taste. This kind of fish ball is usually eaten with noodles at restaurants providing Chiuchow-style noodle , and at some cha chaan tengs (lit. tea restaurant), which also provide beef ball (牛丸) and cuttlefish ball (墨魚丸). A bowl of noodle with this kind of fish ball costs $10 to 20. Readily available in traditional market and supermarket, the fish ball is also a popular ingredient for hot pot. A very popular street snack among kids and young adults.
In outdated Hong Kong slang, the term "fish ball girlies" (魚蛋妹) means young prostitutes, usually under the age of 18; and the brothel where these girls work is thus called "fish ball stall" (魚蛋檔). The etymology may be that the action of hand-making fishball resembles that of masturbation or that of grabbing a female's breasts (in general, the "fish ball stalls" are not designed for sexual intercourse: the clients can only caress the prostitutes and receive hand jobs).
[edit] Taiwan
[edit] Teochiu
[edit] Malaysia
Fish balls are cooked in many ways in Malaysia. Fish balls can served with soup and noodles like the Chiuchow style or served with Yong tau foo. There is also a type called Fuzhou fish ball which has pork fillings with the fish ball.
[edit] Philippines
The most commonly eaten type of fish balls is (unsurprisingly) colloquially known as fishballs. It is somewhat flat in shape and most often made from the meat of cuttlefish or pollock. It is usually served with a sweet and spicy sauce or with a thick black sweet and sour sauce. It is a common snack food that is sold by mobile fryer stands and street corner food courts in many towns and cities.
Fish balls in the Philippines are sold by street vendors pushing mobile deep frying carts. They are usually served with a choice of three kinds of dipping sauces: Sour (pale orange colored) - vinegar, water, diced onions and garlic, Sweet (brown gravy colored) - corn starch, banana catsup, sugar and salt, and Hot/Sour (amber or deeper orange colored) - the sour variety with lots of small hot chilis added. Dark sauces are rare as these are soy sauce based and soy sauce is expensive in terms of food cost for street food. The latest (2006) iteration in the Philippine fishball industry is the introduction of 'ball' varieties: chicken, squid (cuttlefish actually), and kekiam. The last are lowcost renditions vaguely resembling original Chinese delicacy of the same (soundwise) name. Chicken and squid balls as well as kekiam sell at 4 US Cents. Regular fishballs sell at 1 US Cent.
