One of the best ways to enjoy chewy fish balls is street food style Hong Kong curry fish balls (港式咖哩魚蛋). It is a classic street food snack typically served in bamboo skewers.
Taste the round and soft fish balls drenched in creamy and aromatic curry sauce. This is a delightfully delicious snack or meal that transports you to the streets of Hong Kong.
What Are Curry Fish Balls?
Asia has been known for its street food stalls for quick and affordable snacks. Fish ball is one of the most common street food snacks loved for its soft and chewy texture.
In fact, it has many variations around Asia, including Chinese fish balls (鱼蛋) in China, milk fish balls (虱目魚丸) in Taiwan, and yellow, white, and golden fish balls in Hong Kong.
It is served in several ways, from noodle toppings to soups like my Savory Fish Balls Soup recipe. You can also eat it on its own in skewers with a dipping sauce. If you like fish balls in bamboo skewers and the enjoyment of sauces, you must try curry fish balls.
The fish balls are coated with thick and creamy curry sauce packed with vegetables. The sauce is enhanced with several other ingredients, including carrots, onions, potatoes, and coconut milk. Then, we add a drizzle of tomato sauce on top of the balls for a flavor boost.
Where To Buy Fish Balls?
Most grocery stores and Asian markets sell frozen fish balls which are typically packed in plastic or box packaging. If you want to add variation or need alternatives, you can try using shrimp balls, fried shrimp balls, squid balls, imitation or lobster balls, and fried fish balls. As a last resort, cassava balls and veggie balls are also great alternatives that can give you soft and chewy balls similar to fish balls.
Although store-bought fish balls make the recipe a lot easier and faster to do, it is most likely made with artificial flavors and other additives. If you want a healthier option or can’t seem to find an alternative to store-bought fish balls, why not make your own instead? Follow my step-by-step guide on how to make homemade fish balls with your choice of fish.
This can be made in large batches and frozen for later use whenever you crave fish balls. Watch how I made this recipe with my tutorial videos on Instagram and TikTok. In a nutshell, the recipe calls for the following five simple steps:
- Clean the fish with 1 teaspoon of salt and rinse it well with water. (I used grass carp.)
- Blend the fish with 50ml green onion and ginger water and combine 15g of salt and 1⁄2 teaspoon of MSG if preferred. (This should give you about 500g of fish paste.)
- Whisk 2 egg whites until they become white and frothy and mix it with the fish paste.
- Add 25g cornstarch and 20g lard to the fish paste.
- Squeeze out small balls between your thumb and forefinger and cook them in a pot of cold water on low heat until it heats up.
Recipe Suggestions For Curry Fish Balls
The ingredients for the recipe are simple as you only need to prepare your chosen vegetables for the curry and coconut milk sauce. You will also use cornstarch as a thickening agent and tomato sauce for a tangy flavor. Adjust the ingredients as needed to suit your preferences.
So, I listed a few alternatives you can use in case you want to change an ingredient.
- Fish balls: You have the option to use either homemade or frozen fish balls, but I highly recommend making your own fish balls. If you’re interested in creating homemade fish balls, you can refer to my homemade fish ball guide. Additionally, I suggest adding fish tofu to the dish for some variety.
- Oil: You can toast the vegetables without oil if you choose an oil-free method. If you want to fry it with oil, I suggest olive, avocado, sesame, or safflower oil for a healthier option. Go for peanut, soybean, or vegetable oil for a more neutral-tasting oil.
- Vegetables: Curry is best prepared with nutritious vegetables. In my recipe, I used onions, carrots, and potatoes. If you want to add more vegetables, I suggest using bell peppers, peas, green beans, broccoli, and mushrooms.
- Curry Sauce: Curry sauce is often found in the grocery store’s spice section or international section. You can also buy this in your local Asian supermarket. It is usually packed in jars or boxes and sold in powder or sauce form. Some curry sauces are pre-mixed according to the type of dish, such as chicken curry or Japanese curry. However, you want to use just the regular type of curry like curry paste without additional seasonings. Lastly, if you are not into spicy foods, check whether the curry sauce you buy is spicy.
- Cornstarch slurry: It is important to add cornstarch to the sauce to make it thick and creamy. Without cornstarch, the sauce will not thicken and will just be runny. Moreover, it will make the sauce stick to the fish balls more effectively. If you don’t have cornstarch, use tapioca flour or potato starch. For 1 tbsp of cornstarch, substitute it with 2 tbsp of tapioca flour or 1 tbsp of potato starch. In this recipe, we mix cornstarch with water to make the cornstarch slurry first before adding it to the sauce. The cornstarch slurry is made by mixing 1 tbsp of cornstarch with 2 tbsp of water (1:2 ratio).
- Coconut Milk: Curry is commonly mixed with coconut milk to balance out the spices nicely. It helps cool the spices and add coconutty and sweet flavors. Plus, it makes the sauce even creamier and richer. Alternatively, you can use coconut cream or other types of plant-based milk such as soy, oat, and almond. When using other types of milk, I suggest adding coconut flakes, shredded coconut, or coconut flavoring to still have that coconut flavor.
- Tomato sauce: In this recipe, the tomato serves as a drizzle over the skewered fish balls. It adds notes of sweetness and tanginess. It is best to use a regular tomato sauce without additional seasonings. You can substitute tomato sauce with tomato paste, ketchup, or spaghetti or pasta sauce.
- Storage suggestions: Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for 3 days. If you have extra unused fish balls, you can store them in an airtight container or ziplock bag. It will last for up to a month or two in the freezer or five days in the fridge.
What You Need To Make Curry Fish Balls
You will need your pan or pot to blanch, fry, and boil the ingredients. Prepare your knife and chopping board to chop the vegetables. You can adjust the amount of ingredients according to taste and desired serving size.
Kitchen Tools
- Cooking pan or pot (for blanching and frying)
- Spatula
- Knife and chopping board
- Bamboo skewers (optional)
Ingredients
- 500g fish balls
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 50g onions
- 50g carrots
- 50g potatoes
- 2 tbsp curry sauce
- 250ml water
- 100ml coconut milk
- 100ml cornstarch slurry (1 tbsp of cornstarch + 2 tbsp of water (1:2 ratio))
- A drizzle of tomato sauce
Recipe Instructions To Make Curry Fish Balls
Blanching the fish balls is the first step in the recipe if you have uncooked fish balls. Then, we lightly cook the vegetables by frying but they will be thoroughly cooked once we boil them in the curry sauce and coconut milk. Check out my short tutorial video on Instagram and TikTok to see how I prepared the recipe.
Prepare a pot with water and bring to a boil. Blanch the fish balls for 10 minutes and drain.
Next, clean and chop the onions, carrots, and potatoes. Fry the vegetables in a pan with cooking oil until moist and tender.
Then, add two tablespoons of curry sauce and combine well with the vegetables.
Pour 250ml water and let it cook for 5 minutes while covered.
When the sauce is boiling after 5 minutes, add the fish balls, coconut milk, and cornstarch slurry. Give it a good mix.
After boiling, insert the fish balls into the bamboo skewers and drizzle some tomato sauce on top of the fish balls.
Hong Kong Curry Fish Balls
Equipment
- Cooking pan or pot (for blanching and frying)
- Knife and chopping board
- Bamboo skewers (optional)
Ingredients
- 500 g fish balls
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 50 g onions
- 50 g carrots
- 50 g potatoes
- 2 tbsp curry sauce
- 250 ml water
- 100 ml coconut milk
- 100 ml cornstarch slurry 1 tbsp of cornstarch + 2 tbsp of water (1:2 ratio)
- A drizzle of tomato sauce
Instructions
- Prepare a pot with water and bring to a boil.
- Blanch the fish balls for 10 minutes and drain.
- While blanching the fish balls, clean and chop the onions, carrots, and potatoes.
- Fry the vegetables in a pan or pot with cooking oil until moist and tender.
- Then, add two tablespoons of curry sauce and combine well with the vegetables.
- Pour 250ml water and let it cook for 5 minutes while covered.
- When the sauce is boiling after 5 minutes, add the fish balls, coconut milk, and cornstarch slurry. Give it a good mix.
- After boiling, insert the fish balls into the bamboo skewers and drizzle some tomato sauce on top of the fish balls.
