Traditional Homemade Golden Fish Balls

Place 1 Spanish mackerel (approx. 800g) on a cutting board, wash gently under a trickle of water, slit open the belly to remove guts, and rinse clean.

Cut off the fish head, slice flat along the spine to yield two main fillets; trim away belly bones, and cut out the bloody red meat seam along the center line.

Cut fillets into strips, scrape off white fish meat with a knife blade, and scrape remaining meat off the spine bone with a spoon, leaving only skin and bones.

Gather scraped fish meat on the cutting board, chop repeatedly with a cleaver, check and pick out any remaining fine bones, until transformed into a smooth paste.

Slice 50g pork fat into tiny dices; slice 100g lean pork into strips and mince fine with a cleaver, then put both together in a bowl.

Put minced fish in a mixing bowl, add 1 tsp salt, 0.5 tsp white pepper, 1 egg white, and 50ml ice water. Stir vigorously in one direction until gelatinous, then slap the paste repeatedly until sticky and bouncy.

Add 1 egg yolk, 1 tsp light soy sauce, 0.5 tsp white pepper, and 1 tsp cornstarch into the pork bowl, and mix thoroughly by hand until sticky.

Pour the seasoned pork into the fish paste bowl and mix thoroughly. Take a handful, squeeze out round balls through your thumb and index finger, scoop with a spoon, and drop into water to hold shape.

Pour 500ml cooking oil into a deep pot and heat over medium flame to 150°C. Gently slide fish balls along the pot side, deep fry for 4-5 minutes while turning with chopsticks, until all balls float and turn golden-crispy; then scoop out, drain oil, and plate.