Teochew Fish Ball Noodle Soup
This is a no-fuss and simple recipe for Teochew fish ball noodle soup. Instead of making it bowl by bowl, I made a big pot of fish ball soup on Saturday morning, so that it is effortless to make custom bowls of various fish ball noodles anytime later in the day.”Teochew” is not empasizing on the authenticity but to distinguish the fish ball noodles with only (and many) fishballs, vs the Teochew style of fish ball noodles that is served with various other ingredients such as a pork ball, fish dumpling and sliced fish cake, like you see in this recipe.
See Also:
More Meat Ball Noodle Soup Variations:
Dry Meat Ball Noodles:
My bowl had glass noodles (tang hoon) as the main carb and fish balls, fish cake, fish dumplings, spinach & crispy lard pieces as the accompanying ingredients.
INGREDIENTS
- Fish balls, fish dumplings, sliced fish cake – These are the main ingredients for my fish ball noodles bowl.
- Meat balls (optional) – I swapped half the fish balls with pork balls for variety. You can make a subsequent bowl of bak chor mee soup for a change.
- Minced pork – marinated in seasonings such as soy sauce, sesame oil and salt & pepper.
- Spinach (round/sharp) is not usual in fish balls noodles but I had leftovers from making spinach fish ball soup. You can use coral lettuce to resemble the hawker style.
For the soup base, I am using an all-natural anchovy-based soup powder which is convenient and tastes really good. I bought it from a Korean supermarket. You can use any short-cut soup stock (instant anchovy soup pouch, soup bouillon, tetra-pak chicken stock etc) or use homemade anchovy broth (Korean or local style) that is made from scratch.
STEP-BY-STEP PHOTOS
Simple steps to make Teochew fish ball noodle soup:
- Bring a pot of water to boil with instant anchovy powder.
- Add fishballs (+pork balls if using), sliced fish cake and fish dumplings. Cook until the meat balls float to the surface of the pot.
- Add spinach and cook for a minute.
- Add minced pork and cook it through a slotted strainer. The fish ball soup with various ingredients is completed!
- Whenever you want to make a one-dish meal, ladle hot soup and ingredients over cooked noodles – glass noodles/tang hoon in my case.
Tips
- If using glass noodles (tang hoon) or rice vermicelli (bee hoon), add softened noodles directly to the simmering soup pot and take them out quickly to avoid overcooking. If using starchy noodles (such as yellow noodles), cook the noodles in a separate pot of water. When in doubt, cook the noodles separately.
- You can also add a handful of blanched bean sprouts to the boiling water when cooking the noodles.
Variations
- Noodles – mee kia (pictured above), other local noodles (such as kway teow, mee tai mak), udon, instant mama noodles etc …
- Greens – You can use any local greens available in your kitchen such as choy sum, baby bok choy, napa lettuce … I mean why not? I am using spinach which is unusual but they taste good with the soup.
- Meat Balls – Use any type of meat balls such as mushroom, chicken, shrimp or lobster/shrimp balls.
- Serve as a soup dish with rice, instead of adding noodles.
Teochew Fish Ball Noodle Soup Recipe
This is a homely local delight which can be easily recreated at home with simple but wholesome short-cuts, such as an MSG-free, all-natural anchovy powder as the instant soup stock. Feel free to use any favourite noodles or local greens for this recipe.
Ingredients:
- 75g minced pork (or chicken)
- 900ml water
- 10g anchovy (ikan bilis) powder
- 16 fish balls optional; mix in pork balls for variation
- 8 fish dumplings
- 75g fish cake sliced thinly
- generous handful spinach leaves or any local greens
- 1 bundle (50g) tang hoon (glass noodles) per person soaked in a glass of water
(A) Marinade
- 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp corn starch
- salt & pepper
Suggested Garnishes
- crispy fried lard
- chopped spring onions
- saucer of sliced chilli pad in soy sauce
Directions:
- Marinate minced pork with ingredients at (A) for at least 15 minutes.
- Make quick anchovy broth. In a soup pot, add water and anchovy powder. Bring to a boil and season to taste.
- Make Teochew fish ball soup. Add fish balls, pork balls (if using), fish dumplings and fish cake slices. Cook briefly until the meat balls float to the surface. Add spinach and cook for a minute.
- Cook minced pork through a slotted spoon strainer, then mix in the cooked mince meat into the soup.
- Serve as a one dish meal. Add glass noodles to the boiling soup and cook for a few seconds. Transfer cooked noodles to a serving bowl. Ladle ingredients & hot soup over the noodles. Garnish with spring onions and lard pieces. Serve immediately with a side saucer of cut chilli.