Hey guys, a few notes: 1. Apologies about the slight shade at 2:25 - after reflecting on it, I know that ‘tilapia is Chinese garbage’ definitely isn’t the predominant opinion abroad (just a loud minority in the food space). It’s just… I was trying to find a visual for “Tilapia worldwide having a bad reputation”, and the corners of the internet that that brought me? Just pissed me off. So, rant incoming (cooking notes will continue at #5): 2. First, the not-so-subtle racial hue to a lot of the rhetoric online about ‘Chinese tilapia’ really kind of disgusted me. Like, maybe I’m going crazy, but I’m pretty sure that it’s not even legal to import tilapia to the States? Like, I’m looking at the list of eligible exports and Tilapia’s decidedly not on the list www.fsis.usda.gov/inspection/import-export/import-export-library/eligible-foreign-establishments Perhaps I’m misinterpreting something, perhaps the USDA includes Tilapia in the category of Siluriformes (i.e. catfish)? I highly doubt it though. 3. Second, from a culinary perspective I just can’t get on this ‘tilapia is utter trash’ train. While it’s not the most umami fish in the world or anything it’s (1) meaty without many bones and (2) easy to raise and cheap to produce. Application wise, I conceptualize it as the fish equivalent of the standard American supermarket chicken - would I want the former gently steamed in the Cantonese style, or the latter in the form of something like Hainan chicken rice? Probably not. But just because an ingredient isn’t super tasty in its most delicate preparations doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have value. 4. Third, from an environmental perspective, I’m so sick of people getting on their high horse about the subject of aquaculture. A lot of the criticisms levied against aquaculture can be equally levied against agriculture in general. I personally do not have any dietary restrictions (life’s short and I adore food), but if I were to choose a single one from an ethical perspective, it would be to stop eating wild caught fish. If we were to hunt venison in the way that we hunted tuna, the environmental carnage would be a lot more obvious. If, say, some sort of theoretical massive blimp with enormous nets cut through a forest the way a trawler cuts through the ocean, I don’t think people would stand for it. But buried under the waves? Out-of-sight, out-of-mind kind of deal, I guess. 5. Ok, sorry about that. Back to the topic of the recipe - note that for the soup, that 750mL of liquid is more of a ‘soup’ quantity than a ‘tang cai’ (soup dish) quantity. With the latter, you don’t want to overdo the soup quantity, generally speaking. I wanted to use up all the leftovers from the fish and figured a little extra stock wouldn’t kill anyone. For reference, we likely used 400-500mL of the soup to serve the dish, and simply drank the extra on the side. 6. I do really enjoy the addition of dried scallops to the fish paste. Even when I had access to lingyu in Guangdong, in my fish pastes (for stuffed chilis and such), I still enjoyed tossing in some dried scallop. 7. If you ever get the chance to go to a Cantonese market, definitely search out the lingyu vendors. There’s something pseudo-hypnotic about watching them work. 8. Oh, you can also absolutely use a food processor to get 90% of the way there. I would still do a touch of chopping personally (swirling back into the recipe at 3:46 most likely) , but that might be overly obsessive. 9. I do hope that you can give this dish a try. For whatever reason, any time ‘fish’ is brought into play, the number of people reporting actually trying a recipe of ours seems to absolutely plummet. It’s a really really fun dish to cook. That’s all for now. Sorry about the extra time in between videos there, definitely enjoyed our first Songkran in Thailand :)
Do you think that using dashi stock instead of scallops+soaking liquid would also work, or do the scallops offer something specific in this recipe? What about using shrimp instead of scallops?
Being from Cape Breton, lobster and crab was known as poor peasant food in the 50s and 60s that working people wouldn't take to jobs at a steel plant. I think what you were feeling was the intersection between racism and classism.
Most tilapia I've seen is from Vietnam or surrounding countries. It's certainly a cheap white fish available at my local (very) inland markets. Usually next to some equally cheap and questionable 'cod' which is probably rockfish or pollack.
I have no way of knowing what you saw about 'Chinese tilapia', but that doesn't seem racist to me. The fish aren't 'Chinese'. I guess it's FROM China? Actually, I thought tilapia were from Africa, so what do I know. But it sounds exactly as racist as complaining about poorly made electronics from China, which is to say... not racist at all -- just facts.
wow this combines two of my favorite things- "fried stuff that soaks up soup really well" and "fish paste products" (i have a rather extreme love of basically every kind of fishball, fish cake, and such).
Have you ever tried Swedish fish balls? Completely different flavor profile, usually comes in a can with a creamy lobster or dill sauce, but delicious.
All though Tilapia is definitely around and about, one fish that might be worth looking at is the "Asian Carp" or as they are called "Copi". They were native to China, but got imported and became invasive here in North America. They are now getting marketed pretty heavily and can be found in several grocery stores.
Oh awesome! That's wanyu - last I checked they were invasive in NA but still not at grocery stores. Wanyu is a fantastic fish... *probably* the most umami of all freshwater species I'm aware of. In Shunde they even make sashimi out of them - absolutely fantastic dish, but for freshwater fish you really have to slaughter it right, drain the blood correctly to get the best taste/minimize safety risks (though of course even then there's a non-zero parasite risk, but liver fluke's an easy one to cure). In any event, if you want a good application for the fish, check out the Shunde Chaiyugeng recipe we did a while back :) ua-cam.com/video/fIcrD60ebpM/v-deo.html
@@ChineseCookingDemystified wait you can actually sashimi them??? That is something new to me! Probably would not work for some of the larger ones I would have to imagine, but definitely gonna look at that recipe. Reminds me a lot of Filipino Lugaw.
This was my favorite thing to watch being made in my grandparents restaurant! I remember they would call us kids to come down in the kitchens to watch them puff. I had their recipe but could never find other versions online as we called it "fish ball" and only found recipes for the white ones. I wouldn't have thought calling it tofu as we didn't have tofu puffs back there to compare it to... I always love your videos but this one especially brings back very fond memories, thank you for your amazing work !
Thank you for sharing! My grandfather brought a similar recipe from Shunde but had to adapt it to Guatemalan style. I am so happy to know this is really Cantonese food, I doubted myself for years since our local Chinese restaurants don't have this in the menu. 🙏
this looks so good! thanks Chris and Steph. I have said this before, and I sub to your Patreon, but it bears repeating that no one else is bringing this kind of information to an English speaking audience, and it's invaluable, and much appreciated
This is basically what my mom often make, just with food processor, more starch (to give it chewier/tougher texture), using seawater fish, and bit more seasoning (sesame oil & pepper to fight fish's fishiness). From experience in making those, you can get tough/hard fishcake if you mix the starch using food processor. You can get it to be softer if you blend the fish with seasoning and egg whites, get it into a mixing bowl and then add the starch and mix by spatula/hand
This fish tofu is like a match made in heaven. Fried spongy puffballs but with fish and egg white as filling and then you can have it soak in a soup or broth. My mind is blown. I will never know true gastronomic bliss until I taste this someday.
It's really amazing that although the egg whites weren't whipped, they still behaved as if they had a lot of air in them. That's why egg based cakes deflate as they cool, as well as the biggest culprit, soufflé. As an aside, the way you pronounced "chayote" was good. Anyone where the fruit is called that way would understand you.
Oooh very cool soup topping! I was wondering if you guys were considering talking about luosifen, I've been seeing more and more instant versions of it in Canada and wonder how it compares to a homemade version
Insanely bomb, i didn't realize my Chinese restaurant was serving me this i thought it was regular fish cake for a while but it turned out to be this ! One of my favorite things to eat in a soup like ma la tang
Sane. I'm allergic to everything from the sea, but I like watching their seafood vids too. Luckily you can make some dishes without the seafood by subbing in other proteins
Huh, one of my local asian supermarkets (we've got three or four in this small provincial Dutch town) actually sells these frozen, and I've got a packet in the freezer having bought it not knowing what they were, except for looking interesting.
You do realize there's zero tofu in this dish? Look at the ingredients listed in the description. Edit: Sorry - you may simply be bewailing your inability to eat tofu in general. Realized that after I wrote the previous sentence. 😞
I enjoyed reading the notes. Also, have you guys ever tested with the store ready fish pastes available in markets? Wondering if they alone would do the trick for those of us less likely to go the whole 9 yards...
Brilliant stuff. Interesting that the tilapia takes so much longer than the mud carp to come together, likely has to do with the fat content not emulsifying as well. I bet if you mixed in some lard or even minced in some fatty pork, you’d get it to emulsify with much less effort.
I love 鯪魚球 (dace fish balls) and had the best in HK! The umami taste of 鯪魚 is so integral it's maddening that it's not more available where I live. Growing up in SE Texas, imho, I find the taste to be similar to catfish (which also lives in muddy waters and is a bottom feeder). Although not a perfect match, I added a little catfish to my fish paste as well as some fine chopped cilantro/coriander when I had a craving for fish balls and I think I got close substitute.
Interesting! Catfish is extremely cheap/plentiful in Bangkok, so I was actually mulling over trying a batch with them. How does catfish hold up as a paste? Perhaps between your catfish trick + my dried scallop trick, we could finally probably sub lingyu... :)
@@ChineseCookingDemystified My observation with catfish is that from a texture perspective it sort of interrupts the fish paste and makes it not as tacky - 胶 so you get a softer texture and not as snappy when it's cooked in broth. Maybe it's the fat/oil content? Just the softer texture of the flesh? Also maybe the type of catfish (farm raised or other) or cut (filet or nuggets) could also affect the quality? I guess I'd need to play more with the ratios and types of fish in the mix to get it right. I used a mix of catfish, tilapia and swai. But you need enough of the catfish to build up the umami flavor. I love recipe experimentation! The trick with the dried scallop is intriguing because it's concentrated and less additive so I'm eager to try that out!
For those of us without cleavers, do you think using a tenderizing/cubing mallet would work to paste out the fish? (The kind with the spiked end used usually to tenderize cutlets)
I am cooking this right now, it’s been 30 minutes and the fish balls haven’t started to float. They seem lighter and I’m stirring but no puffing. I’m sure it’s probably a “you didn’t x enough”. I did sub corn starch for potato starch, otherwise followed the recipe to a T (my shoulder IS tired)
Final product. Did a slight puff, but ended up looking like McNuggets. Taste kinda similar too, but a bit fishier. Very tasty tho! Overall took around 2 hours from the time it went in the warm oil. I think if I were to ever attempt this again id slowly turn up the heat to 120C after 10min at 65 regardless of floating status. Probably going to take much longer than the quoted “10-15 minutes” regardless. Fun project though and gave me an excuse to drink a bunch of beers on a Sunday afternoon!
Is there a particular reason you stirred the fish paste with your hand rather than a wooden spoon or other utensil? Would the texture not come out right if I didn't do it by hand?
I find it easiest to go by hand. Chopsticks also work well, but find that after a little bit of time it begins to tire the joints in my hand. Never tried a wooden spoon. Maybe someone else could comment?
These look so good! I've never heard of this before but now I really want to try it. Out of curiosity, do you think that this recipe could also work with shrimp?
Up here in Shanghai I have never seen 鱼腐 on the menu. Instead, we have 鱼面筋, which looks and sounds almost identical, except that I have never seen it as 'deflated' as in your video. Perhaps Steph can enlighten us?
I just wanna say I agree with you on the tilapia sentiment. I mean yeah sure, it's not the most prestige fish, and more often than not I'd prefer to eat trout or snapper if given fish. However, it has its uses. People just like to put down ingredients because they don't like a culture that the ingredient is associated with, I guess? Didn't think people had such an association to it. Like, it's really not that bad. There are other fish that people adore that I myself find gross, but I'm not gonna go that far about it. Yeesh, people.
Tofu puffs and tofu cut triangular like a sandwhich stuffed with meat is an all time Canto/Hakka favorite of mine. Unfortunately I'm not allowed to eat soy products anymore, so I'm cold turkey over 5 years and counting. :D How would these hold up texture wise if you slice them open to stuff them and carefully finish those in a skillet like normally? Would make an amazing surf & turf dish! And yes, dried scallops are amazing ingredients applicable to all kinds of dishes and cuisine. My mom also puts them in those tofu stuffings as a 'secret' ingredient making them unbeatable taste wise.
>How would these hold up texture wise if you slice them open to stuff them and carefully finish those in a skillet like normally? Would make an amazing surf & turf dish! If freshly fried? *Fantastic*. But like tofu puffs, as they keep (next day and such), I do think they best way to enjoy them is braised or in soups. Freshly fried fish tofu is a unique thing and another very cool benefit of making it yourself - i.e. being able to enjoy it at the 'crispy' stage.
Still haven't been! Looks like a cool town, seems pretty walkable, definitely want to swing over there next time we're in Guangdong. Any other stuff from there that you'd recommend trying? (I only knew of the fish tofu because it's very famous in Zhaoqing)
@@ChineseCookingDemystified We didn't get a chance to explore town too much. I was there for a family reunion of sorts, and my family lives in a village on the edge of town. My family has a fish pond, so fish tofu was a very prominent part of the meals. Otherwise, the fare was typical homestyle cantonese.
Any chance you have a thought on a potential replacement for peanut oil? I'm allergic, and usually replace peanuts or peanut butter with cashews and cashew butter, which have a similar fatty semi-sweet and savory taste, but peanut oil is often used for very specific reasons and it feels harder to find a good replacement.
As a general sub, I'd say white sesame oil (i.e. an untoasted sesame oil). Y'know, something like this: www.amazon.com/365-Everyday-Value-Organic-Sesame/dp/B074H5ZKCW For this specific application, you could just use whatever neutral oil, perhaps with a tiny touch of toasted sesame oil.
Not necessarily more "fishy" but boosting the umami savouries of the more traditional mudcarp/dace. A simple cheat would be to add a sprinkling of MSG just before shaping the fish puffs and adding to the warm wok oil. Kelp powder or dried sea urchin roe would boost the umami too with the roe more subtle than kelp. Ground Maldive fish chips, bonito flakes, etc would probably also work well.
>It's just... a sponge for anything delivious you decide to put in. This is also almost the entire justification for bread loaves in western cooking, non-tin loaves are best used as a soup topping.
Excuse me! Bread loaves are good for many things. Using it as soup topping is one of its uses, but to claim it's its best use? That's a hyperbolic claim.
Haven't tried it, but sounds like it'll leave behind a lot of mess since fish meat are relatively flakier compared to beef/pork steak cuts. Even if you use this method, i reckon the fish won't be as fine as minced, probably resulting in sandier/grainier texture
@@cckonettaxptor611 My wife and I tried frying some gefilte fish coated in matzoh meal this past Pesach and it was pretty good, so I imagine this will be even better.
Did I miss something or there isn't any tofu mixed up with the fish? I remember this Wang Gang's video where he incorporated the tofu together with the fish paste when making the balls: ua-cam.com/video/u6XG4S0PFyU/v-deo.html
super interesting , i was planning to make normal fishcakes w all this fish i got but im going to try this instead ! looks awesome thanks so much for all ur hard work as always and ur right abt tilapia . is a perfectly fine fish but unfortunately the overarching "china thing = bad" clouds most ppls minds
ffs, yesterday i was checking on all the stuff in my freezer and i have a whole bag of whitefish which i had no clue what to do with. i love this kind of coincidences
I wish I could try them myself. Most restaurants in Thailand (even in high end Chinese restaurants or McDonald's McFish) will use tilapia fish if they don't specifically mention what types of fish they use. And yes it tastes horrible. Finding good fish is pretty hard in Thailand, and some low end stores would sell you fish that tastes like mud.
Anyone remember the Ragusea video where my man cooked a whole fuckin pot of rice and ungodly amount tilapia, stored it in a vessel and proceeded to eat straight from the fridge?
![Chinese Salt and Pepper [Anything]](/img/n.gif)
Hey guys, a few notes:
1. Apologies about the slight shade at 2:25 - after reflecting on it, I know that ‘tilapia is Chinese garbage’ definitely isn’t the predominant opinion abroad (just a loud minority in the food space). It’s just… I was trying to find a visual for “Tilapia worldwide having a bad reputation”, and the corners of the internet that that brought me? Just pissed me off. So, rant incoming (cooking notes will continue at #5):
2. First, the not-so-subtle racial hue to a lot of the rhetoric online about ‘Chinese tilapia’ really kind of disgusted me. Like, maybe I’m going crazy, but I’m pretty sure that it’s not even legal to import tilapia to the States? Like, I’m looking at the list of eligible exports and Tilapia’s decidedly not on the list www.fsis.usda.gov/inspection/import-export/import-export-library/eligible-foreign-establishments Perhaps I’m misinterpreting something, perhaps the USDA includes Tilapia in the category of Siluriformes (i.e. catfish)? I highly doubt it though.
3. Second, from a culinary perspective I just can’t get on this ‘tilapia is utter trash’ train. While it’s not the most umami fish in the world or anything it’s (1) meaty without many bones and (2) easy to raise and cheap to produce. Application wise, I conceptualize it as the fish equivalent of the standard American supermarket chicken - would I want the former gently steamed in the Cantonese style, or the latter in the form of something like Hainan chicken rice? Probably not. But just because an ingredient isn’t super tasty in its most delicate preparations doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have value.
4. Third, from an environmental perspective, I’m so sick of people getting on their high horse about the subject of aquaculture. A lot of the criticisms levied against aquaculture can be equally levied against agriculture in general. I personally do not have any dietary restrictions (life’s short and I adore food), but if I were to choose a single one from an ethical perspective, it would be to stop eating wild caught fish. If we were to hunt venison in the way that we hunted tuna, the environmental carnage would be a lot more obvious. If, say, some sort of theoretical massive blimp with enormous nets cut through a forest the way a trawler cuts through the ocean, I don’t think people would stand for it. But buried under the waves? Out-of-sight, out-of-mind kind of deal, I guess.
5. Ok, sorry about that. Back to the topic of the recipe - note that for the soup, that 750mL of liquid is more of a ‘soup’ quantity than a ‘tang cai’ (soup dish) quantity. With the latter, you don’t want to overdo the soup quantity, generally speaking. I wanted to use up all the leftovers from the fish and figured a little extra stock wouldn’t kill anyone. For reference, we likely used 400-500mL of the soup to serve the dish, and simply drank the extra on the side.
6. I do really enjoy the addition of dried scallops to the fish paste. Even when I had access to lingyu in Guangdong, in my fish pastes (for stuffed chilis and such), I still enjoyed tossing in some dried scallop.
7. If you ever get the chance to go to a Cantonese market, definitely search out the lingyu vendors. There’s something pseudo-hypnotic about watching them work.
8. Oh, you can also absolutely use a food processor to get 90% of the way there. I would still do a touch of chopping personally (swirling back into the recipe at 3:46 most likely)
, but that might be overly obsessive.
9. I do hope that you can give this dish a try. For whatever reason, any time ‘fish’ is brought into play, the number of people reporting actually trying a recipe of ours seems to absolutely plummet. It’s a really really fun dish to cook.
That’s all for now. Sorry about the extra time in between videos there, definitely enjoyed our first Songkran in Thailand :)
Do you think that using dashi stock instead of scallops+soaking liquid would also work, or do the scallops offer something specific in this recipe? What about using shrimp instead of scallops?
@@misterplane5488 those alternatives would also absolutely work
Being from Cape Breton, lobster and crab was known as poor peasant food in the 50s and 60s that working people wouldn't take to jobs at a steel plant. I think what you were feeling was the intersection between racism and classism.
Most tilapia I've seen is from Vietnam or surrounding countries. It's certainly a cheap white fish available at my local (very) inland markets. Usually next to some equally cheap and questionable 'cod' which is probably rockfish or pollack.
I have no way of knowing what you saw about 'Chinese tilapia', but that doesn't seem racist to me. The fish aren't 'Chinese'. I guess it's FROM China? Actually, I thought tilapia were from Africa, so what do I know. But it sounds exactly as racist as complaining about poorly made electronics from China, which is to say... not racist at all -- just facts.
wow this combines two of my favorite things- "fried stuff that soaks up soup really well" and "fish paste products" (i have a rather extreme love of basically every kind of fishball, fish cake, and such).
cat food is good food
Have you ever tried Swedish fish balls? Completely different flavor profile, usually comes in a can with a creamy lobster or dill sauce, but delicious.
@@Arat1t1 Fiskbullar? Absolutely. they're not my absolute favorite, but they're up there, as they should be XD
Same thought on both counts honestly
All though Tilapia is definitely around and about, one fish that might be worth looking at is the "Asian Carp" or as they are called "Copi".
They were native to China, but got imported and became invasive here in North America. They are now getting marketed pretty heavily and can be found in several grocery stores.
Oh awesome! That's wanyu - last I checked they were invasive in NA but still not at grocery stores.
Wanyu is a fantastic fish... *probably* the most umami of all freshwater species I'm aware of. In Shunde they even make sashimi out of them - absolutely fantastic dish, but for freshwater fish you really have to slaughter it right, drain the blood correctly to get the best taste/minimize safety risks (though of course even then there's a non-zero parasite risk, but liver fluke's an easy one to cure).
In any event, if you want a good application for the fish, check out the Shunde Chaiyugeng recipe we did a while back :) ua-cam.com/video/fIcrD60ebpM/v-deo.html
@@ChineseCookingDemystified wait you can actually sashimi them??? That is something new to me! Probably would not work for some of the larger ones I would have to imagine, but definitely gonna look at that recipe. Reminds me a lot of Filipino Lugaw.
Surprised to see you here, Joe! Yeah, chinese restaurants use all kinds of larger carps too, I just had good 胖头鱼 fish tofu yesterday
@@JoeSkylynx Better not sashimi wild caught or mud pond freshwater fish though
@@JoeSkylynx You can but you really shouldn't.
This was my favorite thing to watch being made in my grandparents restaurant! I remember they would call us kids to come down in the kitchens to watch them puff. I had their recipe but could never find other versions online as we called it "fish ball" and only found recipes for the white ones. I wouldn't have thought calling it tofu as we didn't have tofu puffs back there to compare it to... I always love your videos but this one especially brings back very fond memories, thank you for your amazing work !
On first glance from the thumbnail I thought you were frying whole unpeeled potatoes in a wok! Great video as always :)
I had the same thought lol
Thank you for sharing! My grandfather brought a similar recipe from Shunde but had to adapt it to Guatemalan style. I am so happy to know this is really Cantonese food, I doubted myself for years since our local Chinese restaurants don't have this in the menu. 🙏
this looks so good! thanks Chris and Steph. I have said this before, and I sub to your Patreon, but it bears repeating that no one else is bringing this kind of information to an English speaking audience, and it's invaluable, and much appreciated
This is basically what my mom often make, just with food processor, more starch (to give it chewier/tougher texture), using seawater fish, and bit more seasoning (sesame oil & pepper to fight fish's fishiness). From experience in making those, you can get tough/hard fishcake if you mix the starch using food processor. You can get it to be softer if you blend the fish with seasoning and egg whites, get it into a mixing bowl and then add the starch and mix by spatula/hand
This fish tofu is like a match made in heaven. Fried spongy puffballs but with fish and egg white as filling and then you can have it soak in a soup or broth. My mind is blown. I will never know true gastronomic bliss until I taste this someday.
Nice video, love watching the videos even if I will never actually cook them myself
This looks amazing. The luffa in the soup sold me on making this. I actually like tilapia so I can only imagine how good lingyu must be.
It's really amazing that although the egg whites weren't whipped, they still behaved as if they had a lot of air in them. That's why egg based cakes deflate as they cool, as well as the biggest culprit, soufflé.
As an aside, the way you pronounced "chayote" was good. Anyone where the fruit is called that way would understand you.
Good to hear :) There was just a number of takes in the VO where I kind of felt like this dude: ua-cam.com/video/fKGoVefhtMQ/v-deo.html
@@ChineseCookingDemystified well, at least to me, it didn't sound as if you were over pronouncing chayote.
You can try putting still hot puffs into boiling soup, it's difficult, but restaurants here in Beijing do it
Great video, this one intrigued me a lot. I know you guys can be hesitant to post seafood/fish videos but I appreciate them :)
I love fish balls. This is right up my alley.
Ok.. That Dog at the end literally gave me DIABETES... Because that DOG IS SOOO STINKIN SWEEEEEETTTT!!!!!❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Oooh very cool soup topping! I was wondering if you guys were considering talking about luosifen, I've been seeing more and more instant versions of it in Canada and wonder how it compares to a homemade version
Looks awesome! Never heard about fish tofu. I'll definitely try this
The only thing, I don't really like telapia. So I'll use some other freshwater fish
Insanely bomb, i didn't realize my Chinese restaurant was serving me this i thought it was regular fish cake for a while but it turned out to be this ! One of my favorite things to eat in a soup like ma la tang
Excellent your recipe that tastes very good 💮
Awesome! So many new techniques that I didn't know about.
These look like the most addictive things ever
i loveeeeee fish tofu. i have to order it when at hai di lao, i should probably learn how to make it
Totally making these!
I'm allergic to many types of finned fish (unfortunately I have no ways of knowing which) but this looks soooopo good 🤤
Sane. I'm allergic to everything from the sea, but I like watching their seafood vids too. Luckily you can make some dishes without the seafood by subbing in other proteins
Huh, one of my local asian supermarkets (we've got three or four in this small provincial Dutch town) actually sells these frozen, and I've got a packet in the freezer having bought it not knowing what they were, except for looking interesting.
I think you can make fish paste easily through food processor, you think?
100%. Forgot to talk about it in the video, editing in a note now.
I wish I could eat tofu, they look delicious. I definitely need to look into soy tofu alternatives (much like these 😉).
You do realize there's zero tofu in this dish? Look at the ingredients listed in the description.
Edit: Sorry - you may simply be bewailing your inability to eat tofu in general. Realized that after I wrote the previous sentence. 😞
I enjoyed reading the notes. Also, have you guys ever tested with the store ready fish pastes available in markets? Wondering if they alone would do the trick for those of us less likely to go the whole 9 yards...
I completely forgot about those. That would make this so much easier to try.
Thank god for Chinese grocery store freezer/fridge sections because I don't think I'd ever be able to prepare these from scratch.
Wonderful! Thank you for this recipe 😊!
Brilliant stuff. Interesting that the tilapia takes so much longer than the mud carp to come together, likely has to do with the fat content not emulsifying as well. I bet if you mixed in some lard or even minced in some fatty pork, you’d get it to emulsify with much less effort.
As a latino I never expected to see chayotes being mentioned in this channel XD love it!
Looks so delicious!!
Thank you for the recipe! Have you tried freezing them before? I'd love to make a large batch and keep them in the freezer if possible.
Yes, it freezes very well, just like fish balls.
Dried scallops are so expensive, I'm trying to think of something else that could add that umami flavor... bonito maybe? Any opinions?
Carp meat turns really mushy fast so to turn it into paste with two cleavers it's not unimaginable, but these fish puffs look. Delectable!
I love 鯪魚球 (dace fish balls) and had the best in HK! The umami taste of 鯪魚 is so integral it's maddening that it's not more available where I live. Growing up in SE Texas, imho, I find the taste to be similar to catfish (which also lives in muddy waters and is a bottom feeder). Although not a perfect match, I added a little catfish to my fish paste as well as some fine chopped cilantro/coriander when I had a craving for fish balls and I think I got close substitute.
Interesting! Catfish is extremely cheap/plentiful in Bangkok, so I was actually mulling over trying a batch with them. How does catfish hold up as a paste? Perhaps between your catfish trick + my dried scallop trick, we could finally probably sub lingyu... :)
@@ChineseCookingDemystified My observation with catfish is that from a texture perspective it sort of interrupts the fish paste and makes it not as tacky - 胶 so you get a softer texture and not as snappy when it's cooked in broth. Maybe it's the fat/oil content? Just the softer texture of the flesh? Also maybe the type of catfish (farm raised or other) or cut (filet or nuggets) could also affect the quality? I guess I'd need to play more with the ratios and types of fish in the mix to get it right. I used a mix of catfish, tilapia and swai. But you need enough of the catfish to build up the umami flavor. I love recipe experimentation! The trick with the dried scallop is intriguing because it's concentrated and less additive so I'm eager to try that out!
Even the usual tofu puff are aggressively delicious if you ask me.
For those of us without cleavers, do you think using a tenderizing/cubing mallet would work to paste out the fish? (The kind with the spiked end used usually to tenderize cutlets)
Sure. Food processor + mallet should work fine I think?
This is so cool!
I am cooking this right now, it’s been 30 minutes and the fish balls haven’t started to float. They seem lighter and I’m stirring but no puffing. I’m sure it’s probably a “you didn’t x enough”. I did sub corn starch for potato starch, otherwise followed the recipe to a T (my shoulder IS tired)
UPDATE: I am an hour (and 3 beers) into this cook and WE HAVE FLOATERS! Turned the heat up to 90-100C seemed to do the trick
Final product. Did a slight puff, but ended up looking like McNuggets. Taste kinda similar too, but a bit fishier. Very tasty tho! Overall took around 2 hours from the time it went in the warm oil. I think if I were to ever attempt this again id slowly turn up the heat to 120C after 10min at 65 regardless of floating status. Probably going to take much longer than the quoted “10-15 minutes” regardless. Fun project though and gave me an excuse to drink a bunch of beers on a Sunday afternoon!
If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were shuffling around a wok full of potatoes! Those puffed up fish tofus look mighty tuber-like.
i am so so so hungry this is torturous. well done
Is there a chicken/pork version of this? If so what is it called?
Do tell more about the snail rice noodle soup.
Can this be done with a stand mixer?
fish balls are amazing so this should be good
Can we use tinned fish for this? Like sardines or mackerel?
i like these a lot more than the tofu ones
woah... so this is how they make potatoes...
Asian supermarkets sells fish paste made with good fish if you want to take that route.
Is there any concern about overworking the fish meat when chopping, like for meatballs? I'm wondering if a food processor might be a valid alternative
Good , this is my favorite
Is there a particular reason you stirred the fish paste with your hand rather than a wooden spoon or other utensil? Would the texture not come out right if I didn't do it by hand?
I find it easiest to go by hand. Chopsticks also work well, but find that after a little bit of time it begins to tire the joints in my hand.
Never tried a wooden spoon. Maybe someone else could comment?
i like this type, but my favourite "fish tofu" is... fish siumai, one of the best street food staples in HK.
These look so good! I've never heard of this before but now I really want to try it. Out of curiosity, do you think that this recipe could also work with shrimp?
thatd be hecka expensive, but probably, we eat shrimp paste in hotpot after all
Up here in Shanghai I have never seen 鱼腐 on the menu. Instead, we have 鱼面筋, which looks and sounds almost identical, except that I have never seen it as 'deflated' as in your video. Perhaps Steph can enlighten us?
Do you know of a kosher substitute for dried scallops? Thank you!
the fish tofu looked like potatos for a second when they puffed up
A trace of the true self exists in the false self...
@@ChineseCookingDemystified Chinese cooking and Baudrillard? God i love this channel
I just wanna say I agree with you on the tilapia sentiment. I mean yeah sure, it's not the most prestige fish, and more often than not I'd prefer to eat trout or snapper if given fish. However, it has its uses. People just like to put down ingredients because they don't like a culture that the ingredient is associated with, I guess? Didn't think people had such an association to it. Like, it's really not that bad. There are other fish that people adore that I myself find gross, but I'm not gonna go that far about it. Yeesh, people.
How about mixing in some fresh shrimp and using dried shrimp? Probably work just fine but wondering if anyone has done this.
Tofu puffs and tofu cut triangular like a sandwhich stuffed with meat is an all time Canto/Hakka favorite of mine. Unfortunately I'm not allowed to eat soy products anymore, so I'm cold turkey over 5 years and counting. :D
How would these hold up texture wise if you slice them open to stuff them and carefully finish those in a skillet like normally? Would make an amazing surf & turf dish!
And yes, dried scallops are amazing ingredients applicable to all kinds of dishes and cuisine. My mom also puts them in those tofu stuffings as a 'secret' ingredient making them unbeatable taste wise.
>How would these hold up texture wise if you slice them open to stuff them and carefully finish those in a skillet like normally? Would make an amazing surf & turf dish!
If freshly fried? *Fantastic*. But like tofu puffs, as they keep (next day and such), I do think they best way to enjoy them is braised or in soups.
Freshly fried fish tofu is a unique thing and another very cool benefit of making it yourself - i.e. being able to enjoy it at the 'crispy' stage.
Nowadays, i see more tofu puff , here and there
Wow, shocked to see Luoding called out. I visited family there years ago and this was my favorite thing to eat there.
Still haven't been! Looks like a cool town, seems pretty walkable, definitely want to swing over there next time we're in Guangdong. Any other stuff from there that you'd recommend trying? (I only knew of the fish tofu because it's very famous in Zhaoqing)
@@ChineseCookingDemystified We didn't get a chance to explore town too much. I was there for a family reunion of sorts, and my family lives in a village on the edge of town. My family has a fish pond, so fish tofu was a very prominent part of the meals. Otherwise, the fare was typical homestyle cantonese.
I did eat at some of the late night outdoor street vendors. Delicious but do not recall any of the specific meals anymore.
Any chance you have a thought on a potential replacement for peanut oil? I'm allergic, and usually replace peanuts or peanut butter with cashews and cashew butter, which have a similar fatty semi-sweet and savory taste, but peanut oil is often used for very specific reasons and it feels harder to find a good replacement.
As a general sub, I'd say white sesame oil (i.e. an untoasted sesame oil). Y'know, something like this: www.amazon.com/365-Everyday-Value-Organic-Sesame/dp/B074H5ZKCW
For this specific application, you could just use whatever neutral oil, perhaps with a tiny touch of toasted sesame oil.
Remember my mum making this when we were kids.....so this is what they are...
Do you add dried scallop and fish sauce to make tilapia taste more fishy?
Not necessarily more "fishy" but boosting the umami savouries of the more traditional mudcarp/dace.
A simple cheat would be to add a sprinkling of MSG just before shaping the fish puffs and adding to the warm wok oil.
Kelp powder or dried sea urchin roe would boost the umami too with the roe more subtle than kelp.
Ground Maldive fish chips, bonito flakes, etc would probably also work well.
@@crispian67 thank you!
@@darwinkius No worries! YW 👍
Why done I see yufu anywhere in american stores?
I wonder if this can translate to other meat proteins?!
>It's just... a sponge for anything delivious you decide to put in.
This is also almost the entire justification for bread loaves in western cooking, non-tin loaves are best used as a soup topping.
Excuse me! Bread loaves are good for many things. Using it as soup topping is one of its uses, but to claim it's its best use? That's a hyperbolic claim.
For the fish paste, will it work if I use meat hammer/tenderiser instead of the cleaver?
Haven't tried it, but sounds like it'll leave behind a lot of mess since fish meat are relatively flakier compared to beef/pork steak cuts. Even if you use this method, i reckon the fish won't be as fine as minced, probably resulting in sandier/grainier texture
Do you reckon this would work with any land animal protein? I'm thinking of the jidouhua yall introduced me to some years ago.
Hmm... not sure! I think chicken might be a fun experiment?
always wondered how fish tofu is made. thx. qq, can i use a food processor instead of chopping?
Yep totally. Editing in a note on the topic (note #8)
@@ChineseCookingDemystified i am glad that i don't need to slap the mixture to make it bouncy like fishballs. thx again! really enjoy all your vids!
you've selected a very specific tune...
Now, the question from me is - how does one make tofu puffs from tofu?
chef wang gang has a video where he does this with tofu
I've seen tofu imitating meat, but I've never seen meat imitating tofu.
Fish maw is also great at absorbing soup ain’t it?
👍👍
So kinda like a fried gefilte fish?
Maybe...? But a bit chewier and definitely savoury :D
It even uses potato starch. Passover will never be the same!
@@cckonettaxptor611 My wife and I tried frying some gefilte fish coated in matzoh meal this past Pesach and it was pretty good, so I imagine this will be even better.
Fish tofu frying song: ua-cam.com/video/5vsx6gcFBPs/v-deo.html&ab_channel=haoshizhe (not what I expected)
Here in Sweden Tilapia is not available at all, and totally unknown. I've never tasted it and I'm a chef who tasted a bit of everything.
Pike is a great alternative to tilapia
What did you just say about my purlicue?
Haha! I couldn't imagine how those huge puffs were going to turn into the actual wrinkled "tofu". Then it just collapses down.
Couldn't finish in one bite?
非常喜欢你的视频，跟你学会了很多东西。有个建议想提一下，就是我们特色的东西能用中文名发音直接翻译吗？ 比如饺子翻译成Jiao zi， 包子翻译成Bao zi ，月饼为Yue bing。 因为我发现饺子都快成日本的东西了。 因为日本翻译就是饺子的日语发音Gyoza. Zha Jiang mian 炸酱面,我们再不用这个名字就要成为韩国的了。 日本人的态度是管你懂不懂，就是用日语发音直接音译，结果却是更加的让人记住了, 炸酱面和饺子明明是从中国传到日本韩国的，还没有那么久远，结果已经有很多人以为是韩国日本的东西了。不管是普通话音译或者粤语都可以保留我们的饮食文化. 我们再不行动起来以后就真要丢失了。只有音译才能保护我们的文化。Jiao zi 比Dumpling 好。
老司机带带我😂😂😂
7:28 sir that’s a wok filled with potatoes
😁👍
Did I miss something or there isn't any tofu mixed up with the fish? I remember this Wang Gang's video where he incorporated the tofu together with the fish paste when making the balls:
ua-cam.com/video/u6XG4S0PFyU/v-deo.html
Yeah that's a different dish, 口袋豆腐. This is a Cantonese dish that uses fish and egg white to mimic the texture of tofu puff :)
super interesting , i was planning to make normal fishcakes w all this fish i got but im going to try this instead ! looks awesome thanks so much for all ur hard work as always and ur right abt tilapia . is a perfectly fine fish but unfortunately the overarching "china thing = bad" clouds most ppls minds
ffs, yesterday i was checking on all the stuff in my freezer and i have a whole bag of whitefish which i had no clue what to do with. i love this kind of coincidences
ho sik mm goi sai laaaa
Philippine variation of fish ball
I don’t understand, I have the special bell for your channel yet UA-cam REFUSES to show me your videos in my sub box and it’s not only your videos
I wish I could try them myself. Most restaurants in Thailand (even in high end Chinese restaurants or McDonald's McFish) will use tilapia fish if they don't specifically mention what types of fish they use. And yes it tastes horrible. Finding good fish is pretty hard in Thailand, and some low end stores would sell you fish that tastes like mud.
Anyone remember the Ragusea video where my man cooked a whole fuckin pot of rice and ungodly amount tilapia, stored it in a vessel and proceeded to eat straight from the fridge?
I'm cuckoo for tofu puffs.
5:40 I see what you did there... ;)
I guess after all the vegan "tofu as meat" recipes, it was only a matter of time until someone did the reverse
at 4:33 "stirring the paste in one direction only...." C'mon, that's nonsense.