Fishball. In the Philippines, this is a street food staple, sold through carts or stalls everywhere. When I was in college, there was a cart right outside my building which sold it together with other deep-fried treats. The carts have tall jars of sauces, usually a trio of spicy vinegar, sweet soy, and spicy soy, where you can dip the skewers of piping hot fishball before you devoured them.
I was craving them one day and decided I would make them from scratch, despite frozen ones being available at the Asian store, because I like making my own food. I ferment my own kimchi and brew my own kombucha during the warmer months, so I found a fishball recipe online and found it easy enough to do. It’s a time consuming but makes for a fun project. I ended up cutting the balls into smaller fritters for quicker frying and crunchier pieces.
They were perfect. Crunchy nuggets and spicy sweet sour sauce. It’s not exactly the same as the super-floury ones from back home, but they definitely satisfied my craving.
Last December, I made them for the Advancement of Rural Kids‘ holiday party, where I served other childhood favorites of mine, like Arroz Caldo and Bistek Tagalog. The fishball was the crowd favorite, and now I’m thinking of making another batch to keep in the freezer for when the craving (and nostalgia) strikes again.