How to Make Fishball Sauce (Street Style)

Co-authored by Vanna Tran and Jessica Gibson

Last Updated: January 18, 2023 References

If you've been craving perfectly fried fish balls, you may be prepared to make them at home. While it's easy to find pre-made fish balls, you'll need to mix up a dipping sauce to get the most authentic flavor. Street vendors in the Philippines are known for serving their fish balls with a tangy sweet and sour sauce. For those who like more of a kick, vendors also serve a vinegar-style sauce infused with spicy chilies. Mix up one or both of these sauces and enjoy your fish balls!

Ingredients

Sweet and Sour Sauce

4 cups (940 ml) of water plus 3 tablespoons of water
3 tablespoons of cornstarch
3/4 cup (175 g) of brown sugar
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 small red onion, minced
2 small garlic cloves, minced
1 siling labuyo (chili pepper), minced
1 teaspoon of salt

Spicy Vinegar Sauce

1 1/2 cups of white vinegar
1 medium red onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 tablespoon of green onion (optional)
1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes (optional)

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Making Sweet and Sour Sauce

1
Make a cornstarch slurry. Place 3 tablespoons of cornstarch into a small bowl. Then, add 3 tablespoons of water one at a time, while mixing the water and cornstarch with a fork, spoon, or small whisk before adding the next tablespoon. This will help to reduce lumps. The slurry will appear thin and white.^{[1]
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Expert Source

Vanna Tran
Experienced Cook
Expert Interview. 15 March 2019.}
- The cornstarch will help your sauce thicken and the slurry will prevent the sauce from becoming lumpy as it cooks.^{[2]
  X
  Expert Source
  
  Vanna Tran
  Experienced Cook
  Expert Interview. 15 March 2019.}
2
Heat the water, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Place 4 cups (940 ml) of water in a medium saucepan along with 3/4 cup (175 g) of brown sugar and 4 tablespoons of soy sauce. Stir the sauce until it's combined and turn the heat on to medium. Let the sauce come to a boil.^{[3]
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- Stir the sauce occasionally to help the sugar dissolve.
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3
Whisk in your cornstarch slurry. Hold a whisk in one hand and whisk your sauce. Gradually pour in the cornstarch slurry with your other hand, whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to whisk the sauce once the slurry is completely added.^{[4]
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Expert Source

Vanna Tran
Experienced Cook
Expert Interview. 15 March 2019.}^{[5]
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- You should see the sauce begin to thicken. It's important to constantly whisk or you'll end up with lumpy sauce.
4
Stir in the seasonings. Once the sauce is as thick as you'd like it, turn the heat to low. Mince 1 small red onion, 2 small garlic cloves, and 1 siling labuyo (chili pepper). Add the onion, garlic and pepper to the sauce along with 1 teaspoon of salt and stir the sauce.^{[6]
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- You can adjust the seasonings by adding more onion, garlic, or pepper as you like.
- You can refrigerate the sauce and use it within 1 week. This recipe makes around 3 cups of sauce.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Making Spicy Vinegar Sauce

1
Chop or mince your onions and garlic. Carefully chop or mince 1 medium red onion and 4 cloves of fresh garlic. You can chop these as large or as small as you prefer. Place the prepared onions and garlic in a medium-sized bowl.^{[7]
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- If you'll be using or garnishing the sauce with green onions, you can slice them now and set them aside.
2
Add your remaining ingredients. Gather the following ingredients and place them in the bowl that has your onions and garlic:^{[8]
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- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) of white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 1 teaspoons of salt
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground pepper
3
Taste and garnish the sauce. Stir the sauce so the ingredients are combined and the sugar dissolves. Taste the sauce and adjust the flavor to your liking. You can garnish the sauce with 1 tablespoon of sliced green onion or 1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes. Serve the sauce immediately.^{[9]
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- You can refrigerate and serve this sauce later. Keep in mind that the sauce will become spicier as the onion, chilies and garlic infuse it.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Serving Your Fishballs and Sauce (Street-Style)

1
Skewer the fish balls. Take 4 or 5 fried fish balls and thread them directly onto a long bamboo skewer. Serve several of these skewers with the dipping sauces on the side for people to choose what they want.
- You can serve the sauces in small bowls next to the skewers or in squeeze bottles so people can squirt sauce onto the skewers or their plates.
2
Serve the fish balls with ramen. Cook a package of ramen, udon, or soba noodles according to the packaged instructions. Drain the noodles and place them in the bottom of your bowl. Once you've fried up the fish balls, set them over the noodles in your dish and drizzle them with a sauce of your choice.^{[10]
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- You should eat the ramen and fish balls as soon as you can. The noodles can make the fish balls soften and lose their crispiness.
3
Serve the fish balls with rice or flatbread. If you'd like to make the fish balls into a more substantial meal, serve the fish balls alongside cooked rice or a few pieces of flatbread. You could also serve them with a side salad.^{[11]
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- You can drizzle or squeeze the sauce over the fish balls and rice.