Filipino Fish Ball Street Snack (Kwek Kwek Style)

About This Recipe

Kwek kwek is instantly recognizable by its bright orange batter, hard-boiled quail eggs coated thickly and deep-fried until the coating turns crisp, a color achieved with a bit of food coloring or annatto. Fish balls, made from ground white fish and starch, are prepared the same way, battered and fried alongside the eggs, both threaded onto skewers or served together in a small paper cup for easy street-side eating. The essential accompaniment is a sweet and spicy vinegar sauce, often thickened slightly with cornstarch, that vendors ladle generously over the fried snacks or serve on the side for dipping, its tang cutting through the fried batter's richness.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 12quail eggs(hard-boiled and peeled)
• 12fish balls(store-bought)
• 1 cupall-purpose flour
• 1 tbspcornstarch
• 1 tspbaking powder
• 1/2 tspsalt
• 3/4 cupwater
• 1/4 tspannatto powder or orange food coloring
• 2 cupsvegetable oil(for frying)
• 1/2 cupvinegar(for sauce)
• 2 tbspsugar(for sauce)
• 1chile(sliced, for sauce)
• 1 tspcornstarch(mixed with 2 tbsp water, for sauce)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the batter

   Whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, water and annatto powder into a smooth, thick, orange-tinted batter.

2. 2

   Skewer the eggs and fish balls

   Thread the peeled quail eggs and fish balls onto small skewers, or leave them loose for individual dipping.

3. 3

   Coat and fry

   Dip each item into the batter, coating thoroughly, then fry in hot oil for 2-3 minutes, turning, until deeply golden and crisp.

   Make sure the batter fully coats each egg and fish ball with no bare spots, since gaps will cause uneven frying and a less crisp finish.

4. 4

   Make the sauce

   Simmer vinegar, sugar and chile for 3-4 minutes, then stir in the cornstarch slurry, simmering 2 more minutes until slightly thickened.

5. 5

   Serve

   Drain the fried skewers and serve with the sweet and spicy vinegar sauce for dipping.

Variations

• •

  Regular hard-boiled chicken eggs cut into quarters can substitute for quail eggs if they're not available.

• •

  A version using squid balls instead of or alongside fish balls is common in some areas.

• •

  Adding a bit of chili garlic sauce to the dip gives extra heat.

Storage

Best eaten fresh and hot; refrigerate leftovers up to 2 days and reheat in an oven or air fryer to help re-crisp rather than microwaving.

Frequently Asked Questions