Ingredients
Pork shoulder 150 g (about 5 oz), shad roe 100 g (about 3.5 oz), 1 egg white.
Seasonings
5 g Shaoxing wine, 2.5 g each of MSG and ginger slices, 2 g each of salt and scallion.
Instructions
1. Wash the shad roe and place it in a bowl. Add Shaoxing wine, scallion segments, and ginger slices. Steam until cooked through, then remove and discard the scallion and ginger. Transfer the fish to a soup bowl. Finely mince the pork, then add 50 g (about 1/4 cup) of water and 1 g (about 1/4 teaspoon) of salt. Stir vigorously until the mixture becomes sticky. Add the egg white and MSG, and mix well.
2. Add water to the pot, shape the ground meat into 10 meatballs, place them in the pot over medium heat, and once the meatballs form a crust on the outside, gently stir them with a spatula; when the water comes to a boil, add cold water, then reduce the heat to low and cook until done.
3. Pour in the original broth from the preserved Chinese herring, bring to a boil and skim off any foam, then season with salt and MSG, sprinkle with scallion segments, drizzle with lard, and pour the soup into the bowl containing the herring to serve. This soup features tender, fluffy meatballs and a deliciously flavorful broth.