Gefilte Fish

By
Giora Shimoni
Giora Shimoni
A kosher food enthusiast and home cook with hundreds of published recipes, Giora Shimoni has worked in online publishing for over 20 years.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 02/15/23
Tested by
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Tested by Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Gefilte Fish

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 90 mins
Chill: 60 mins
Total: 3 hrs
Servings: 12 servings
Yield: 24 balls
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
415 Calories
16g Fat
28g Carbs
40g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 415
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 16g 20%
Saturated Fat 5g 25%
Cholesterol 168mg 56%
Sodium 1193mg 52%
Total Carbohydrate 28g 10%
Dietary Fiber 4g 13%
Total Sugars 11g
Protein 40g
Vitamin C 14mg 68%
Calcium 119mg 9%
Iron 2mg 12%
Potassium 757mg 16%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Gefilte fish is an iconic Ashkenazic Jewish food that is often served at Passover as well as other Jewish holidays. It consists of fish, usually white-fleshed freshwater fish like carp or pike, that is chopped and mixed with ingredients such as onions, carrots, parsley, eggs, and matzah meal and formed into a loaf or individual balls or oval patties. The fish patties are then poached in a flavorful broth and chilled until ready to serve. If desired, you can use the fish mixture to stuff fish heads or pieces of fish.

Recipe Tips

  • You should never taste the raw fish and egg mixture for flavor, but there is a way to taste and adjust the seasonings. In the same pan used to cook the onions, fry a tablespoon or so of the fish mixture in a teaspoon or two of oil. Taste the cooked mixture for seasoning and adjust accordingly.
  • Allowing the fish mixture to sit in the refrigerator for a couple hours before shaping and cooking will make the mixture easier to form. It will also allow the flavors to meld.
  • If the fish mixture sticks to your hands during shaping, very lightly wet your hands with cold water.
  • For the best tasting gefilte fish, taste both the fish mixture and the broth the fish will be poached in and season accordingly. The broth should have a pleasant flavor on its own.

"I could not find freshwater fish so I used fresh haddock fillets for the gefilte fish and they held their shape nicely in the poaching broth. They were a little bland, so I recommend frying a tablespoon or so of the fish mixture and tasting for seasoning before shaping into balls." —Diana Rattray

gefilte fish/tester image
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

For the Fish Balls:

  • 2 large onions, finely chopped

  • 2 to 4 tablespoons canola oil, more as needed

  • 4 pounds fresh whitefish fillets, such as haddock, carp or pike, cleaned

  • 2 large carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

  • 2 large parsnips, peeled and coarsely chopped

  • 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

  • 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley

  • 1/2 cup matzo meal

  • 4 large eggs

  • 1 to 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 1 tablespoon paprika

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste

  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper, more to taste

  • Horseradish sauce, for serving

For the Poaching Broth:

  • 5 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

  • 3 medium onions, peeled and quartered

  • 4 cloves garlic, quartered

  • 1 to 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 1 teaspoon paprika

  • 1 tablespoons kosher salt, more to taste

  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper, more to taste

  • 6 cups water, more as needed

  • Cooking spray

Steps to Make It

Make the Fish Balls

  1. Gather the ingredients for the fish balls.

    Ingredients to make gefilte fish fish balls

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  2. In a large skillet, sauté 1 of the onions in 2 tablespoons of the oil until starting to turn golden brown. Set aside to cool.

    Onions cooking in a pan

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  3. Pulse, then process the fish in a food processor in batches, if necessary, until smooth. Set aside in a large bowl.

    Smooth fish paste in a bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  4. Pulse, then process the carrots, parsnips, the remaining onion, garlic, and parsley in the food processor until finely chopped. Place in a separate bowl.

    A bowl of pulsed carrots, onions, parsnips, garlic, and parsely

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  5. Add the reserved sautéed onion and the matzo meal to the ground fish.

    A bowl of ground fish, matzo meal, and cooked onions

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  6. Add the ground vegetables to the fish mixture.

    A bowl of combined fish and vegetable mixture

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  7. Add the eggs, sugar, paprika, salt, white pepper, and enough of the remaining oil for the mixture to hold together nicely. Mix well. If time allows, cover the fish mixture and store in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours.

    A bowl of fish-vegetable mixture with eggs, salt, paprika, and white pepper

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  8. Form the mixture into 24 equal-size ovals, patties, or balls and set aside.

    24 patties of fish-vegetable mixture

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

Make the Poaching Broth and Cook the Gefilte

  1. Gather the ingredients for the poaching liquid.

    Ingredients to make poaching broth

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  2. In a large soup pot, add the carrots, onions, garlic, sugar, paprika, salt, white pepper, and water. Bring to a boil over high heat.

    A large pot with carrots, onions, garlic, sugar, paprika, salt, white pepper, and water

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  3. Reduce the heat to low, and simmer until carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.

    A simmering pot of vegetables and water

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  4. Remove the vegetables from the broth with a slotted spoon, reserving the carrots for garnish.

    A pot of broth and a bowl of cooked carrots

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  5. Gently lower the fish balls into the broth, in two batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pot. Keep the heat at a constant simmer. Add more water to the pot if needed to completely cover the fish balls (bring to a low boil, then return the heat to a simmer). Cook on low for about 1 hour. Adjust the broth with more salt and pepper to taste, if needed. Continue to cook on low about 30 minutes more.

    Gefilte fish patties cooking in large pot of poaching broth

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  6. With cooking spray, coat pans large enough to hold all of the gefilte fish in a single layer. Carefully remove the fish balls from the broth with a slotted spoon and transfer to the pans. Ladle some of the broth over the fish. Place a piece of the reserved carrot on each gefilte fish. Let the fish cool.

    A baking sheet of gefilte fish topped with sliced carrots

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  7. After the fish has cooled, cover and store it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

    A covered tray of gefilte fish

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

  8. Gefilte fish is traditionally eaten cold with a prepared horseradish sauce. Enjoy!

    Gefilte fish served with horseradish sauce

    The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

How to Store

  • Refrigerate the gefilte fish in an airtight container within 2 hours and consume within 3 days.
  • To freeze, wrap individual fish balls in plastic wrap and store them in an airtight container. Defrost them in the refrigerator for 8 to 12 hours or overnight.
  • Gefilte fish is usually served cold or at room temperature.