(No set spelling or articulation because it was a Chinese word)

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Kekiam is not a dish by itself but is used in dishes or added to dishes like Pancit Lomi (find recipe in Noodles), and soups like Mami, or some noodle soups. However, it can be made into balls and fried, which can be eaten with a dip as a dish or an appetizer. 

Kekiam is purely a Chinese concoction used in many different dishes introduced by the Chinese immigrants and was adopted by the Filipinos as their own.  There are several variants of it, some with fish, some with shrimp and some with mixture of different shellfish.

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• 1 lb. ground pork
• 1 cup shelled and chopped fine ground shrimp OR 1 cup ground fish OR combination
• ¼ cup chopped carrots ¼ cup chopped water chestnuts (optional)
• ½ medium onion, chopped fine
• 1 clove garlic chopped fine
• ¼ cup celery chopped fine
• 1 TBS brown sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. black pepper
• ½ tsp. MSG (optional)
• 1 pinch Chinese Five Spice
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 egg

Mix all the ingredients together. Let stand for an hour or so in the fridge to meld all flavors then shape into balls with a spoon.  Fry in about ¼” deep cooking oil on medium heat until brown on all sides.

Or, extrude in a plastic sausage casing and steam or boil until done.  Freeze until ready to use.  Slice diagonally and fry to brown the pieces when ready to serve.

Or, spoon in round wonton wrappers as in Sho-mai and steam

Dip them in a mixture of vinegar, a little water, patis, soy sauce and green onions.  Add a little sugar if desired. 

They can be dipped also in soy sauce and lemon, Sriracha or sweet and sour sauce

I thought kekiam was fish balls so I tried making fish balls a very long time ago during my first few years in the U.S. Not knowing how to or what goes in it, I just ground a lot of different fish we caught, added salt and pepper and made fish balls.  Surprisingly, the ground fish was very firm and held their shapes even when cooked.  I thought they would be flaky and break apart.  However, it did not taste like I expected so I only tried it once. 

Simplified Version (Kekiam)

• 2 lb. Shrimp shelled, washed, chopped fine
• ½ lb ground pork
• 1/2 tsp MSG (optional)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. white pepper (this is hot)
• ½ tsp. garlic powder
• 1 TBS cornstarch
• “Utosinsal” or sausage casing as substitute

Blend well and wrap in utosinsal (mesentery, the transparent tissue that connects the intestines) and shape into a roll, about 1 ½ inch dia., 8 inches long.  Steam until done.

Cut into ¼” thk slices and deep fry.  Serve with pickled radish.

Plastic wrap or casing can be substituted or collagen sausage casing may also be used.