The first time I had boulette I was hooked. Pronounced ‘bullet’. For those that don’t know, boulette is a clear soup, some may say consomme, that is either fish or chicken, but mostly fish. The soup is poured over your choice of dumplings. I use the word dumpling quite liberally here.
It is a very popular street food in Mauritius.
So you can see from the picture they also have tofu, meat balls and other weird things. The only real dumpling, is the chicken dumpling, which is the second best thing you can add to your boulette. The best thing is the chouchou ‘dumplings’ but they are really just balls.
Most vendors of boulette buy in there ‘dumplings’ and there are quite a few varieties, here are a few; Niouk Yen, Meat Balls, Shao Mai, Wonton, Fish Balls and Smoked Tofu. If you are buying it for the first time, just ask for one of each. As there is only one manufacture in Mauritius, they all taste the same. It is down to the individual vendor to make the soup, which sadly is also mostly bought.
Even so, it is worth the experience, but I like to make my own.
How I make my own at home.
That picture is of the chouchou and chicken balls I made for the best ever boulette experience. As I found out in my first ever make your own boulette experience, it’s really easy and a lot of, I was going to say fun, but it’s not that much fun, but it is tasty.
Peel the chouchou or chayote as it was originally called in Mexico. This is where the fun does not start. Some suggest you wear gloves. I whole hearterly agree with this sentiment. If you are bare handed, it is rather unpleasant. There is this sticky sap that coats your hands and becomes itchy. Washing does not really help.
Next grate the chouchou and add about a teaspoon of salt each, mix and let the water drain out. I squeezed mine after about an hour. Maybe you could do it soon, I sort of forgot about it. I got extra water out by adding it to a cloth and twisting.
Once it is mostly drain, add your stuff. This can be almost anything that is chopped. My favourite is chicken, green onion and chilli. I added a little pepper, but the mix should be salty enough. Don’t let my favourites stop you from experimenting. The chouchou can take a lot of flavours. Try some shrimp or prawns or fish or octopus for the seafood soup. Same idea for the land meats, or even go vegan with cauliflower or water chestnuts. The possibilities are endless, but I don’t think nutella will work. If you do try M&Ms, let me know.
Take this mix and add some corn starch (25%) and some wheat flour (75%). You can use tapioca starch, or if you are really lazy (or can’t find the other stuff in the cupboard), just use wheat flour. There is no measurement here, just mix until it is a sticky mess. Then roll into balls and put in a steamer. I use a basket in a pot with some foil on top. Steam for about 10 minutes, longer is also ok, but until the water is all finished is too long.
The soup can be bought, but I can never find a good one, so I use a stock cube with a cup of water. Garnish with green onion and chilli. Photograph and eat.
Inspiring quest there. What occurred after? Thanks!