Surimi is a food paste usually made from what?

Surimi refers to a paste made from fish or other meat. It can also refer to a number of Asian foods that use surimi as their primary ingredients. It is available in many shapes, forms, and textures, and often used to mimic the texture and color of the meat of lobster, crab, and other shellfish.

The most common surimi product in the Western market is imitation crab meat. Such a product often is sold as krab, imitation crab and mock crab in the United States, and as seafood sticks, crab sticks, fish sticks or seafood extender in Commonwealth nations. In Britain the product is sometimes known as Seafood sticks, to avoid breaching trading standards rules on false advertising.

The process for making surimi was developed in many areas of East Asia over several centuries though the exact history and origins of this product are unclear. In China, the food was used to make fish balls and ingredients in a thick soup known as "Geng" common in Fujian cuisine. In Japan, it is used in the making of numerous kamaboko, fish sausage, or cured surimi products.