The effect of phosphates on water holding capacity of carp surimi was studied by response surface methodology. The results showed that the trisodium phosphate, tripolyphosphate, and the interaction between trisodium phosphate and pyrophosphate significantly affected the cooking loss of surimi. And the best dosages of each phosphate was obtained as: trisodium phosphate 0.25 g/kg, tripolyphosphate 1.75 g/kg, pyrophosphate 0.86 g/kg and hexametaphosphate 1.47 g/kg.