Yantai Street | Drinking Trivia: Look at the sturgeon

Ugly and ugly is the first impression of the squid. A large head occupies most of the whole body, a large mouth is almost the same width as the big head, the small body is like a braid, black, soft collapse, slimy can not distinguish an eyebrow, looking a little disgusting. People have never seen a "ghost", let alone a "sea ghost", so it is not unreasonable to call the ugly and vicious squid "sea ghost fish".

As a deep-sea fish that lives 50 to 100 meters in temperate oceans, sturgeon has special functions that other fish do not have. Hermaphrodites are one. The sturgeon we see in the market is usually a female, because the male fish parasitizes the female fish shortly after birth and becomes one with the female. It is recorded that the male fish weighs only one thousandth of the female fish, so it is no wonder that it is difficult to find it with the naked eye.

Because of its unique appearance and some special functions, in ancient China, the trout had many nicknames. The author combed through a bit and found that these nicknames can be roughly divided into two categories.

One is the hieroglyphic class named after its physical characteristics. Such as anglerfish, three-legged toads, toadfish and so on. Ren Fang, a famous literary scholar of the Liang Dynasty of the Southern Dynasty, recorded in the volume of the Book of Differences: "The sea fish Chitose is a swordfish, a pipa. Shaped like a pipa and good at singing, it is famous for its name. Zuo Si of the Western Jin Dynasty has the saying "Leaping Dragon Teng snake, mackerel pipa" in the "Three DuFu Wu Du Fu", and Liu Kui's annotation is: "The anglerfish, without scales, resembles a pipa, and there is a pipa in the East China Sea." "The three-legged toad is also one of the other names for the sturgeon. The Qing Dynasty scholar Li Tiaoyuan recorded in the "Chronicle of the Rhinoceros": "Three-legged toad, fish. Shaped like a tadpole and flattened, with two wings on the left and right, it looks like a three-legged toad, hence the name. The mouth is large and toothed, as thin as hairs, and the lower jaw is longer than the upper lip. ”

The other category is the fingering and meeting class named after its specific function. Such as happy fish, old man fish, etc. The Ming Dynasty literary scholar Yang Shen recorded in the third volume of the "Different Fish Tuzan": "The sea fish has no scales, shaped like a pipa, a happy fish, and its song is also Jia." Hearing the sound, I once knew Baba. "Urn Ba was a famous pianist and musician of the Chu state during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. The ancients named the fish for its ability to make a nice sound. The trout can also make an old man coughing sound, so it is also called an old man.

There is also a nickname called sea shrimp mantis. Moth is the ancient character for toad, i.e. toad. The late Qing dynasty naturalist Fang Xu recorded in his "Worm Vera 3 • Sea Shrimp Bugs": "The Kun Yu Wai Ji: 'There are sea shrimp ants in the sea, the same color as the stone, and when hungry, they enter the stone cave and spit a red line in the nose, such as small earthworms, to bait small fish. All the little fish were devoured. ’”

As for the real name of the squid, it may be due to one of its special functions. The squid is an benthic fish that often lurks on the bottom of the sea, lazily and easily does not move, and can fill its stomach by its unique and superb fishing skills. The trout is a master fisherman, with both the rod and the bait, which evolved from the first spine of the dorsal fin and stands above the large mouth. The bait is a fleshy ball or membrane above the fishing rod, which is called "bait" in biology. The fin spines of some squids inhabit the dark deep sea can also glow, like a small lantern on a fishing rod, shining brightly and darkly. Under the temptation of the bait, the fish and shrimp have been caught and eaten, which is exactly the trap of the sturgeon. The mouth of the sturgeon has two rows of fangs that fall inward, and the small fish and shrimp can not escape the fate once they are introduced. The author bought a two-pound squid a few days ago, and when cleaning it, he found that there was a crab the size of a teacup lid in its stomach, and its delicious appearance could be seen.

In this way of trapping rabbits, the trout seems to be comfortable and happy, so it is called "ankang". It is also believed that early fishermen disdained catching it because of its ugly image, so they were able to live peacefully in the sea, so it was named Ankang. There is also a saying that originated in Japan, the owner of the fish shop peeled off the tender white flesh of the squid and gave it to the monks, but it was not easy to say, in order to please the praise and called it an well-being. Over time, his "well-being" evolved into this "trout".

There is a saying that "heroes do not ask where they come from", and in the same way, "delicious is not ugly". The trout is ugly, but delicious, and is a cheap popular delicacy.

In Europe and North America, the sturgeon is known as the "oyster of the poor". During the Edo period in Japan, sturgeon was a high-class tribute. From the perspective of nutrition, the meat of the trout is low in fat, low in calories, rich in nutrients, and the collagen contained in it is a good product for modern women's beauty and beauty.

In Jiaodong, the ugly and inexpensive sturgeon is also a popular delicacy. The most classic method is to stew tofu with sturgeon. Hot pot or casserole is the best kitchen utensils for stewing sturgeon. Buy back the rough processed sturgeon from the market, go home and cut it into sections, chop it, blanch it in boiling water, and set aside. The remaining procedure is basically the same as that of other fish stews. The slimy skin of the squid is rich in gum, which is known as "sea cucumber". Fish bones and fish meat are rich in protein, and the soup is milky white when stewed, which makes people feel appetizing when they look at it. Winter is the best time to eat sturgeon, as it is the fattest time. There is a cold wind blowing outside the window, snowflakes fluttering, the casserole is grunting and steaming, the coriander and green onions are ready to use, I like sour vinegar, I like spicy pepper. Drink a mouthful of steaming, fresh and fragrant sturgeon soup, chew a mouthful of white and tender sturgeon meat, that is comfortable, not immersive, difficult to understand. There is not much meat in the sturgeon, and there are two pieces of cylindrical meat juxtaposed at the junction of the head and the spine, one by one, especially flavorful, known as "dan cinnamon meat". Some people also dried it, known as "Saiganbei". Braised or braised sturgeon with sauce is also a favorite home-cooked dish of Jiaodong people. In short, the stew has the refreshing stew, the roast is rich, the stew has the taste of stew, each has its own strengths, all are delicious.

Either way, don't overlook the liver of the sturgeon. The liver of the trout is delicate and refreshing, delicious and nutritious, and is known as "foie gras in the sea". Whether it's simmered with fish or steamed and dipped in spices, the liver of the trout is a rare delicacy, and of course, the ingredients must be fresh.

Editor-in-charge: Xuan Zhao