The Chinese New Year is approaching, everyone is preparing a variety of delicious dishes for the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner, and the ribbon fish, as a nutritious seafood, is loved by the public because of its delicious meat and few bones. However, when we go into the supermarket or market to buy hairtail, we will face a tricky question - some of the hairtail in the market are wide and some are narrow, which one should we buy?
In fact, there are huge differences in taste between wide striped fish and narrow striped fish, and if you don't understand these differences, it is recommended to understand the following 4 major differences before buying, so as not to be deceived again.
First, the place of origin is different
First of all, there is a clear difference between the origin of the wide striped fish and the narrow striped fish. Narrow-striped ribbonfish are mainly found in the northern seas, while broad-striped ribbonfish are generally produced in the southern seas. This is directly related to the growing environment and temperature conditions of the fish, which affects the taste and flavor of the hairtail.
Second, the appearance characteristics are different
Secondly, there are also obvious differences in the appearance characteristics of wide striped fish and narrow striped fish. Narrow-banded fish typically have black eyes, a smaller mouth, and no raised flippers on the back.
Comparatively, the eyes of the broad-banded fish are yellow, the mouth and jaw are larger, and the back of the fish has a pronounced raised flipper. These characteristics directly reflect the differences in the growth environment and species of the two.
Third, the taste and meat quality are different
Taste and meat quality are the most important considerations when choosing hairtail. Although the meat quality of the narrow-striped fish does not seem to be much on the surface, its growth cycle is relatively long due to its growth environment in the northern sea and low temperature. This makes the meat of the narrow strip fish more tender and the taste more delicious.
In contrast, the wide striped fish grows in the southern seas, due to the higher temperature, the activity of the fish increases, and the food is more mixed, resulting in the overall meat quality is relatively rough and loose, so the taste of the wide striped fish is not as satisfactory as the narrow striped fish.
Fourth, the cooking method is different
Finally, the different tastes and meat qualities determine the different cooking methods for wide and narrow ribbon fish. Because of its delicate and delicious characteristics, narrow striped fish is suitable for simple cooking methods such as steaming and braised to highlight its delicious taste.
Broadribbon fish, on the other hand, requires more complex cooking techniques, such as marinating heavy ingredients and adding eggs to lock in water before frying or frying to fully remove the fishy smell and make it more delicious.
To sum up, when buying hairtail during the Chinese New Year, choosing a wide strip or a narrow strip is not only related to the difference in taste, but also reflected in many aspects such as origin, shape, texture and meat quality, and cooking methods.
So is it better to buy narrow strip fish or wide strip fish?
Therefore, it is very necessary to understand these differences when choosing hairtail, and if you are more interested in the taste of meat, choosing narrow ribbon fish is obviously more in line with your needs.
Of course, if you are more interested in eating meat and eating meat, and do not particularly care about the tenderness of the meat or some fishy smell, then you can choose the wide striped fish.
There is a knack for choosing a hairtail and judging whether it is fresh or not!
In addition, after everyone understands whether it is better to buy narrow strips or wide strips, you should understand how to judge whether the hairtail is fresh, after all, no matter where the hairtail comes from, if the freshness is not enough, and the meat stinks when you buy it, then how to cook it is not delicious.
Here are 4 ways to quickly screen the quality of hairtail:
(1) Don't buy the hairtail fish with shiny eyes and dull color;
(2) Do not buy hairtail fish with more silver on the surface or discoloration of the hairtail;
(3) Do not buy hairtail fish with too thick surface ice (most likely to avoid buyers from observing the good or bad);
(4) Don't buy it if you smell it closely.
Finally, I hope that everyone can buy a satisfying tassel at the moment of reunion and bring a delicious Chinese New Year's Eve meal to the family. Don't let the difference in taste become a regret for the New Year because of careless purchases.
(This article was originally published by "Lin Daguanren", and it is strictly forbidden to carry plagiarism without authorization, and offenders will be investigated)