In the early 1980s, food stores in Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu and other places sold a strange kind of dried fish, all of which had no head and only retained the trunk position. This dried fish is actually imported from North Korea, when it first entered the Chinese market, not many people knew about it, and the whole market was not very prosperous. Later, with the word of mouth of consumers, Mingtaiyu gradually accumulated a large number of loyal fans, and the market became more and more popular, even to the extent that it exceeded demand.
The scientific name of the Mingtai fish is yellow line narrow cod, which is also known as big head fish and large mouth fish in the northern region of China. In the large family of cod, the size of the cod is not very large, the general product specifications are only about 25 to 40 centimeters, the weight is about 250 to 500 grams, and the largest can grow to 4 kilograms. The cod also has a very prominent feature - the head is long and long, which is also the origin of the name "bighead fish".
Yellow-lined cod/squid
In the southern region, "bighead fish" generally refers to bighead carp, and the proportion of fish heads is also very large. Studies have shown that among the four major fish, the meat yield of bighead carp is the lowest, only 32.8%, and the remaining 45 to 67% are scraps such as fish heads and fish bones. However, the value of bighead carp is almost always reflected in the head of the fish, and the larger the head, the higher the market price.
Giant bighead carp king
In order to obtain greater benefits, domestic breeding experts have also cultivated "bone-shrinking bighead fish" through electric shock, acupuncture, low temperature induction and other means, which is most suitable for making chopped pepper fish heads. Different from ordinary bighead fish, the head of the shrunken big head fish is significantly larger, and the weight accounts for about 40% of the body weight, which fully meets the needs of the consumer market. But this kind of "deformed fish" with a large head and a small body has also caused many people to worry: can such a "mutant" big head fish eat it?
Fingerlings of the bighead fish fry
In fact, the bone-shrinking bighead fish and the common bighead fish are the same species, and there is no difference in genes and germplasm between the two. The trait of "bone shrinkage" is formed by physical means and will not be passed on to the next generation, so it can be eaten with confidence.
Although the fish head of the narrow cod is also very large, the economic value is not high, and the most valuable part is still the fish meat belonging to the trunk position. The nutritional value of cod is very high, every 100 grams of fish contains 16.3 grams of high-quality protein (higher than the protein content of yellow croaker and anchovies), and the fat content is only 0.4 grams, which is a typical high-protein, low-fat food. In addition, the meat of the narrow cod is firm, no intermuscular spines, the taste is also very delicious, and the flavor after cooking is no less than that of beef and fish, which is a superior health ingredient.
Narrow cod
However, for a long time, there is a problem that has plagued domestic consumers: all the cod sold in the market is removed from the head and internal organs, why should fishermen spend effort to remove the head of the fish? Wouldn't it be more convenient to sell the whole article?
In fact, the removal of cod heads and offal is mainly for economic gain. On modern distant-water fishing vessels, fishing and processing equipment are very advanced, and the cod caught can enter the production line at the first time, remove the head and internal organs, and then be stored in the cold storage to preserve freshness.
First of all, the head of cod is easy to decay, if not removed in time may affect the quality of the whole fish, so the earlier the head is removed during processing, the easier it is for the cod to keep fresh.
Go head to the Norwegian Atlantic cod
Secondly, the head is removed, and the refrigeration space saved can accommodate more cod flesh, thereby maximizing economic benefits. It should be noted that the remaining fish heads and offal, although not of high economic value, are not useless. The scraps of cod can not only be processed into special feed for livestock and poultry, but also extract fish bone collagen and developed into high-grade snack food.
Nutritional studies have shown that the internal organs of cod are rich in vitamin A and vitamin D, which can be used to make cod liver oil, which has a significant inhibitory effect on tuberculosis bacilli; the eyeballs of cod are rich in vitamin B1, which can be used to treat beriberi; fish brain is used to make "brain gold" fine raw materials. If you can make full use of these scraps, the economic benefits of cod will inevitably go up to a higher level.
In China's Yellow Sea, Bohai Sea and the northern part of the East China Sea, there are also a certain number of cod. According to statistics, China's annual processing of cod is as high as 400,000 to 500,000 tons, the vast majority of which are processed into fish steaks, fillets, diced fish or minced meat. If the scraps are calculated according to the proportion of 30%, then there are 120,000 to 150,000 tons of raw materials available for use every year, even if they are sold directly to feed mills, each ton can also make a profit of several hundred yuan.
World harvest production of cod
Looking at the world, the added value of cod fish heads and fish bones is even higher. Or take the narrow cod as an example. As early as the 1980s, the pollock was already one of the most productive fish in the world, with a global catch of 6.2 million tonnes a year, second only to peruvian anchovies. In the 1990s, due to resource decline and overfishing, the production of cod fell all the way and has remained at a level of around 3 million tonnes in recent years. If you count the Pacific cod and Atlantic cod, then the annual production of fish heads and fish bones is even more amazing.
For consumers, the head of the cod is also more convenient to eat, directly sliced cooking, used for frying, fragrant frying taste is better. In China, many people may not deliberately buy imported "cod" to cook, but in fact, cod has unconsciously infiltrated people's daily lives - the fish nuggets used by fast food chains such as Burger King and McDonald's are Alaskan cod, and the fish steak burgers are popular with domestic consumers.
Cod fillets
In short, "cod without a head" is a very common phenomenon, the water content of the head is as high as 70%, the crude fat content is 13%, and the nutritional value is indeed lackluster and not suitable for consumption. To some extent, the "headless cod" is also the result of market choice, and its emergence is the same as the "shrunken bone bighead fish", which plays a decisive role in thousands of consumers who vote with "stomach".
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