There are always people who say that freshwater fish have more spines and marine fish have fewer spines, which is partially true, but not comprehensive. Fish with more intermuscular spines are mainly two main groups: Cyprinids and Herring. The former are fundamentalist freshwater fish, with only a few species entering the seawater in winter to feed, while the latter are mostly marine fish, a small number of freshwater fish, or migrate to freshwater.
There are many herring thorns, but there are only more than 300 species, which cannot reverse people's "prejudice". Although the mending is not prosperous, but the name is not low, the famous "Yangtze River four fresh", herring order occupies the second: "Yangtze River knife" and anchovy. Both are migratory fish that live in the sea most of the time, and are the most fertile when migrating to the Yangtze River, so they are often regarded as "river fresh" rather than seafood.
Fig. 1: Knife sturgeon
"Yangtze River knife" is the knife fish / Coilia ectenes, also known as the long-jawed squid, commonly known as the woolly flower fish, wild hair fish, etc., herring family Anchovy genus. The body shape is narrow and thin, quite like a sharp knife, although there are many burr-like bone spurs, but the meat is delicious, fat but not greasy, and slightly fragrant, which has always been sought after by diners. Unfortunately, due to the intensification of pollution in the Yangtze River and indiscriminate fishing, the output has declined year by year. From February 1, 2019, China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs stopped issuing special fishing licenses for knife and fish, prohibiting productive fishing, hoping that "the dead sheep will make up for it, and it is not too late".
Figure 2: Anchovies
Anchovies/Tenualosa reevesii, genus Herringidae. This fish is fatty under the scales, should be steamed with scales, the meat is tender and delicious, more prestigious than the "Yangtze River knife", and has been a famous delicious delicacy since the Han Dynasty. Zhang Ailing's famous three major hatreds, "anchovy with many thorns", also explains its deliciousness from the side. However, since ancient times, the red face has been thin, and the wild anchovy resources have been exhausted, and it is rare to see again. There are currently very few captive-cultured or Burmese sea-caught anchovies on the market, but most of them are fakes---- American herring/Alosa sapidissima.
For The country, anchovies and Yangtze River knives are the "first brother" and "second brother" of the herring order, for most people, they are just legends, generally can not be touched, can meet our appetite or those mass fish. For the people of Qingdao, herring fish, although less important, also has a place on the table, the following introduction is more common, of course, the first place is the Pacific herring.
Figure 3: Pacific herring
Pacific herring/Clupea pallasii, herring family Herringidae, orthodontic roots of herring order. The endemic population of the Pacific herring in the Yellow Sea is "Yellow Sea Herring", which is called "BlueFish" in Qingdao, note that this is not the "BlueFish" of the Four Great Fishes, it is a freshwater fish of the Carp family. Qingdao's waters were once rich in "blue fish", and it is said that in the 70s of the last century, catching up with Wangfa, there were piles of "blue fish" on the market. But now the "yellow sea herring" is almost extinct, replaced by imported Pacific herring to meet people's pursuit of ancient taste, but the general freshness is not high, the price is low.
Figure 4: The ovaries of the Pacific herring
Pacific herring has a high body fat content, fragrant taste, fish and fish eggs are also delicious, although the spines are more but soft and regular, much stronger than the small thorns of the carp family. It is advisable to use watercress sauce onion ginger garlic to fry the pot, put water to boil, fish, add cooking wine and vinegar, stew until the soup is collected, it is a cheap and delicious dish, it can also be pickled and baked in the oven. The Japanese love the Pacific herring is ingenious, they like to eat the eggs or ovaries of the Pacific herring, called it shu の子 (かずのこ), which is an important part of miyako cuisine (おせち cuisine).
Figure 5: "White Scaled Fish" at the Morning Market
Ilisha elongata, commonly known as "white scaled fish" or "white force fish", is a genus of catfish in the family Herringidae. This fish tastes delicious, mr. Liang Shiqiu once bought this fish when he was in Qingdao, and mistakenly thought it was anchovy, and after tasting it, he evaluated that "its taste is beautiful and beautiful, it has never been there.". It is said that in the early years, it was also quite popular, but after all, there are many thorns, and now it seems that it is not very "recognized" of this fish. There are often sales in the market, but the price is not high, and there is little attention. If the freshness is good enough, you may wish to buy it to try it, and the fish that Liang Shiqiu has greatly appreciated should be delicious.
Fig. 6: Spotted dumplings
Figure 7: Spotted brim
Spotted bristles/Konosirus punctatus, genus of herring, common species in the sea of foreshore fishing, named after a large black-green spot behind the gill cap. The common name in the north is "bubble seed", "ancient eye", or grilled or fried, thorn more oil, almost the cheapest marine fish. Better at appreciating the beauty of the spotted dumplings is still Japanese. Produced around 5 centimeters in the waters of excellent water, the juvenile spotted dumplings are called "シンコ (新子)", and sashimi is a high-end dish, so if you encounter freshly caught freshly caught fresh spotted dumplings, try sashimi.
Figure 8: Yellow crucian carp
Yellow crucian carp / Setipinna taty, a genus of crucian carp in the family Crucianaceae, mass production of yellow and Bohai Sea, with different common names in different places, such as oil buckle, grilled fish, yellow tip and so on. The head of this fish is pale yellow, the dorsal, pectoral and caudal fins are yellow, and the fin is light yellow, hence the name yellow crucian carp. The spines are thin, but the taste is good, generally crispy fried, some people are good at this bite. Due to its difficulty in preservation and low price, this fish is generally only found in the market in coastal areas, and it is rare for such a complete product as in Figure VIII
Figure 9: Japanese anchovies
Anchovy (Japanese anchovy) / Engraulis japonicus, a name that is estimated to sound unfamiliar to many people. In fact, the production of anchovies in China's coastal waters was once very high, but its meat is easy to rot, and the value of direct "food" is not high. However, the salty dried product "moray" of young anchovies is deeply loved by many people. Anchovies are commonly known as "mackerel food" and "rotten from water", and are the main food of a variety of economic fish.
Figure 10: Small sardines with green scales
Figure XI
Sardinella zunasi, also known as Shounan small sardine, is a genus of small sardines in the family Herringidae, and is one of the authentic "sardines". This fish is too small, generally not fresh, in the market usually appears as a small dried fish, as shown in Figure 11.
The above are the common herring fish in Qingdao. I seem to have only eaten "Pacific herring", and I often had this fish in the town government canteen in those years, I liked it, especially the fish offal can be eaten in unlimited quantities, which is also a bright color in the hard life.