Knowing one more kind of fish can save your life at a critical moment

Qin Hui's wife often went to the palace. Empress Dowager Xianren said that there were very few large black carps these days. The wife replied, "I have some at home. I will present a hundred of them." When she returned home and told Hui, Hui blamed her for her words and discussed with his guests to present a hundred black carps. Xianren clapped his hands and laughed, "I thought this woman was stupid, and it turned out to be true!" The black carp looked like black carp but was not, except that it was a little bigger.

Song Dynasty: Crane Forest Jade Dew

In the Song Dynasty, the coastal areas produced a kind of top-quality black carp. After Emperor Gaozong of Song fled south, this black carp was out of supply for a time. One day, Wang, the wife of Qin Hui, who was powerful at the time, came to the palace to chat with Empress Dowager Xianren. During the conversation, the Empress Dowager complained: "There is no big black carp in the palace. I am not happy!" Wang said cheerfully: "Oh, we have plenty of black carps. I will send you a hundred of them later."......

The black carp mentioned by the Queen Mother (Mugil cephalus) | wikiwand

When Wang returned home, she told Qin Hui about this. After Qin Hui heard this, he was immediately filled with a thousand beasts roaring through his heart. He was really drunk to marry a wife with such low emotional intelligence. Showing off wealth like this could lead to death. What should he do? Qin Hui bit the corner of the quilt and did not sleep all night thinking about countermeasures. The next day, Wang brought a hundred big black carps into the palace. Empress Dowager Xianren was amused when she saw them: Sure enough, she was a brainless village woman who had never seen the world. She actually talked about this kind of black carp.

The "black fish" (Mylopharyngodon piceus) used by Qin Hui to replace the original with the original | wikimedia

The black carp that the Queen Mother mentioned was actually mullet, also commonly known as mullet (Mugil cephalus). What Qin Hui asked Wang to pretend to be stupid and pay tribute to was black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus), because they did look somewhat similar, so she was able to get away with it. This is the story of "black carp for mullet".

Being a treacherous minister is also a technical job, okay? You have to pretend to be stupid to save your life at the critical moment. You have read too many species calendars (´-ω-`). Come and get to know these two kinds of fish with Calendar Girl.

I understand the reason, but why is the black carp so big?

Black carp is the only species in the genus Black carp of the family Cyprinidae in the order Cypriniformes. It is also commonly known as black carp, snail green carp, and black carp. It is native to China and has been introduced to all parts of the world. It is one of the four famous Chinese carps. Black carp seems to have no sense of existence. It has a strong cylindrical body, covered with large round scales, a round head with a slightly pointed protrusion, a dark blue back, a grayish white belly, and is dark overall when it grows up.

Black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus) | wikiwand

Black carp is one of the most common freshwater fish. It likes to live in the middle and lower layers of water. It is a carnivorous fish . The fry prey on zooplankton. When they grow up, they usually feed on benthic animals such as snails, clams, crustaceans, or aquatic insects. Black carp can grow to be very large, with a body length of up to 180 cm. The largest individual record exceeds 100 kg.

Big black carp, it's strange to see a foreign guy, can we take a clear photo when we catch a big fish next time | rekordfische.at

Black carp is famous for its love of eating snails, but if you look at the mouth of a black carp, you may find it very strange - it has no teeth, how can it eat snails? In fact, the teeth of black carp are not in the front of the mouth, but in the pharynx , and these teeth are not sharp canine teeth, but are similar to molars, which are specially used to crush snail shells and clam shells.

my country has a long history of breeding black carp, which was widely introduced to other countries due to its easy breeding and rapid growth. However, most foreign species are not good. Black carp now lives beyond specific fish farms in the United States and is found in the Mississippi River and its tributaries, the Ohio River and the Red River, becoming a major hazard to the American fishery.

A relatively sincere edible fish in the Cypriniformes

Fish of the order Cypriniformes are usually not very tasty because of the nasty fine intramuscular spines, and many of them have a strong earthy smell. The fish itself is not fresh enough, so it is suitable for strong flavors, such as braising, steaming or boiling. Of course, the taste of black carp is still the best among the Cypriniformes .

Boiled fish | pixabay

Black carp is too big to be eaten in one go. In the past, when preservation technology was not well developed, people used to make black carp into dried fish. In some areas, a whole long dried black carp has become an indispensable part of New Year's goods. Classic methods include fermented fish.

Shaoxing cuisine: Steamed dried herring in rice wine | Tuchong Creative

But I personally think that the method that can truly conquer black carp is the smoked fish in Jiangnan, also known as fried fish.

There is a description in Qing Bai Lei Chao: "To make fried fish, cut the black fish into pieces, clean it, soak it in good soy sauce and wine for half a day, and then roast it in boiling oil. It is crispy, fragrant and delicious, with the bones and meat mixed together, which is also very delicious." Smoked fish, which is first sauced, then fried and then soaked in brine, is fresh, sweet and crispy. It has long been a must-have food for the people of Jiangsu and Zhejiang during the New Year and an eternal childhood memory.

Smoked fish | Tuchong Creative

Suzhou style fried fish noodles, so delicious | Tuchong Creative

The "black fish" mentioned by the Queen Mother is the best fish

The black carp that the Queen Mother mentioned is actually mullet , also known as blackfish, a fish of the genus Mugilidae. The fish has a long round body and a slightly flat head. It is widely distributed along the coasts of warm and tropical waters around the world and likes to live at the mouths of rivers. During the breeding season, it will swim back to the open sea to lay eggs, and the young fish often swim upstream to fresh water to grow.

Mullet (Mugil cephalus) | Tuchong Creative

Mullet is a high-quality edible fish, suitable for steaming, braising, and stewing . As it is mostly produced in seawater, the fish meat is also suitable for eating raw. Legend has it that when Sun Quan and the sorcerer Jie Xiang discussed which fish tasted best when made into sashimi, Jie Xiang recommended mullet. China has a long history of eating mullet raw, so it is no wonder that Empress Dowager Xianren also loved mullet.

There is a record in Zhushi Shihua: "The most precious fresh food in Fujian is the so-called mullet roe. When you cut it open, the belly is full of roe. Winter is the best time to eat it. Yingxian Town in Putian is the place where it comes from." Mullet is also famous for its delicious roe. Mullet roe is a specialty of Taiwan, China.

Extracting roe (ovaries) from live mullet | wikiwand

Fishermen open the stomachs of female mullets caught during the breeding season to take out the eggs, rinse them clean, and then pickle them with salt to remove the fishy smell. After pressing and dehydrating them, they get the high-end classic ingredient "mullet roe".

Salted, squeezed and dehydrated mullet roe | Tuchong Creative

The orange-yellow mullet roe has a unique flavor, and the high content of wax esters in mullet roe is the main reason for its special chewiness. Mullet roe is suitable for eating on its own, or it can be sliced ​​and lightly grilled over charcoal and served with white radish slices; it can also be chopped and mixed into salads or made into mullet roe sauce.

Sliced ​​mullet roe | Tuchong Creative

Author: Fish of Salzburg

Cover image source: Tuchong Creative

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