Stewed Fish in Saihai

Stewed Fish in Saihai

　　In the Meijiang area, there is a custom of stewing fish.

　　The people of Meijiang regard stewed fish as an auspicious and propitious dish. During the Spring Festival or when special guests visit, a fragrant and oily Saihai stewed fish is always served. There are particular customs surrounding its consumption on New Year’s Eve and the first day of the New Year. No matter who you are, you may only use chopsticks to pick fish meat from the belly of the fish; the fish head, tail, and the entire spine must not be touched. This symbolizes having a good beginning and end to the year, and having leftover fish (surplus) every New Year. As for other days besides New Year’s Eve and the first day, these particular customs do not apply.

　　The tradition of Saihai stewed fish has been passed down in the Meijiang area for over 800 years. Before the Saihai estuary was blasted open in 1964, the entire area from Huangluo Bay to the Saihai estuary was a vast expanse of lake. Whenever fishermen went out onto the lake to catch fish, they usually brought rice but no vegetables. By noon, they would wrap the fish in tong leaves and stew them in the ashes of firewood. Over time, this became a customary practice.

　　Saihai fish have been tribute offerings since the Ming Dynasty. The reason is that the fish from Saihai are quite unique: small fish have no bones, while larger fish have large scales, small heads, thick and tender meat. When stewed, they are richly aromatic, tender, sweet, and leave a lingering fragrance in the mouth after eating.

　　The method for making Saihai stewed fish is very simple. First, rinse the fresh fish and remove only the internal organs. Without adding salt, oil, or any seasonings, wrap the fish directly in tong leaves, then cover the leaf-wrapped fish with yellow mud (not exposed to sunlight) to form a mud casing. Place it in hot firewood ashes to stew for about 40 minutes. After peeling off the mud, it is ready to eat. Nowadays, when making Saihai stewed fish, a bit of snow salt is rubbed on the fish, along with seasonings such as ginger and chili, before following the above method for stewing.