Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs

Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs

Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs are a protected geographical indication product.

Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs are a certified geographical indication trademark.

　　Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs are a specialty of Gaoyou City, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province. The Gaoyou Lake wetland boasts abundant biological resources, the most outstanding of which are the Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs—completely natural and hailed as a marvel under heaven. When visiting Gaoyou, one must admire the lake scenery, and to truly appreciate the lake, one must try the hairy crabs.

　　Gaoyou Lake has a water area of 760 square kilometers, bordering the Huai River to the north and the Yangtze River to the south. It is a shallow freshwater lake and ranks as the third largest lake in Jiangsu Province. With its vast waters, excellent water quality, and uniquely favorable ecological environment, the lake teems with aquatic life, especially its renowned crabs, which became one of the royal tributes as early as the Northern Song Dynasty. The Song Dynasty poet Su Shi held Gaoyou Lake crabs in particularly high esteem. In his poem “Sending Local Specialties from Yangzhou to Shaoyou,” the so-called “local specialties” refer to these crabs. Su Shi visited Gaoyou to see Qin Guan, and together they admired the lake view and tasted the crabs at the Wenyou Terrace. A Song Dynasty poet, Zeng Ji, wrote a verse praising the scene: “I recall how the immortal Su once roamed this land, where all the people were full of grace; fragrant water shield and purple crabs graced our cups, while colorful brush and silver hook inspired poetic flow.” Since the Song Dynasty, Gaoyou Lake crabs have been a delicacy enjoyed by the people of Yangzhou. According to local cookbooks, there are over ten crab-based dishes, including steamed crabs, stir-fried crab meat threads, snowflake crab shells, crab roe tofu, crab roe fish fin, crab meat lion’s head meatballs, and crab roe soup dumplings.

　　The production area of Gaoyou Lake Hairy Crabs covers the Gaoyou Lake water area and its basin within Gaoyou City, Jiangsu Province.