Conger eel

Conger eel

　　　Product Name: Conger Eel

　　Place of Origin: Wenzhou

　　Product Characteristics: Tender flesh, high fat content

　　Product Description:　Conger eel is one of the best seafood tonics in the hot summer months, and its teeth resemble those of a dog.

　　The taste of conger eel begins to deteriorate around the end of August. Conger eel contains different levels of high protein, low fat, vitamin A, calcium, and silver compared to eel or fugu, making it a nutritious tonic that doesn’t raise concerns about high cholesterol.

　　The back of the conger eel is grayish-white, the belly is silvery-white, and the dorsal fin is light black. Its body is elongated and slightly flattened, with a long, protruding triangular mouth, a large mouth opening, and an upper jaw that extends further than the lower jaw. There are about 2–3 rows of teeth in the jaws, with hard and large canine teeth at the front. The dorsal fin is positioned in front of the pectoral fin. There are 146–154 lateral line pores in total, including 40–47 located in front of the anus. It lacks ventral fins and scales.

　　In China, there are 2 genera and 5 species: the conger eel and the Yamaguchi conger eel of the Conger genus have no transverse teeth on the lower jaw, with the conger eel having 140–153 lateral line pores and distributed across all Chinese sea areas; the Yamaguchi conger eel has 128–134 lateral line pores and is only found in the South China Sea and East China Sea. The crane conger and the proto-crane conger have outward-facing transverse teeth on the lower jaw. The crane conger’s head length is about 4.1 times the length of the pectoral fin and is only found in the South China Sea; the proto-crane conger’s head length is about 3.2 times the pectoral fin length and is found in both the South China Sea and East China Sea. The slender-jawed conger of the slender-jawed conger genus has a laterally flattened body, a tail shorter than the combined length of the head and trunk, small vomerine teeth, and anterior nostrils that are not tubular. It is found in the South China Sea and East China Sea. Among the conger eel family, the conger eel and Yamaguchi conger eel are the most numerous and highest-yielding, making them important edible economic fish. They have tender flesh and high fat content; their swim bladders can be made into fish maw, a delicacy. In addition to being sold fresh, they can also be processed into various canned products or dried into salted eel, which are popular food items in both domestic and international markets.

　　Product History: Conger eels generally overwinter along the southern coast of Japan, migrate northward in spring to the coasts of China and the western coast of Korea, and move south again in autumn.