Chapter 22 Admiring chrysanthemums, why do you need to hold claws

The chrysanthemums blooming in the east fence are already tender and cool, and the crabs are fat when the millet is ripe, and it is the season to appreciate the chrysanthemums again. When eating crabs in Pingjin, there are seven tips and eight balls. In Jiangsu and Zhejiang, crabs are eaten in September and October.When I first came to Taiwan, I was not familiar with the place of life. I only ate red sturgeon in Penglai Pavilion and some restaurants in Xinzhonghua.Later, it was discovered that there are also Qingshui crabs in Taiwan. Some people say that there is a blood-sucking worm in the crab. If it enters the internal organs, people will die of anemia and wither.My old friend Du Yingzhen was addicted to hairy crabs. After coming to Taiwan, he used Taiwan clear water crabs from time to time to satisfy his cravings. Eventually, blood-sucking worms entered his lungs, and his lungs rotted and blood dried up.

In 1973, I traveled to Hong Kong and Thailand. At the welcome banquet of a big hotel at Patiya Beach, a summer resort in Bangkok, there was a dish called "New Bery Braised Shrimp".New Buck is a port on the Atlantic coast, famous for its lobster.This dish was originally based on lobsters, but the prawns of that day, after the mouth, the prawn meat is fine and moist, far better than lobsters, fresh and delicious, almost comparable to the purple-backed golden crabs in Yangcheng Lake.After asking someone for advice, I realized that it was made of long-legged shrimps native to Thailand.

Kuang Jun, a fish export group from Thailand who participated in the party, said: "The long-legged shrimp is the largest freshwater shrimp in the world. The streams and rivers of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and other places in Southeast Asia all produce long-legged shrimp. The long-legged shrimp produced in Thailand is the fattest and tender. It is an omnivorous shrimp. In addition to aquatic insects, earthworms, pupae, young leeches, and young leaves and stems of plants in the water, it is also eaten by humans. Any kind of food can be used as its feed. However, the most suitable water temperature for long-legged shrimp is 24 to 34 degrees Celsius. When the water temperature is lower than 15 degrees, it will lose its soul and appear in a state of suspended animation. If you don’t raise it quickly It cannot adapt to the water temperature and survive. Because Thailand is hot all year round and the sun is scorching, the water temperature of the river is often higher and more stable than that of Indonesia and Malaysia. Therefore, the long-legged shrimp in Thailand is second to none in Southeast Asia in terms of umami taste and transparency. Countries that plan to breed long-legged shrimp are willing to come to Thailand to introduce shrimp seedlings. At present, Dr. Lin Shaowen of the Taiwan Agricultural Rehabilitation Association (now the Agricultural Development Association) is studying in Bangkok how to solve the technical problems of breeding and raising Taiwan's imported long-legged shrimp. If the breeding is successful, there will be plump and fresh long-legged shrimps to eat in Taiwan.” After listening to Kuang Jun’s talk about long-legged shrimps, I lived in Thailand for a summer vacation. During my stay in Thailand, whenever I had seafood occasions, I always Feast on long-legged shrimp.

Back in Taiwan, I once talked with several gentlemen Lin Shuipo from the Pingtung Donggang Fisherman's Association about the problem of long legs.They think: "There is a kind of mountain shrimp in the river in the south of this province. No matter it is fried or cooked, it has a good flavor. It is like a tiger with long legs. Only those who are really good at drinking can taste a little The difference is that the meat of Guoshan shrimp is thicker and looser, and this kind of shrimp is also very popular among Japanese tourists. Because of the limited production, most of the net harvests are bought by several tourist restaurants for foreign guests. .”

In mid-autumn last year, I had a meal at a friend's home in Ligang Township, Pingtung. One dish was a famous Thai dish "fried shrimp cake". It was also served with sweet, sour and spicy condiments. Learned from Thailand.The ingredients of this dish must be carefully selected. Grass shrimp, sand shrimp, and spotted shrimp cannot be used. Long-legged shrimp must be used to taste.After everyone tried it, the prawns were really delicious, the meat was thin and sweet, and the taste was exactly the same as the fried prawn cakes in Bangkok's Jumbo Restaurant.After explaining by the owner, I realized that the long-legged shrimps used were successfully bred from Thailand.

It is said that the long-legged prawns introduced by the Agricultural Rehabilitation Association were first handed over to the Donggang Branch and Tainan Branch of the Fisheries Research Institute for breeding and breeding. After careful observation and testing by the two institutes, they were strictly selected. After six months of breeding, they can be served on the plate. up.So in ten villages and towns including Ligang, Gaoshu, Chaozhou and Fangshan, five households were selected to breed.Unexpectedly, due to the vigorous promotion of farming by the people, the annual production of long-legged shrimp has increased from 30 tons to 800 tons this year.The market price of this rare and unique shrimp species is about 220 to 30 yuan per catty. Although there is no slow-moving phenomenon, the annual output will increase by 20 to 30 times. If the production and sales plan is not strictly formulated early , I am afraid that the fruits of hard work in the end will be wasted.

Yesterday someone brought me a basket of freshly caught long-legged prawns from the south. Each one is more than ten centimeters long, with a big head and long feet, and a strong body.The chrysanthemums in front of the court have already bloomed, thinking of the joy of Dongli admiring the chrysanthemums and holding the wine in the past, I feel melancholy and empty in my heart, and there is an indescribable feeling disturbing my heart.Suddenly I remembered that the meat of the long-legged shrimp is thin and sweet. If you eat it steamed and dipped in ginger, the taste may be similar to eating hairy crabs.So I washed it, tied it up, steamed it in a pot, dipped it in ginger rice vinegar and chewed it. Although there is no plump crab paste to eat, it is much more enjoyable than eating red sturgeon.The shrimp brains of the long-legged shrimp are bright red and soft, with a golden paste flavor, and the shrimp brain noodles are preserved, the light yellow is lined with purple, and the fat is thick and fragrant, which is much better than the shrimp brain noodles at Shanghai Dafa.Now that I can't eat hairy crabs, I can use long-legged shrimps instead, which is better than nothing.I heard that farming experts are studying the dishes in order to promote long-legged shrimp, and they are planning to hold another tasting meeting.I think that the steamed prawns with shrimps instead of crabs, and the braised noodles with shrimp brains are included in the dishes, and they will definitely be welcomed by the foodies!