It is getting cold out there. To keep warm, soups and stews are getting popular! Recall from last week, I introduced you to a Chinese Dish - Loofha, fish maw, and shrimp stew, and I talked about the nutrition benefit of Loofha. This week, I will dig into the next ingredient - fish maw.
"What! Fish maw??? What on earth is fish maw? Is fish maw edible? What does it taste like? How do you cook it? Where can you even get it?......" You may be having a lot of questions about fish maw. And, I am excited about you having questions. Let me answer all of your questions through this blog post.
What is fish maw?
Fish maw is an internal organ of fish, which contributes to the ability of a fish to balance forces internally and externally. In other words, fish maw helps fish reserve energy while staying at the current water depth. Fish maw is a gas filled organ. It changes size as fish swims at different water levels[1]. How interesting! Here is a picture of fish maw:
Figure 1
Fish maw used in cooking is usually the dried form of the fish air bladder. There are four kinds of fish maw, which are divided based on quality. They are king fish maw, premium fish maw, grass seabass fish maw, and fried fish maw. King and premium fish maw have higher quality and are more expensive, which are usually used in fine dining. Grass seabass fish maw and fried fish maw are more often seen in the market due to the economical price. There are also texture differences between male and female fish maw. Male fish maw is thicker, while female fish maw is thinner and more tender[2].
What's the nutritional value of fish maw?
Fish maw is rich in protein, phosphorus, and calcium. Due to its high nutritional value, it considered a therapeutic food in China. Fish maw also contains glycosaminoglycan, which is a unbranched polysaccride consisting of a repeating disaccharide unit. Glycosaminoglycan is a very polar molecule, and therefore attracts water[3]. It is used in the fish's body as a lubricant, and in humans it helps the skin stay hydrated. Therefore, fish maw stew is very popular among women to maintain better skin health. Fish maw does not contain cholesterol. It can be consumed for long term health.
How to cook fish maw?
Different types of fish maw requires different preparation method. Generally speaking, there are 3 steps involved in preparing fish maw for cooking.
Step 1: Re-hydrate dried fish maw by soaking it in water until it softens, and change water in between to eliminate fishy smell.
Step 2: Deodorize fish maw by boiling fish maw with ginger and shallot in a pot of water.
Step 3: After boiling, rinse fish maw under running water. Now it is ready to cook!
You can cut fish maw in sections and put them in your stew. Here is a Fish Maw Soup Recipe from Food Network. Enjoy your exotic, nutritional, and warm soup in this freezing season! It will help replenish your body and help your skin stay hydrated.
Where to get fish maw?
You can purchase fish maw at Asian markets, and you can also order them online through international companies. Since they are in dried form, they can be stored for a long time.
Here is a picture of dried fish maw:
Figure 2
I hope you enjoyed A bite of China with me so far! There are more dishes coming, but we are going to take a break and switch gears a little bit. The holidays are approaching. I know you may worry more about what to cook for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I will be writing holiday eating tips next week.
Have a great week!
References:
1. Maw Bladder. Academies Dictionaries of Encyclopedias Web Site. http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/en_ichthyology/10796/maw. Accessed November 15, 2014.
2. About Fish Maw. Emperor Brand Bird's Nest Web Site. http://www.emperorbrandbirdnest.com/our-news/product-knowledge/about-fish-maw.html. Accessed November 16, 2014.
3. Esko, J.D., Kimata, K., Lindahl, U., Proteoglycans and Sulfated Glycosaminoglycans. In: Essentials of Glycobioigy. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; 2009:
Figure 1:
Swim Bladder. Wikipedia Web Site. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swim_bladder#cite_note-Orr-. Accessed November 15, 2014.
Figure 2:
Dried Fish Maw. Food and Beverage Online Web Site. http://www.21food.com/products/dried-fish-maw-(grouper)-101176.html. Accessed November 16, 2014.
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