Fish and Seafood

Fish cookery is one of the great glories of China’s cuisine, and a whole fish is traditionally the penultimate course in a formal banquet. Nothing can perk up the flagging palate of an overfed gourmet as well as the sight of a beautiful fish in a fragrant sauce. Chinese cooks understand fish; they know that above all it must be fresh, and you can still find tubs of live carp in some of the more traditional markets of Chinatown. Many fish recipes, like the one for the famous Shanghai delicacy, West Lake Sour Fish, specify that the main ingredient remain alive until the final moment. There are even some dishes that feature the living animals. “Jumping” shrimp, as a matter of fact, were a specialty of several of our favorite Shanghai restaurants in Taipei. Though we had no qualms about eating raw fish in Japan, neither John nor I ever developed the courage to eat live, wriggling shrimps.