 | |
| Alternative names | simplified Chinese:鲍参翅肚;traditional Chinese:鮑參翅肚;pinyin:bàoshēnchìdǔ |
|---|---|
| Type | Seafood (oftendried),luxury good |
| Place of origin | China |
| Associatedcuisine | Chinese cuisine |
| Main ingredients | |
Thefour sea delicacies orfour sea treasures (simplified Chinese:鲍参翅肚;traditional Chinese:鮑參翅肚;pinyin:bàoshēnchìdǔ) are the four highly prizedseafoods ofChinese cuisine:abalone,sea cucumber,shark's fin, andfish maw. Asluxury goods, these foods conferprestige inChinese culture, and command high prices; demand for exotic species has driven globalwildlife trade, including ecologically damaging practices likeshark finning andoverfishing.
Abalone became a court food in the mid-18th century, marked by records of an all-abalone feast. The grouping coalesced as a part of the lavishManchu–Han Imperial Feast tradition.[1][2]
The four sea delicacies have become more accessible to a risingChinese middle class since thereform and opening-up of the late 20th century, featuring heavily in modern Chinese banquet culture, such astraditional Chinese wedding banquets and onChinese New Year.[2][3][4][5]
Asenvironmentalist opposition toshark's fin andshark finning increased in the 21st century, the other three sea delicacies have seen growing popularity, being perceived as less-controversial substitutes.[6]
The four sea delicacies are all often sold dried. They are all defined by uniquemouthfeel, with little flavor to the delicacies themselves.[7]Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, a premium Chinese banquet soup, features the four sea delicacies stewed together.[8]
Abalone is the meat of the abalonesea snail. While most abalone comes fromaquaculture, demand exists for premium wild-caught abalone;poaching ofSouth African abalone has been impacting populations.[2][9]
Sea cucumbers are valued as anaphrodisiac due to their phallic shape, as well as reputed to have other beneficial properties undertraditional Chinese medicine. Sea cucumber is largely farmed inaquaculture, but demand for the endangeredThelenota ananas persists for its perceived superior quality.[10]
Shark's fin is thedorsal fin ofsharks.Shark finning is the practice of removing the shark's fin from the shark while it is still alive and throwing the shark back to sea, where it dies. Shark finning peaked in the mid-2010s, until numerous governments restricted shark finning practices followingenvironmental activist backlash. Thegovernment of China has omitted shark's fin from state banquets since 2014.[11]
Fish maw is the preparedswim bladder ofteleost fish. While fish maw is eaten from a wide variety of fish, and may make use of otherwise discardedby-product, demand for premium fish maw from largeSciaenidae has driven exploitation of wild populations in thewildlife trade, particularly of thetotoaba in Mexico.[12]
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