CATDOLL : CATDOLL: Why are there so many shrimps and crabs in foreign countries, but not enough in China?

Why are there so many shrimps and crabs in foreign countries, but not enough in China?

In fact, it is not that foreigners do not eat all shrimps and crabs, but they do not like to eat crayfish and hairy crabs. These two things are very popular on the Chinese table. After all, when it comes to foodies, no country can compare to China. In summer, everyone likes to eat crayfish with beer, and in autumn, hairy crabs are a very famous specialty food in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. However, the reason why foreigners are very averse to these things is that they think crayfish look very scary, and that crayfish are an alien species. They also like to live in dirty water, so they have a kind of disgust for crayfish, and hairy crabs look even more scary than crayfish. Therefore, foreigners would rather eat sea crabs than freshwater hairy crabs.

Now that summer has arrived, I believe many people can't help but want to eat crayfish. After all, crayfish is a favorite midnight snack for people in most parts of my country, and it is also a seasonal delicacy. In autumn, hairy crabs become a very popular aquatic product in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Many people come to taste them, and they often come to Suzhou, Wuxi and other places to buy hairy crabs. However, in Western European and American countries, many foreigners are very averse to this kind of thing. Even if hairy crabs and crayfish are rampant in European and American countries, they are unwilling to eat them.

Because both hairy crabs and crayfish look very ugly, so foreigners think that such things have no nutritional value. Moreover, crayfish are alien species and live in relatively dirty places. They think crayfish are unhygienic, so they dare not eat crayfish or hairy crabs because they look very ugly. Moreover, Europeans and Americans are not very interested in freshwater fish and shrimps. Even if they do eat them, they generally choose crabs from marine mammals, such as king crabs and long-legged crabs, and rarely eat hairy crabs. So, the things we think are delicious may not be considered good by them.

After all, China is a country with thousands of years of history. Its food culture alone has a great influence. From ancient times to the present, there has never been a shortage of foodies and gourmets. Therefore, whether it is competing in eating methods, cooking methods, or the selection of food ingredients, European and American countries cannot be compared with us.

On one hand, foreigners think that crayfish and other foods are alien species, so they dare not eat them. On the other hand, the Chinese population is large and they know how to cook shrimps and crabs, so there is not enough food.

First of all, China has a very large population base, and each person needs to eat a lot. Also, foreigners don’t like shrimps and crabs very much, so they are overcrowded.

First of all, China has a large population, so the demand for food is naturally great. Secondly, the Chinese will try their best to cook these edible foods in different ways, and the taste of Tongzhou ribs is very good, so some early species are often eaten very scarcely.

Foreigners can't even finish eating king crabs, so who would eat this? For example, you wouldn't eat it if you were out.

Besides Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs, what other good crabs are there in China?

In addition to Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs, China's good crabs include:

1. Gucheng Lake hairy crab:

Gucheng Lake hairy crabs are produced in Gucheng Lake in Gaochun District, Nanjing. They are also known as "Gucheng Lake crabs" or "Gaochun crabs". They have always been known as the best crabs. In 2007, they were recognized as national geographical indication protected products by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. In 2009, they were recognized as China's well-known trademark by the State Administration for Industry and Commerce. It is also China's first well-known trademark in the aquatic products category.

2. Panjin river crab:

Panjin river crabs are a specialty of Panjin City, Liaoning Province, and a product of China's national geographical indication. The most representative river crabs in Panjin are pure "strolling crabs", which grow in wetlands and are completely wild. The wetlands are rich in natural baits, and river crabs eat small fish, shrimps, aquatic plants, microorganisms, etc. They become yellow and fat from September every year. The wetland river crabs are not only large and fat, but also full of game flavor, and have the unique saline-alkali land flavor of Panjin.

3. Yanting River Crab:

This crab is a famous aquatic product of Yanting, Cangnan County, Zhejiang Province. It is famous in domestic and foreign markets for its large size and delicious taste. Yanting, located in the eastern part of Cangnan County, is the intersection of cold and warm currents. It is rich in bait and is a unique breeding ground for river crabs. Therefore, river crabs are abundant. The river crabs here have a large yield and good quality. Generally, they weigh 250 grams to 300 grams, and the large ones weigh more than 500 grams. They are fat and full of meat.

4. Three-door blue crab:

Sanmen blue crab is a specialty of Sanmen County, Zhejiang Province, and a product of China's national geographical indication. Sanmen blue crab has a bright blue-green color, a thin shell and large claws. It looks plump overall, and has a rich and fragrant flavor and tender meat. In September 2006, the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine officially approved "Sanmen Blue Crab" as a product of origin protection.

5. Laizhou Crab:

This crab is a famous specialty of Ye County. Because Ye County was the seat of Laizhou Prefecture in ancient times, the name of Laizhou crab has been passed down to this day. There are three raised parts on the back of Laizhou crab, and each of the front side edges has 9 serrations. The last tooth is particularly long and shaped like a shuttle, so it is commonly known as "three-spotted swimming crab".

This crab is large and delicious, with tender meat. The largest female crab can weigh up to 0.75 kg. The eggs of the female crab, the fat of the male crab, the white and tender muscles in the claws, and the meat on the hind legs of the big crab are even more delicious and tasty, leaving you with an endless aftertaste.

Reference source: Baidu Encyclopedia - Gucheng Lake hairy crab

Reference source: Baidu Encyclopedia - Panjin River Crab

Reference source: Baidu Encyclopedia - Yanting River Crab

Reference source: Baidu Encyclopedia - Three-door Blue Crab

Reference source: Baidu Encyclopedia - Laizhou Crab

Gucheng Lake crabs, Qinhu Lake crabs and Panjin river crabs are all relatively famous crabs.

Gucheng Lake Crab

Gucheng Lake hairy crabs produced in Nanjing are also the tall, rich and handsome hairy crabs. It is China's first well-known trademark for aquatic products and the first Chinese national geographical indication product, but it is not Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs. In the early years of the Republic of China, Shi Jinmo, one of the four famous doctors in Beijing, was a well-known glutton who loved to eat crabs. He divided crabs produced in various places into six grades, namely lake crabs, river crabs, river crabs, stream crabs, ditch crabs and sea crabs. The first grade was lake crabs, and Gucheng Lake crabs were compared by him to "the first among crabs".

Gucheng Lake has a wide area, clear water, and abundant aquatic plants, which is a natural foundation for producing good crabs. It is said that when feeding Gucheng Lake hairy crabs, three meats and three vegetables (snails, small fish, shrimps, pumpkin, corn, and aquatic plants) are required to provide sufficient nutrition for the growth of crabs. Coupled with the scientific breeding method, it is hard for Gucheng Lake crabs to be not delicious.



Qinhu Crab

Qinhu Lake 簖蟹 is very special. Qinhu Lake is located in Jiangyan, Jiangsu Province. Here, hairy crabs have a special name: 簖蟹. The word "簖" is born for Qinhu Lake. "簖" is a kind of fishing gear that is made of bamboo branches or reed stalks and placed upright in the water to cut off the path of fish and crabs and then catch them.

The magic of "Zhenhu dang crab" is that in February and March every year when the spring is warm and the flowers are blooming, the crab fry are hatched one after another at the mouth of the Yangtze River, go up the river, enter the inland river, and look for a place to settle down. As for Qinhu Lake, because of its good water quality, wide water area and abundant food, and the mudflats along the coast are suitable for crabs to grow in burrows, the young crabs like to choose to settle in Qinhu Lake. However, the crabs at this time cannot be called "dang crabs".

Around the Mid-Autumn Festival, the crabs that have grown big and plump and have lived here begin to migrate back to the Yangtze River estuary to mate and lay eggs (yes, although hairy crabs spend most of their lives in fresh water, they must return to the sea to reproduce, but the hairy crabs in artificial breeding can be stimulated to mate and breed by mixing artificial seawater). Once the migrating crabs touch the net, they change their route and climb to the high places on both sides, and after climbing over the net, they fall into the bamboo baskets one by one. Only those crabs that have climbed over the net are called net crabs. If they are not big and fat crabs, they simply cannot climb up the high net cracks. Therefore, all the net crabs are fat and strong, and have infinite strength. Therefore, since ancient times, there are "Chenghu hairy crabs in the south and Qinhu net crabs in the north", known as "South Zhabei Net".

At present, the cultivation of net crabs in Qinhu Lake generally adopts the method of artificial release and natural reproduction, no feeding, and low-density stocking. Normally, net crabs do not need to be fed at all, they feed on aquatic plants, plankton, and snails. When net crabs shed their shells, crab farmers usually put in some marine fish, which will make the taste of net crabs sweeter.

Panjin River Crab

In a world dominated by Jiangsu crabs, Panjin crabs in Liaoning can be said to be very proud of northern crabs. Panjin is actually one of the three traditional production areas of river crabs in my country, and has always been known as the "Crab Capital". It faces the Liaodong Bay of the Bohai Sea, has a vast sea area and sufficient seawater for the birth of hairy crabs, and has a deep inland water network and sufficient freshwater resources for their growth. The geographical conditions are excellent.



According to the difference in the growing environment, Panjin river crabs are divided into rice field river crabs and wetland river crabs. The most common is the rice field river crab, which, as the name suggests, refers to the river crabs raised in rice fields. Rice field crabs are generally fed with artificial feed, so they are relatively fat. Wetland river crabs grow in wetlands and are completely wild. They eat natural small fish, shrimps, aquatic plants, microorganisms and so on. Therefore, they are full of wild flavor, and every crab season, they are also full of yellow roe.

Mid-Autumn Festival is the time when crabs are plump. A family gathers around a table, each person gets two crabs, and drinks some rice wine. This is a great blessing for Mid-Autumn Festival. My suggestion is to buy hairy crabs and crabs with crab roe and crab paste. The effect of eating the meat of swimming crabs is not as good as eating the roe. Don't buy Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs. People all over the country know that 90% of the hairy crabs with Yangcheng Lake brand are washed crabs! Of course, it doesn't mean that the quality of the crabs is bad, at least those who are forced to lie are not cute.

I would like to recommend some crabs to you.

Panjin Rice Field Crab

Panjin river crab is officially called Chinese mitten crab. In fact, it is the same species as hairy crab. It just grows in different environments. In addition, the names are different between the north and the south. In the north, it is called "river crab" or "crab". As early as 2007, Panjin river crab was approved as a "national geographical indication product". In recent years, "rice field crab" has emerged. It has the freshness and fragrance of Panjin river crab and the fragrance of rice, and has an excellent taste and flavor. Just like the rice field fish, it feeds on wild insects all day long. How can it not be delicious! ! !

The downside is that the crabs are generally smaller, but the taste is absolutely delicious!!!

One is the Gucheng Lake hairy crab.

Gucheng Lake hairy crabs are authentic, plump, tender, and delicious with a slightly sweet taste. It can be said that they are slightly better than the authentic Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs, not to mention where there are so many authentic Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs! Gucheng Lake hairy crabs have always been known as the "King of Crabs". In 2007, they were recognized as a national geographical indication protected product by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, and in 2009, they were recognized as a well-known trademark in China by the State Administration for Industry and Commerce. It is also China's first well-known trademark in the aquatic category and the first Chinese national geographical indication product! It is also an officially certified crab, and there are few crabs that have been overwater, so the quality can be guaranteed!

One is the Yellow River Estuary Hairy Crab. This is a latecomer in the hairy crab industry in recent years. This crab is similar to Panjin crab, but has more yellow and roe than Panjin crab. Similar ones include Weishan Lake crab. Friends in the northern region recommend buying this. I live close to Dongying, and I have to buy dozens of them every year. I recommend this with Yeqin.

It would be best to ask him to ship the goods around National Day. Now it is September 19th, which is still a little bit late.

One is the Xinghua hairy crab. Xinghua hairy crab has the characteristics of "green shell, white belly, golden claws, yellow hair, wide claws, and swift feet". The fat is rich and pure, the meat is white and tender, the crab roe is crystal red and oily, and it tastes fresh and sweet. The quality of crabs in Jiangsu is good. The key is that there are few crabs that have been overwatered, so the quality is stable.

Gucheng Lake Crab

The Gucheng Lake hairy crab produced in Nanjing is also the tall, rich and handsome hairy crab. It is China's first well-known trademark in the aquatic category and the first Chinese national geographical indication product, but it is not the Yangcheng Lake hairy crab. In the early years of the Republic of China, Shi Jinmo, one of the four famous doctors in Beijing, was a well-known glutton who loved to eat crabs. He divided the crabs produced in various places into six grades, namely lake crabs, river crabs, river crabs, stream crabs, ditch crabs and sea crabs. The first grade was lake crabs, and Gucheng Lake crabs were compared by him to "the first among the crabs".

Gucheng Lake has a wide area, clear water, and abundant aquatic plants, which is a natural foundation for producing good crabs. It is said that when feeding Gucheng Lake hairy crabs, three meats and three vegetables (snails, small fish, shrimps, pumpkin, corn, and aquatic plants) are required to provide sufficient nutrition for the growth of crabs. Coupled with the scientific breeding method, it is hard for Gucheng Lake crabs to be not delicious.

Qinhu Crab

Qinhu Lake 簖蟹 is very special. Qinhu Lake is located in Jiangyan, Jiangsu Province. Here, hairy crabs have a special name: 簖蟹. The word "簖" is born for Qinhu Lake. "簖" is a kind of fishing gear that is made of bamboo branches or reed stalks and placed upright in the water to cut off the path of fish and crabs and then catch them.

The magic of "Zhenhu dang crab" is that in February and March every year when the spring is warm and the flowers are blooming, the crab fry are hatched one after another at the mouth of the Yangtze River, go up the river, enter the inland river, and look for a place to settle down. As for Qinhu Lake, because of its good water quality, wide water area and abundant food, and the mudflats along the coast are suitable for crabs to grow in burrows, the young crabs like to choose to settle in Qinhu Lake. However, the crabs at this time cannot be called "dang crabs".

Around the Mid-Autumn Festival, the crabs that have grown big and plump and have lived here begin to return to the Yangtze River estuary to mate and lay eggs (yes, although hairy crabs spend most of their lives in fresh water, they must return to the sea to reproduce, but artificially cultivated hairy crabs can be stimulated to mate and raise seeds by mixing artificial seawater). Once the returning crabs encounter the net, they change their route and climb to the high places on both sides. After climbing over the net, they fall into the bamboo baskets one by one. Only those crabs that have climbed over the net are called net crabs. If they are not big and fat, they have no strength to climb up the high net. Therefore, all the net crabs are fat and strong, and have infinite strength. Therefore, since ancient times, there are "Chenghu hairy crabs in the south and Qinhu net crabs in the north", which are called "South Zhabei Net".

At present, the cultivation of net crabs in Qinhu Lake generally adopts the method of artificial release and natural reproduction, no feeding, and low-density stocking. Normally, net crabs do not need to be fed at all, they feed on aquatic plants, plankton, and snails. When net crabs shed their shells, crab farmers usually put in some marine fish, which will make the taste of net crabs sweeter.

Panjin River Crab

In a world dominated by Jiangsu crabs, Panjin crabs in Liaoning can be said to be very proud of northern crabs. Panjin is actually one of the three traditional production areas of river crabs in my country, and has always been known as the "Crab Capital". It faces the Liaodong Bay of the Bohai Sea, has a vast sea area and sufficient seawater for the birth of hairy crabs, and has a deep inland water network and sufficient freshwater resources for their growth. The geographical conditions are excellent.

According to the difference in the growing environment, Panjin river crabs are divided into rice field river crabs and wetland river crabs. The most common is the rice field river crab, which, as the name suggests, refers to the river crabs raised in rice fields. Rice field crabs are generally fed with artificial feeds, so they are relatively fat. Wetland river crabs grow in wetlands and are completely wild. They eat natural small fish, shrimps, aquatic plants and microorganisms. Therefore, they are full of wild flavor, and every crab season, they are full of roe and yellow.

Swimming crab

Ancient people also loved to eat crabs. It was probably the swimming crab that opened the door to this new world for them. The earliest record of crabs comes from "The Book of Zhou: Cooking": "Qingzhou's Crab Sauce". Qingzhou is in Shandong, and crab sauce is crab sauce made by chopped crabs. Generally, the crabs used are sea crabs with strong fishy smell, and the most common one in Shandong is the swimming crab.

For those who grew up by the sea, hairy crabs are delicious, but swimming crabs are king, soaked with the taste of home. Swimming crabs are easy to identify, usually dark purple or blue-green, slender like a shuttle, with sharp cones on both sides of the shell and a pair of paddle-shaped hind feet suitable for swimming. It is a rare crab that can swim.

There are many species under the family of swimming crabs. The most common one is the swimming crab with three tubercles, which is what we often call "swimming crabs". The female crabs produced in the mating season in late spring and winter are the most plump, with white crab meat, tender meat and sweet taste. The more common one is the ocean-going swimming crab, commonly known as the flower crab. The most delicious one is the rusty crab, commonly known as the red flower crab, with its meat texture and taste very outstanding. The large mud crabs that are very common in the market also belong to swimming crabs.

Red flower crab

If it is fresh enough, the best way to cook swimming crabs is to steam them, which can best show their delicious flavor, firm and delicate meat, fresh and sweet taste, and plump and rich roe. In addition, swimming crabs can also be paired with various ingredients, especially those that absorb flavors, such as fried rice cakes with swimming crabs, swimming crab vermicelli, and swimming crab porridge. Swimming crabs can also be pickled, such as the famous Ningbo dish red roe crab, and you will understand what it means to be fresh through the bones.

Stir-fried crab with red roe

Swimming crabs are distributed in most coastal areas of the country, and there are many famous production areas, such as Laizhou, Shandong, Yanting, Zhejiang, Zhoushan, Zhejiang, Taizhou, Zhejiang, Xingcheng, Liaoning, etc.

Laizhou Crab

Laizhou crab belongs to the three-tuberculate swimming crab, which is a famous specialty of Ye County, Laizhou, in the east of the mountainous area. Ye County was the seat of Laizhou Prefecture in ancient times, so the name of Laizhou crab has been passed down to this day. Laizhou Bay has a slow and stable beach, which is suitable for the swimming crab's habit of lurking in the sand. There are many rivers in the territory, which bring a lot of nutrients, such as sea water, which promotes the reproduction of plankton and provides sufficient and rich bait for swimming crabs. Therefore, Laizhou is easy to produce fat, large and delicious crabs. The largest female crab can weigh up to 0.75 kilograms.

Yanting River Crab

Yanting swimming crab is a famous aquatic product of Cangnan County, Zhejiang Province. Locals call it Yanting river crab. It was offered as a tribute as early as the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty. It is one of the famous crabs in China. Yanting is located in the eastern part of Cangnan County. It is a place where cold and warm currents meet. It is rich in bait and is a unique breeding place for river crabs. It is known as the "hometown of swimming crabs". The swimming crabs here are not only loved by Chinese people, but also often exported to Japan.

Although there are many ways to eat swimming crabs, Yanting's river crabs have their own unique way of eating them: turn the bottom of the crab upwards, remove the legs, and then quickly cut the crab into four pieces with two cross cuts. This way, you can eat the whole river crab without wasting any meat.

Three-door mud crab

The common mud crab is actually a type of swimming crab, but it is larger and more ferocious. When food is scarce, it will not hesitate to kill each other. The more common type of mud crab on the market is the mud crab, which is relatively cheap. Another more precious type is the mud crab, which is different from the mud crab in that it has dark green patterns on its hind legs when swimming.

The mud crabs from Sanmen, Zhejiang are of this type. They are very plump, large in size, and have a high meat yield, making them extremely delicious to eat. Sanmen mud crabs are a national geographical indication protected product and have been featured on "A Bite of China 2" with an excellent reputation.

The hairy crabs from Gaoyou Lake in Yangzhou are a "city name card" of Yangzhou. The water of Gaoyou Lake is independently circulated to raise crabs. The place where crabs are raised is located in Gaoyou Lake Wetland. There is no chemical industry or living area around it. The hairy crabs live in the original ecological environment of Gaoyou Lake Wetland. Therefore, Gaoyou Lake crabs are fat and delicious, and they are red and more flavorful. The Weishan Lake crabs in Xuzhou are also called "crabs" or "hairy crabs". The crabs here feed on fish, shrimp, animal carcasses and grains. Every autumn, they often swim to the estuary to lay eggs, hatch in March, April and May of the following year, develop into young crabs, and then swim back to the rivers and rivers, and then continue to grow and develop in fresh water. Weishan Lake crabs are very plump, all yellow, and taste good. The Luoma Lake hairy crabs in Suqian. Luoma Lake is one of the lakes with a relatively intact ecosystem. The water quality here is very good and pure, and there are abundant bait resources such as aquatic plants and benthic animals. The lake water here can be drunk directly. It is one of the few second-level water quality lakes in the country and an ideal place for crabs to grow and settle.