Why is dried whelk regarded a substitute for dried abalone? And how does one differentiate between male and female fish maws, and between dried scallops and dried mushrooms of Japan and China origins?
With Lunar New Year just around the corner, it pays to know the answers to such questions in the purchase of Chinese dried seafood and foodstuffs much in demand for meals in celebration of the festive holidays.
The Consumer Council has compiled a comprehensive report on this topical issue, and a real eye-opener for the unwary consumers.
Want to buy the Chinese delicacy "abalone slice"(鮑片) . Well, in the dried seafood industry, the so-called "abalone slice" is still commonly adopted as a euphemism for what is in fact "whelk piece" (螺片) .
So the next time you go shopping for "abalone slice", call it by its proper humble name and pay the price of "whelk piece" only.
For the connoisseur of fish maws (花膠) , the male fish maws are preferable to the female. The reason: the former is said to taste distinctly better and springy while the latter mushy and flat.
So, how do you differentiate between their sexes. Simple: male maws are relatively thick in the middle but thin on the edges; the female maws have the same even thickness all over.
When it comes to dried scallop (元貝) and dried mushroom(冬茹) , they are generally regarded better if produced in Japan than those of China origin.
To the untrained eyes, it is difficult to differentiate between dried scallops of different origins. The secret is to try out and taste a small piece before purchasing - with, of course, the permission of the shop.
As with dried scallops, dried mushrooms look very similar. Unscrupulous merchants have passed off Chinese mushroom as Japanese mushroom to the unwary. As a rule of thumb, choose mushrooms that are light in colour at the bottom, short in stalks, concave in shape, and absolutely no sour wine smell.
Shark fin, the ultimate choice of gourmet dish in many a Chinese banquet. According to the experts, fake shark fin is actually not common when it is in a dried state. But when shark fin is soaked and mixed together, it will be hard to tell the genuine from the fake.
One tell-tale sign is that the needles of real shark fin can be torn into shreds while the fake is not so; and the fake will turn paste-like after rubbing but the genuine will not.
In the case of sea cucumber (海參) , some are smelly when cut open for cleaning, probably due to improper soaking method (e.g. failed to change clean water everyday) or rotten sea cucumbers. But the rotten parts of the dried sea cucumbers is only visible when they are put to soak in water for some time.
Frozen sea cucumbers are by far more convenient but the pitfall is some merchants may add chemicals such as soda to inflate them a few times bigger; after cooking, they shrink and taste bitter.
Finally, the dried black moss or Nostoc (髮菜) , banned for consumption in China for reasons of environmental protection. Widespread adulteration of this popular hair-like foodstuff was reported by the Consumer Council in a test in 2001.
For the interest of consumers, the real black moss is greenish grey and elastic after soaking in water; the fake Nostoc is black in colour and stuck together when being squeezed.
Consumers are advised to consider, in the interest of the environment, using a substitute, for instance, lettuce (>生菜) which has the same connotation of wealth as the banned dried black moss.
For more useful information and practical advice, consult the report in this latest (January) issue of CHOICE.
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