“黑金”的美食密码

“黑金”的美食密码

冯瑶

Caviar has been the favorite delicacy for upper crust of society， no matter Iranian monarchs passion for the pearl-like， salty sweet eggs considered to be the most extravagant aphrodisiac in the world or Louis XIV of Frances decree that caviar was the property of the monarch. Its rarity and texture has become the symbol of exclusive consumption. However， we are not far off from the black gold appetite. In the pristine environment of Qiandao Lake， Zhejiang Province， inhabits paddlefish. This island of high forest coverage and tranquility has emerged as the key base of China paddle caviar production.

SEARCH FOR STURGEON FISH IN QIANDAO LAKE

Southeastern part of Qiandao Lake is even more serene and composed， distant from the main tourist areas， and driving along the lake， as if we reached the end of the vast body of water. An enclosed fishpond in the middle the lake captured our attention. Its the summer resort of paddlefish. Mr. Pan who has guarded this water area for more than a decade warmly greeted us， “summer here is quite hot and high temperature on the surface makes it unbearable for paddlefish. We have moved hybrid paddlefish and kaluga sturgeons that cant withstand high temperature here by siphoning off cold water from bottom of the lake to help them get through the summer.” Even bigger hybrid sturgeons breeding base looms in the distant lake zone. Rocking on the speed boat， water splashing on the shoulder felt slightly warm in the cold weather. Shining water in the distance looked like a gentle jade swaying over hazy vapor， as small hills rising nonchalantly from this gigantic pool of water. The greenery exhibiting in this time of year relaxed your mind. I had more infatuation with the rarely felt peace here in contrast to the touristpacked islands， and even couldnt bear the disruption of dreamlike scene by the noise of speed boat. Fifteen minutes later， we came across an area partitioned by trestle bridges and living quarters， reminding us of getting to the sturgeon breeding base of Hangzhou Qiandao Xunlong Sci-Tech Co.

SOURCE OF ULTIMATE DELICACY

Under the overcast sky， booming oxygen generator disturbed quiet air. However， workers who were plucking sturgeons in the encircled pond seemed unfazed by the clatter， busy flipping over sturgeons as high as a person by harvesting eggs. The roe sacks， or ovaries， are opened and rubbed across mesh screens using gentle pressure from the palm of the hand -- this action separates the eggs from the membrane and they drop through the screen into a shallow tub. Inspecting staff on the bank took over the egg-removal device and scooped out the roes to the back of hands to measure the size and luster of the fish eggs， tasting the flavor before recording on the testing book. In the season of egg-harvesting， such process will be repeated each day， inspecting， marking and recording the growing condition of each hybrid sturgeon.