The maid brought a pot of soup, put it on the table, and slowly opened the lid, the fragrance was bursting, and the umami was full.

"It's ......"

Everyone was stunned, looking at the milky white soup base in front of them floating small fish, the length of the index finger, the whole body was snow-white, and the appearance was plain, this is the so-called finale dish?

Wen Yiming's nose moved slightly, straightened up, and said curiously: "Is this a specialty of Xiantan, reverse fish!"

"Yes, Mr. really has good eyesight!" Master Liu gave a thumbs up and said: "The water quality of Xiantan is clear, and the river is rich in this kind of small fish, which seems to be similar to the ordinary fish in the pond, but in fact, there is a lot of good things inside, everyone will know it when you taste it!"

The maid divided the soup to everyone, Wen Yiming picked up the bowl, the milky white soup base emitted a sweet fragrance, and the high-quality pork bones were boiled, and they tasted a mouthful, full of fragrance.

Pick up a reverse fish, put it in your mouth, bite your teeth, and it's actually chewy. Suddenly, it was as if something was breaking out in an instant, and the wonderful smell spread throughout the mouth.

"That's a lot of roe!"

Wen Yiming couldn't help but close his eyes, as if there was a shocking scene in front of him, one by one the fish were going upstream, and the small body kept jumping in the turbulent river, using all his strength to strive for the upstream.

The sunlight shines on the snow-white scales, reflecting a little bit of sparkle, so dazzling in the clear water!

The fish leaped and finally crossed the rapids and came to the gentle riverbed. The whole body was exhausted, and with the last of his strength, he threw it off, and scattered a little golden yellow into the water, sprinkling the continuation of life.

One by one, the roe erupted, and the stars converged into a rolling torrent, instantly drowning themselves in it.

"Good!"

Ling Tiancheng couldn't help but shout: "The meat is firm and luscious, I didn't expect that the little body actually contains so much roe, it's wonderful!"

Yan Sihai also echoed: "The fish roe is dense and dense, delicate and sweet, the fish meat is boiled in broth, it is delicious, the fish bones melt in the mouth, and the world is delicious!"

Master Liu looked at everyone's satisfied expressions and said with a smile: "The reverse fish set off from Taihu Lake and went upstream, the more turbulent the river, the happier they swam." The locals have a poem to praise: the plum yellow water rises against the fish fat, and the beauty wins the spring perch. ”

"That's not all!" Hu Jianmin replied: "Reverse fish are very rare, they flow back from Taihu Lake to spawn every year, and they only take one route from Tiaoxi! And they only go out during the rainy days, so it is difficult to find a trace!"

Wen Yiming nodded, it must be extraordinary to make Hu Jianmin the finale dish for entertaining VIPs. After picking up one and savoring it, he added: "Actually, many fish have to spawn upstream, but this fish is too small to have enough strength to expel the roe from the body. ”

"The only way to wash the roe out is with the help of running water, which is why the roe is so delicious. ”

"There is also fish, which swims against the current for a long time, has little fat, and the meat is firm and delicate, which is naturally different from other fish, with a unique flavor and excellent taste. ”

Master Liu nodded secretly, he didn't expect to meet such a high-level gourmand today, he was young and sharp-eyed, and he couldn't hide anything from the other party's eyes.

With a slight wave of her hand, the maid brought another dish and introduced: "What the gentleman said is that the reverse fish can be stewed and fried, and in my opinion, the fried flavor is better." ”

Wen Yiming looked at the reverse fish that was fried golden in front of him, and picked up one, this time looking more carefully. From the tail of the fin, a ventral ridge runs through it.

After being fried in rosin, the fish is dried but not burnt, and the fragrance is overflowing, which makes people taste wide open and full of relish. The golden roe in the belly of the fish occupies most of the body, and when you bite into it, it is crispy and delicious, and the lips and teeth are fragrant.

Ling Tiancheng ate four or five in a row before putting down his chopsticks and said with satisfaction: "It's really a delicacy! I didn't expect the little reverse fish to be so fascinating, it reminds me of eating saury on a fishing boat on the Yangtze River a few years ago. ”

"When it's cooked in an instant, you can dip it in some rice vinegar, or a little garlic and soy sauce, tear off the fish meat on your back with your hands, and put it in your mouth, that taste...... Unforgettable!"

Hu Jianmin put down his chopsticks and said with a smile: "Saury fish is also a famous dish, in fact, Xiantan not only has reverse fish, but also mutton, which is also a valuable delicacy." ”

Speaking of this, he couldn't help but swallow his saliva and recalled: "I was fortunate to go to the local area last year, it happened to be the peak season of mutton, and the whole town seemed to be soaked in that wonderful smell!"

"Go to the most famous century-old shop, Zhang Yipin mutton, crispy but not rotten, long aftertaste, originally a gourmand told me that the highest state of eating meat is mutton, I didn't think so, since that time, I am convinced!"

Everyone laughed, and Master Liu introduced: "Fish farming and sheep farming are actually the same, it's all about that saliva!"

Since Xiantan is called this name, the water of the pond is naturally extraordinary, clear and sweet, warm in winter and cool in summer, the sheep raised locally is called Hu sheep, the meat is tender and delicious, no matter fried and fried, it is a delicacy. ”

"There are beaches in the east mountain, the grass and trees are fertile, the sheep eat well, drink refreshingly, and they must be in good health. Not only mutton and reverse fish, but also a local delicacy, yellow eel!"

"But since the guests are so unforgettable about the Yangtze River saury, it just so happens today, the second dish is the saury!"

"Really?" Ling Tiancheng's expression lifted after hearing this, and he said excitedly: "Haha, today we are blessed to be able to eat saury again!"

Wen Yiming laughed and said nothing, even if he hadn't eaten saury, he could have heard a lot of rumors. The saury before the Qingming Festival, because it is located at the mouth of the Yangtze River, at the junction of fresh water and sea water, is rich in bait and tender in meat. Due to the sharp decline in production, scarce things are expensive.

The price of Yangtze River saury exposed on the Internet is staggering, ranging from 6,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan. In 2012, at the Yangtze River Saury King Public Welfare Auction held in 2012, a 325-gram Yangtze River Saury King was auctioned for a sky-high price of 60,000 yuan.

Yan Sihai took a sip of tea and said with remembrance: "The snow at the head of the Yangtze River is like a knife!"

"In the early years, the old man was fortunate to travel the Yangtze River, when it was Qingming, the spring river was warm, and schools of saury fish went upstream. In that season of peach blossoms like water, the river waves are like snow, the fishing boats are racing, and the boat is shining when it returns, and there is really a sense of vitality!"

Master Liu nodded, and said helplessly: "What the distinguished guest said should have been many years ago, at that time there were still a lot of river knives, and now the pollution is serious, and the fame is too great, it has become increasingly rare, originally the local fishermen can eat by themselves after catching it, but now there are hundreds or thousands of them at every turn, who is willing to do it?"

"If you are not an expert, many people use saury to pretend to be a saury, which has a similar appearance and taste, and it is difficult for ordinary people to distinguish it. ”

After speaking, the maid brought the plate, and Master Liu picked up a fresh saury fish that was airlifted on the spot, gently pinched the fish head with two fingers, clamped the neck with chopsticks, and shook it vigorously, and the whole fish bone was shaved off as if by magic, and all the snow-white fish fell into the plate.

"Good craftsmanship!"

Ling Tiancheng clapped his hands and shouted: "Master Liu is worthy of being a chef, when I ate saury on the boat, the fishermen did not use a knife to disembowel their stomachs, they only used a chopstick to insert it from the gills of the fish, stirred it vigorously, rolled out the fish intestines, and the shape of the fish was still intact." ”

Master Liu said with a smile: "The characteristics of the river knife are like this, you don't need to remove the scales, just like the reverse fish, steamed or fried, add some ginger shreds, rice wine, a little salt to taste, steam through water, ten minutes is enough!"