Beladin : Fish Maw

 

How can fish maw be so expensive? I read one expensive type is evening going at RM60,000 per kg. Unbelieveable.

Fish maw soup has been a traditional Foochow banquet soup, a Chinese new year dish etc. Now , fortunately there is a wide range of choices from expensive to very affordable budget priced fish maw for ordinary souls like me.

Recently my cousins and I talked about fish maw of yesteryears of Beladin, a remote rural village in Sarawak where she was teaching at the beginning of her teaching career. Fish maw produced in the village was so common and easily available to her and her family that she never thought of stocking up or reselling. She was just happily teaching there. Fish maw from ikan panjang and ikan terusan were ordinary food and no one then ever thought of packaging them as festive gifts in those days.

In actual fact fish maw is tasteless and chewy but when added to soups with lots of other ingredients, it becomes very appetizing. 

Fish maw of ikan terusan has an unusual shape. The male ikan terusan has a bigger fish maw and is sold at a higher price than the female fish.

Both the locals and the Chinese love ikan panjang and its fish maw. Ikan panjang is also highly demanded in Beladin and surrounding areas. In fact it is quite difficult to understand why ikan terusan and ikan panjang are only found in Beladin and some of the estuarine areas nearby and not in any other parts of Sarawak.

Salted Ikan Panjang and its fish maw used to be imported from China by many sea product merchants but today they are rather uncommon.

Note : fish maw can be divided into king fish maw, premium fish maw,grass seabass fish maw and fried fish maw. Male fish maw is bigger, soft and smooth but not easily dissolved in the mouth.

So if it is possible, It is best to buy fish maw fresh from the fishermen!!