One of my favourite neighbourhood shops is the very small seafood store close to where I tutor on Tuesday nights. The family who owns it always smiles and says "Nihao!" as I approach, and then "The foreigner again" when I'm walking away. But in a friendly way.
Of course, business demands that they do horrible, murderous things to fish, meaning that you really have to watch your step as you pass. But October is hairy crab season in Shanghai, so today all hands were on deck for less gory work - plucking wee crabs from a cooler and swaddling their little legs to their bodies with long blades of grass. As per usual, this was all happening on the sidewalk in front of the store.
Hairy crabs are found in the lakes and rivers around Shanghai, and are a major delicacy. According to my Shanghainese cousins, crab season is a big deal because it's an opportunity for wealthy businesspeople to gain face by treating each other to crab feasts at exorbitantly pricey restaurants. I've tried them. They're super-yummy, though the crab smell lingers on you for at least a day, even if you exfoliate three times. I've always wondered if this eau de crab also has caché in the business community.
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| Nooooo! *flailflailflail* |
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| Oh. Okay. (Apparently, they keep the grass long so it's easy to pluck them out of the steamer.) |
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| The dad explained that they wear gloves so the pinches hurt less. Ouch. |
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| Their little boy kept jumping in front of the camera, and then darting around to see the photo on the LCD screen. |
2 comments:
Found your blog through Amelia's and all very typically you!
I've been to Shanghai, and I wonder about the wisdom of eating something found in the rivers around town. Though if they are all upstream from Shanghai, perhaps it would be okay.
That grass trick is an excellent idea. Here, we just tear the crab apart (while still alive - I'm not proud of it) before steaming their tasty little legs. Lobster go in the pot unfettered, but maybe grass bindings would cut back on the nightmarish sounds of them scravelling in the pot. Food for thought. Heh.
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