Gourmet or Insane? Outrageously Expensive Delicacies in China

Gourmet or Insane? Outrageously Expensive Delicacies in China
Oct 01, 2014 By Elaine Pang , eChinacities.com

The horse meat scandal of 2013 may have shocked Europe yet the Chinese were noticeably underwhelmed. After all, isn’t horse meat worth more than beef? In fact, donkey meat is considered the dragon of meats – a high honor considering no one has claimed to have had dragon yet. China’s ascent meant that appetite for the exotic ran unbridled until Xi’s austerity measures kicked in. Top civil servants have to exercise restraint on luxury goods, expensive delicacies included. But if you are not high up on the government payroll, here’s a list of some of the most expensive meat products your money can buy in China.

While some items on the list below may be controversial, or just plain unappetizing, in reality, they are delicacies not that commonly eaten across China owing to their prohibitive costs.

Sea Cucumber
Photo: Kent Wang

1) Bird’s Nest (燕窝)
More specifically, the nests constructed out of hardened swiftlet spit. Prized for medicinal value benefitting virtually every part of the body – most notably the skin, the lungs and the digestive system, these abandoned nests are expensive due to their rarity and difficulty of retrieval, found high up in caves of Malaysia and Indonesia. While eating saliva may have its yuck factor, at least no cute little birds were killed in the process, though perhaps some were made homeless.

Price: 15,000 RMB per kg upwards.
Cooking Method: double-boiled into a soup of gelatinous strands.

2) Abalone, Shark’s Fin and Sea Cucumbers
Part of the four main seafood delicacies synonymous with wealth displays at banquets, or “Baoshen Cidu” (鲍参翅肚), abalone, shark’s fins and sea cucumbers come to mind first when thinking of pricy seafood.

Abalone (鲍鱼): Essentially sea snails, these shellfish are prized for bringing good luck as well as their aphrodisiac properties. They are high in protein, low in fat and high in selenium for stamina.

Price: as high as 30,000 RMB per kg or 500 RMB per serving in restaurants

Shark’s Fin (鱼翅):Usually a mainstay of weddings and other lavish banquets, the brutal way these fins are harvested even inspired Yao Ming to campaign for his fellow citizens to shun this dish. These large fins are said to boost virility, increase qi or vital energy, give you smooth skin, lower cholesterol and prevent heart disease.

Price: 4,000 RMB per kg, though prices have halved, post austerity drive.
Cooking Method: As shark’s fins are typically tasteless, they are served in a savory cornstarch-thickened soup, together with crab meat.

Sea Cucumbers (海参): Although it has “cucumber” in its name, there is nothing vegetarian about this ingredient. Rather, it is a sea slug shaped like the afore-mentioned vegetable. A previous mainstay of government banquets, a certain top civil servant was reported to have eaten one every day. China farms these but they can’t hold a candle to wild imported versions from America. Expensive ones look like spiky black worms.

Price: up to 20,000 RMB per kg

3) Cordyceps a.k.a. Caterpillar Fungus (冬虫夏草)
Like bird’s nest, cordyceps are another expensive Chinese medicine believed to be a cure-all. Literally, “worm in winter, plant in summer”, these unfortunate caterpillars of the Thitarodes moth, are born underground, ingest a kind of fungus and never metamorphosize. Their bodies are immortalized in the form of hardened plant roots.

Price: up to 880,000 RMB per kg
Cooking method: Double-boiled in soup

5) Pangolins
Smaller than an armadillo, these scaly creatures, especially their fetuses are prized as aphrodisiacs. Pangolin blood and body parts are said to treat asthma, cancer and reproductive problems.

Price: around 60,000 RMB each

5) Knife Fish
Every spring, eating this sleek and slender fish is a show of social status. This dish is native to Huai'an, Yangzhou and Zhenjiang in Jiangsu Province, ancient business hubs of China. The rarest fish delicacy in the Yangtze, it is full of tiny soft bones which you have to sort through with your tongue.

Price: previously around 10,000 RMB per kg, now it can be had for 2,000 RMB per kg, post austerity drive
Cooking method: steamed and served with salt and soy sauce

6) Chinese Mitten Crab or Shanghai Hairy Crab (大闸蟹)
Come autumn, splash your cash on some cutely-named Chinese Mitten Crabs from Yangcheng Lake. A pest in Europe and North America, these hairy crabs are prized for their roe – the female roe peaks in the ninth lunar month, while the male roe a month later. A highly resilient species, Mitten Crabs survive heavily polluted waters and are able to absorb substantial amounts of heavy metals, so do investigate the source of your dinner before forking out.

Price: Around 700 RMB per kg

 

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Keywords: delicacies in China expensive meat in China

6 Comments

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joey567

insane

Oct 11, 2014 04:39 Report Abuse

bill8899

So 'face' is needlessly killing sharks. Great. Glad there's less of it now. If only they could stop totally.

Oct 03, 2014 15:38 Report Abuse

Guest2650392

Answer: Neither. I suppose it depends on how you define sane/insane too. 1. Similar kind of lies as this one to gain face www.echinacities.com/news/Guizhou-City-Vocational-College-Hangs-up-Fake-Congratulations-from-Top-World-Universities. 2. You really think the locals pay this kind of prices? Remember the three menus in Hainan Island restaurants, one for the Hainan locals, one for mainland locals, and one for tourists from abroad? 3. When they pay these prices entertaining 'customers' they don't get a kickback from the restaurants? 4. Find me one working local who has neither heard of fake invoices nor know what they are for.

Oct 02, 2014 10:18 Report Abuse

Guest2368048

Still looking for the same kind of face they expect others to give them by keeping the clothing label on the cuff of their suits on decades ago.

Oct 01, 2014 23:46 Report Abuse

bill8899

Interesting.

Oct 01, 2014 18:34 Report Abuse

sorrel

like the Emperors New Clothes, no one would probably be honest about their taste. As regards the alleged 'health' benefits, there are many more cheap foods with the same, if not better nutritional value. As with many things in China, i suspect they are all about 'face'

Oct 01, 2014 15:14 Report Abuse