Difference between revisions of "Dynastic Seasonal Seafood"
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Revision as of 15:50, 22 March 2023
Contents
- 1 Seafood Dishes
- 1.1 Ascending Air
- 1.2 Resplendent Air
- 1.3 Descending Air
- 1.4 Ascending Water
- 1.5 Resplendent Water
- 1.6 Descending Water
- 1.7 Ascending Earth
- 1.8 Resplendent Earth
- 1.9 Descending Earth
- 1.10 Ascending Wood
- 1.11 Resplendent Wood
- 1.12 Descending Wood
- 1.13 Ascending Fire
- 1.14 Resplendent Fire
- 1.15 Descending Fire
- 1.16 Calibration
- 2 Conventions on Presentation and Consumption
Seafood Dishes
Seafood is quite popular in Dynastic cuisine, even amongst those Dynasts not Chosen by Danaa'd. The oceans provide a bounty of protein-rich meat far more reliable and accessible than can be found on land, and Dynastic kitchens have created a vast array of seafood dishes to serve the lords of the Realm.
Generally, seafood is evaluated according to size and habitat, larger fish being more valuable than smaller ones and seafish being more prized than riverfish (who tend to be more bony). However, equally important to the value of a fish is the time of year: the menus of the Dynasty are highly seasonal, and specific seafood are considered to belong upon the table only in certain seasons, or are thought to achieve optimum flavour during specific months.
Ascending Air
Huso'huso
The Huso'huso is a riverfish found throughout the North and northeastern Threshold, particularly in the rivers which crisscross the lands of the Linowan. There, they are caught in quantity and their flesh is dried, smoked or salted to create a long-lasting source of food. Such low-class methods are snubbed by discerning Dynasts, and the Huso'huso's flesh presents no flavours suited for the fresher cuisine of the Blessed Isle's nobility (it would be an insult indeed to place a platter of salted huso'huso upon the table of a Dynast). The huso'huso also provide oil to the Linowan, who use it both in their lamps and to feed the flames which drive back the encroaching redwoods of Halta.
While they abhor the creature's flesh, the Dynasty covets one aspect of the beast: its eggs. These small black eggs, known as 'Caviar', are carefully gathered by Linowan traders from the female huso'huso, and placed in barrels where they are mixed with salt before transport to the tables of the wealthy on the Blessed Isle and across the Threshold. The quantity of salt varies by season... at the beginning of the air season there is little, producing the best quality caviar, with the amount increasing as the year goes by through the Fire season. Caviar is highly expensive in most places, though in the northeast the price is somewhat reduced, with Linowan and neighbouring kingdoms seeing the eggs served occasionally even by middling households.
In Dynastic cuisine, as in most places, caviar is served as a spread over bread or pastries, or as a garnish. The more caviar used to garnish, the more ostentatious the display of wealth.
Needlefish
Known as 'Halfbeak' in the West and 'Thinfish' in Low Realm, this seafish gained the Old Realm root of its High Realm name 'Needlefish' because of its thin shape, with lower jaw protruding like a needle.
Needlefish is considered best when sliced into thin strips, and flavoured with vinegar or citrus juice. Filleted needlefish can also be deep-fried, or served in a soup along with leafy seaweed and garlic.
Flatfish
These large, fresh seafish are good eaten raw, but the fish can also be cut into slivers, parboiled, and then chilled to be eaten as an appetizer. The fish are also tasty when filleted and slowly simmered in a concentrated soy broth.
Dried small Flatfish are a common presence in Dynastic trail rations, as they maintain much of their flavour even when so preserved. In this form, they are usually chewed head-first.
Resplendent Air
Salmon
Living in the Western oceans, Salmon return to the rivers of their birth in the Air season in order to spawn. Fish caught just as they are about to make the journey upstream are considered to be most flavourful, but even if caught later there is a vast array of dishes to be made from the fish.
-- Salad made with pickled Salmon's Head: The head contains cartilage, resembling clear ice, extending from the beak to around the eyes. The head of a salted salmon can be thinly sliced and pickled to provide a crunchy accompaniment to spinach leaves and red cabbage.
-- Soup made from Salmon Odds-and-Ends: This is a type of soup to enjoy with warmed wine on cold nights when the northern winds strip the leaves from the trees. The head, backbone, internal organs, and other parts of a salted salmon are made into a soup with a heroic assortment of other ingredients, such as white radish, carrots, burdock, leeks, potatoes, bean curd, root jelly, and sometimes the lees from rice wine.
-- Fermented Salmon Gut: The internal organs attached to the salmon's backbone, commonly referred to as the guts, can be salted and fermented, then added to ingredients, such as thin strips of squid, to produce a fine dish.
-- Wine-soaked Salmon: Salt-cured salmon, thinly sliced and then marinated in rice wine, rendering it soft and palatable (though hardly high-class).
-- Salmon Roe: Raw salmon roe appears at this time. The roe is removed by hand from the egg sacs, and then washed and shaken in tepid water to separate the eggs, which can then be flavoured, according to one's preference, with soy sauce, Rice Wine, or stock, to produce a truly wonderful dish. A bowl of hot rice garnished with salmon roe stimulates the appetite.
Horse Mackerel
Horse Mackerel is readily available all year round, but they come in season at this time of year. The fish are a little over a foot in length, feeding on sandy sea floors. They can be enjoyed sliced raw, grilled with salt, or deep-fried and dipped in a vinegar sauce such as Cyanese Sauce.
It has a pleasant flavour, but it has another quality as well: consumed when imbibing alcohol, horse mackerel seems to lessen the pain of hangover upon the morrow.
Blood Tuna
Larger and less common than its White Tuna cousin, the Blood Tuna inhabits the colder waters of the northern Inner Sea. It is harvested year-round, though its numbers peak during this season. Its name comes from the colour of its flesh: unlike most fish, the Blood Tuna's meat is coloured a rich red, a result of life in colder regions (though this is relative... the vast waters of the West are inhospitable for both breeds of tuna). Its colour and strong flavour both pale as it is cooked, so it is thought best served raw, a state which requires it to be quite fresh or spoilage may have begun. It is considered a fish very much aligned with the element of Danaa'd, and is thus often the favoured dish of Water-aspected Dynasts and those who seek their good graces. The most prized portion of the fish is the eyeball, followed by the oil-rich flesh of the belly.
For those who cannot afford Blood Tuna, or whose tastes do not favour seafood, its appearance can be mimicked using smoked deer meat or raw horseflesh, though neither is considered a perfect substitute.
Descending Air
Snowfish
Descending Air is considered the best month for Snowfish (a seafish known in Low Realm as 'Cod'). Some say it bears the name 'snowfish' because it thrives during the colder seasons of Air and Water. Others say it is because snowfish meat is as white as snow. Either way, the fish is the most delicious during this month, when they spawn. The best way to serve fresh snowfish is in raw, as sashimi, but since the meat is rather tender another popular variation sees it lightly marinated and wrapped in kombu kelp.
Snowfish is also served as a soup, along with vegetables, though this is considered a patrician dish by some.
-- Snowfish Milt (seminal fluid) is considered a delicacy, boiled lightly and then cut it into pieces, served in Ponzu Sauce along with grated radish, sliced hot chili peppers, and chopped scallions.
-- Snowfish Roe, cooked with cane sugar and soy sauce, is considered a dish for stargazing or poetry parties, always served along with Rice Wine.
Descending Bonito
Bonito is a large seafish that swims along the currents near the surface of the ocean, swimming northward during the Wood season and returning south during the season of Air. Bonito caught during this month are full with the flavour of the sea and rich with fat, much to the joy of Dynastic gourmands, who best enjoy bonito at this time of year, terming it 'Descending Bonito'.
Bonito is a favourite of warriors and young Dragonblooded due to its high protein content, and it forms a key part of the meal regimen at many martial arts schools.
Bonito does not stay fresh for long, meaning many dishes involve steaming older fish, or drying it into blocks and shaving off flakes to create a rich broth known as 'Dashi'. However, the best way to enjoy Descending Bonito is to visit the coast where it can be taken straight off the boat, cut into fillets, and fried in its own fat along with black pepper and sea salt. Regardless of preparation method, bonito is complimented well by seasoning with ginger and garlic, though green horseradish and hot peppers are thought to clash with it and produce a poor dish unfit for Dynastic tables.
Oyster
Descending Air is also the best month for Oysters, often called the 'Milk of the Sea' because of its healthy properties (some also consider it an aphrodesiac). Often, oysters are served raw, presented on half-shells and sometimes accompanied by a sprig of green onion or lemongrass, or a dollop of Pestle Sauce (variations favoured particularly by aspects of Wood).
The oyster, along with well-distilled Rice Liquor and a slice of pickled ginger, forms the Radamant Shot, a mixture of seafood dish and cocktail named for the capital of Radamant Prefecture where it originates.
It is one of only a few seashells that are easy to digest, and so another popular dish sees oysters carefully baked in clay pots to soften their shells and create a juicy delicacy.
Fortunately for jewelers and chefs alike, the most sought culinary oysters are a different sort from the Pearl Oysters, which produce valuable Pearls but are not considered particularly flavourful.
Ascending Water
Battle Crab
Yellowtail
The seafish known as 'Yellowtail' is considered most delicious during Water's Ascent, with its fat content and flavour at their peak. Fresh Yellowtail are best served raw, though the fish is also popular when grilled, seasoned in soy sauce or the lees of Rice Wine.
Certain portions of the Yellowtail have a high blood content, and a texture comparable to liver. Purists discard this portion, but some (aspects of Earth predominantly) consider it a delicacy in its own right.
Flounder
The Flounder species of seafish is considered to be at its peak during Ascending Water, offering a rich and satisfying taste. It is a flat fish, of mottled colour to blend into the sea floor where it lies flat to escape detection. The meat found at the bottom of the fins is considered a delicacy, and invariably served raw, while the remainder is most often grilled, or broiled and wrapped in kelp.
Octopus
Octopus are eight-tentacled sea creatures who reside in the oceans of the West, who can range in size from as big as a hand to monstrosities on the scale of giant squid. They are a popular food in the Dynasty, particularly during the Water season, when younger octopus venture closer to the surface in search of food.
The most highly-regarded octopus dish is served raw and fresh, cut just before being served and still writhing as it is eaten, allowing true appreciation of its texture and flavour. It is accompanied by shredded cabbage and a paste of red peppers.
Another popular variation is 'Octopus Balls', chunks of octopus (the most expensive version uses whole baby octopi) wrapped within an egg-rich batter spiced with red peppers, pickled ginger, and green onions. At Dynastic tables, they are served along with white rice as an appetizer or side dish, while a lower-class version (with much less (and much less fresh) octopus and unspiced batter) is served from street stalls in many coastal cities. Another method of eating octopus involves sliding a tentacle onto a wooden skewer and grilling it: the Dynastic version is flavoured by spices and various woods added to the grilling coals, while the street-stall version covers up the declining flavour of older or rehydrated tentacles by coating them in a sticky sauce made from soy and beet sugar.
River Dragon
These coastal hunters live near fresh water estuaries hunting fish, seals, small whales, and the occasional ship. They can crawl onto land and sometimes move into swamps.
River Dragon meat is more exotic than truly flavourful, and thus is often served with large quantities of Southern spices such as cinnamon or cardamom. Its place at Dynastic tables is more a matter of bragging rights: particularly during the rich fishing around the Water season, Dynasts are often begged by local peasants to disperse river dragons which threaten their boats, and when such a beast is slain it can be transformed into the main course of a celebratory dinner party.
Anchovy
Anchovies can be found year-round in the waters of the Inner Sea, tiny fish swimming in massive schools and providing food for all manner of other sea creatures. On their own they are considered too low-class for aristocratic tables by some within the Scarlet Dynasty (particularly those of House Mnemon and House Tepet), but are widely eaten amongst peasants along the coasts of both the Threshold and Blessed Isle.
The largest anchovy catches arrive during the Water Season, and these fresh fish are often grilled over coals straight off the boats.
The remaining fish are stored in one of two ways: some are packed in barrels along with salt water and buried, decaying over some months to produce a strongly-flavoured sauce which (when created by master craftsmen) is used by chefs and gourmands to add a complex flavour to many dishes, and (when created in the hovels and cottages of the common folk) which can be used as a substitute for more costly soy sauce.
Others are packed in oil and sealed in clay jars to preserve them. Some Dynasts, particularly those of House Sesus and House Peleps, have a noted love of this preparation, leading to amusing anecdotes and at least one stage-scene: the comedic short The Jewelry Box by Bal Lancer revolves around a Sesus husband's efforts to hide his beloved jars of preserved sardines from an intolerant Mnemon wife... the quality of the traditional Shogunate forms used in its writing saw it praised by many, its utility as a political attack made it beloved by younger Dynasts of certain inclination seeking to demonstrate their talents at performance while making a social point.
Resplendent Water
Globefish
An old saying used in Arjuf states "My purse is too light to eat globefish". Indeed, Globefish is highly expensive, a Wyld-touched and highly poisonous seafish (known as 'Blowfish' in the West) gathered in the vast ocean of the West and requiring careful preparation by expert chefs. This, of course, has ensured its immense popularity within the Dynasty.
The globefish defends itself by two methods. The first is to enlarge itself, revealing hidden strength to frighten away predators by inflating its body with air. Spines, flush with its body normally, spring out when this occurs to present a bristling sphere.
Its second defense is a highly potent poison, found in its liver and intestines. Great care must be taken in preparing the fish for eating, as a single fish contains sufficient poison to slay over a dozen mortals. The poison is, however, easily detectable by its scent, and is thus not sufficiently subtle for most Dynastic uses.
| 7L/1 tick; Toxicity: 4; Tolerance: -/-; Penalty: -5 |
A few daring chefs have, in the past few decades, begun cutting ever closer to the intestines, to release small amounts of poison, creating a numbing sensation in the lips along with a great sense of risk amongst diners.
-- A popular dish consists of raw globefish, sliced very thin so that the patterns of the dishware can be seen through it. These slices are gathered up in groups by the diner, using chopsticks, and lightly dipped in an accompanying sauce (typically Ponzu Sauce, though others can also be encountered, with Biting Sauce a particular favourite of many Fire aspects).
-- Jellied Globefish is prepared by a two-day process of boiling, then served in a hot-pot along with vegetables. Particularly generous Dynasts will order millet and leftover rice added to the hot-pot broth after the meal, to create a rich porridge served to their servants and kitchen staff. When jellied globefish has been served in the hot-pot, this porridge can give those of the slave or peasant classes their only chance at a taste of the expensive delicacy.
-- Those who are true connoisseurs of globefish will often start the month of Resplendent Water with a dish of globefish, sliced twice as thick as normal and lightly dipped in boiling water. This presents the flavour of the globefish, and its true texture, unadulterated by seasonings or complex cuts.
-- Lightly salted globefish meat, still attached to the bones, is sometimes deep-fried in oil to produce an appetizer... not quite so expensive as finer cuts, it graces the tables of well-to-do patricians and younger Dynasts.
Sea Bream
Schools of Sea Bream congregate in the waters of the Inner Sea at this time of year to spawn. They are considered by many to be the "epitome of fish", their flavour the inspiration for that of all other fish. While they may be caught in the West year-round, Sea Bream achieve a superb flavour as their flesh turns pink during their Resplendent Water spawning.
A large number of recipes have been derived from sea bream. One of the most basic is simply to serve it raw, in thin slices, a popular method at the start of the month so its taste might be appreciated in a pure form. The fish may also be broiled or cooked in broth, though in either case it is usually accompanied only by herbs & spices, rather than by vegetables or other ingredients.
Dynastic gourmets say the flesh around the eyes of the sea bream is to be treasured as a true delicacy, best presented in a dish created by simmering the head of the fish.
Whitebait
The season of Water is the only time of year for fishing Whitebait, small seafish with shiny, semitransparent bodies. The most popular Dynastic custom for dining on Whitebait is to eat them live after dipping them in a sauce. Honey-thickened soy sauce is most common, though there are variations: many Wood aspects favour a Pestle Sauce of crushed cilantro and pine nuts, while those aspected towards Fire may prefer a spicy paste of tomato and hot red peppers).
Whitebait is also thought to go well with egg dishes, either deep-fried alongside them or steamed in egg custard.
Cuttlefish
Relatives of the squid, Cuttlefish are smallish creatures who reach the height of their flavour during the Water season. They are served in two ways: either sliced into rings which are floured and deep-fried, or hollowed out and stuffed (one common mixture includes crab meat, red peppers, citrus juice, and leafy herbs. Another is made up of cheese, tomato, bread, and olives). Cuttlefish eggs are favoured when they come into season in the month of Ascending Wood.
Siaka
These massive sharks are found only in deep water, grow to 40 feet and typically feed on whales. They can sense blood in the water for hundreds of miles and can easily swallow a man whole.
Because of their size and ferocity, siaka are prized in Dynastic kitchens, the expense and effort of killing one putting it beyond the reach of the more patrician classes.
Siaka, along with lesser species of sharks, are most valued for the dish 'Shark Fin Soup', created from the fins of sharks which have been shredded in a broth, along with mushrooms. Shark fin has relatively little flavour of its own, but it is prized for its exquisite texture. Another method of cooking involves flouring and then frying, serving over vegetables, but this is a lower-class method. A celebratory feast after a Dynastic siaka hunt will see the whole creature consumed (save the head, which is usually preserved as a trophy), but otherwise the fins are the only portion to reach Dynastic tables.
-- Hakarl is a Haslanti dish that consists of siaka meat that has been salted, buried for several months, and then dried for a few more months. It is usually accompanied by a shot of Brenivinn, a caraway-flavored schnapps. Hakarl is an acquired taste, and not one usually found on Dynastic plates.
Descending Water
Rain Mackerel
Fishermen in the Inner Sea begin catching Rain Mackerel during the heavy downpours of Descending Water, when their schools are attracted to the surface by the drumming of the rain. The fish are, however, sometimes caught during unseasonal monsoons which hit the Inner Sea, making them available year-round.
Fresh Rain Mackerel can be eaten raw, grilled with volcanic salts (a Fire-aspect favourite), or preserved in soybean paste and eaten cold along with rice wine.
The ovaries of this fish are considered a delicacy, creating a delicious hors d'oeuvre when dried and salted.
Anglerfish
The Anglerfish is a Wyld-touched creature of the Western oceans, carrying a glowing 'fishing line' which attracts smaller fish into its toothy maw. There have been reports of truly massive Anglers, but those which reach Dynastic tables during the month of Water's Descent are less than a half-yard in length. This month is the only time Anglerfish can be caught, unless the Chosen of Danaa'd dive down to the depths where they usually roam.
-- Despite its grotesque appearance, nothing in an anglerfish needs to be discarded. The meat, gills, liver, tail fin, ovary, stomach, and skin are known as the Seven Tools of the Angler. The 'Tools' can be cooked with broth or soybean paste, to produce a delicious dish with many layers of flavour.
-- The liver of the Anglerfish is a particularly popular delicacy, mashed with vinegar and soybean paste and then topped with shredded ginseng.
-- The glowing line of the Anglerfish begins to dim upon its death, though it will still glow somewhat for a month or more. The line is highly bitter, enough to ruin any dish to which it is added, but contains concentrated essence for which some Dragonblooded (particularly the outcastes of the Imperial Navy) are willing to bear the disgusting flavour.
| If the line of an Anglerfish is consumed within five days of its death, the eater regains one mote of personal or peripheral essence. |
Giant Squid
The Giant Squid is a solitary hunter of the deep ocean, using their tentacles to grab prey up to fifty feet away. Feeding on whales, they fear little but Siaka, usually releasing a cloud of ink to escape unseen.
Giant squid are often caught during the Water season, when they roam closest to the Blessed Isle hunting for whales. They are a danger to fishing boats, and so local Dynasts and the Imperial Navy sometimes hunt the creatures to drive them off. They are considered a delicacy which bolsters strength, and are most often cooked either grilled over coals with soy sauce and a tomato-onion chutney (a well-known dish of Eagle Prefecture cuisine), or simmered in a thick broth made from their own ink and red peppers.
Whale
Whales are massive creatures which roam the vast oceans of the West, feeding on large schools of tiny sea creatures (though some also inhabit the large rivers of the Scavenger Lands). They are hunted across Creation due to the valuable resources which can be gathered from their bodies. Most valuable by far is 'Ambergis', a substance found in whale intestines used in the manufacture of high-class perfumes. The baleen in whale mouths is employed to stiffen corsets and dresses, though First Age relics of that sort employ instead the products of advanced metallurgy. Whale oil is used not only in Western cooking but also as a source of fuel for lamps and cooking fires, vital in a region where neither wood nor the fuels of the Earth are readily available.
Perhaps the least valuable part of the whale is its meat, though this is by no means inexpensive. In the North, blubber is kept as a protein-rich food to be chewed over long days hunting walrus and seals, but the tables of the Dynasty prefer the meat cut free of such large fatty deposits. Whale meat is thought best when served raw, or lightly seared on the outside, as more substantial cooking causes it to become too chewy.
Nori
Nori, sheets of dried seaweed 'paper', is a staple at tables all along the coast of the Blessed Isle, as well as the near Threshold. It provides a bit of ocean flavour to the bland grains and vegetables upon which most peasants subsist, serving as a condiment of sorts, while many taverns will serve thin slices as a snack to accompany beer or rice wine, or to satiate customers awaiting the arrival of more substantial fare.
In Dynastic cuisine, Nori is shaped into elaborate, brittle sculptures to sit atop serving platters, or sometimes deep-fried in bunches to form 'nests' for roe or thick sauces. Some Water-aspects who like naught but the tastes of the sea may keep some Nori handy to add into other dishes, though this is considered by some to be rude and low-class. Nori can, however, replace noodles in many dishes, and serves as a wrapping when preparing bite-sized appetizers.
Though served year-round, the best Nori is thought to come during the season of Descending Water, the month when most of the stuff finishes a drying process started in the previous month. It is during this time that Nori is most employed in Dynastic dishes, sometimes on its own merits rather than as accompaniment.
Ascending Earth
Sea Urchin
Sea Urchin is a popular Dynastic dish, both for its flesh and for its gonads. The spiny creatures are harvested along beaches and by divers throughout the Earth season, though the best time is during Pasiap's Ascent: starting the season firm and full, the flesh of the sea urchin softens and loses shape as time drags on.
The flesh of a sea urchin is popular when served shucked atop a portion of white rice, accompanied by citrus juice and salt or soy sauce and green horseradish.
Sea urchin gonads come in three colours, depending on subspecies, and are considered worth harvesting only during the season when they release their roe. The green sea urchin releases eggs during Ascending Earth; the white sea urchin, during Resplendent; and the red sea urchin during Descending. The gonads of sea urchins are soft, with a paste-like consistency, and are most often served either in the shell along with white onion and citrus juice (a spoon is required), or mixed with various spices to create a salty dipping sauce for bread.
Surf Clam
The Surf Clam inhabits shallow waters along the shorelines of the Inner Sea, and is favoured by many for its fine texture, which is thought to be best appreciated when served simply over rice. Once relatively common, the surf clam yield has been slowly decreasing in recent centuries, increasing its price. This has seen many patrician eateries begin to use the similar-looking Piddock (normally peasant fisher fare), calling it 'White Surf Clam.' To anyone who knows the texture of true Surf Clam, however, the piddock is a poor substitute indeed.
Cockles
Cockles are found in shallow waters along the coasts of the Blessed Isle from northeast to southeast. Fresh cockles have thick flesh with a firm texture and a flavour comparable to chicken, but as they age they become thin, chewy, and unpalatable.
They are served raw or grilled on skewers along with onions and fruit, and near the end of the month the last of them are often cooked in a chowder with cream and vegetables.
Resplendent Earth
Stone Flounder
Stone Flounder are flat seafish, who were named due to the protrusion on their backs, which makes them look like they are carrying a stone.
They are best eaten raw in paper-thin slices, dipped in citrus juice, vinegar, or soy sauce, but can also be chopped and simmered with sugar and soy sauce to create a dish popular with those taking meals in steam baths or at hot springs.
Lover's Clams
The month of Resplendent Earth is considered a good time for clam gathering on the beaches of the Blessed Isle, as the ebb tide lasts longer during the daylight hours. Lover's and Asari clams are the major harvests of such gatherings, their meat having reached its thickest and most succulent point during the Earth season.
The shell of the Lover's Clam is known as a symbol of fidelity in the West, as each is slightly unique: half of one clam's shell will never match half of another's.
Lover's clams have a unique flavour, neither quite like fish nor meat. They are either served in a simple broth made from green tea and cilantro, or broiled along with chopped vegetables and served in their shells as appetizers. The guts of the clams are highly digestible and rich in minerals and vitamins, which means that they are excellent as food accompanying rice liquors. Lover's and asari clams are also considered excellent broiled to make a seafood broth.
Asari Clams
Less distinctive than Lover's Clams, Asari Clams are gathered at the same time (though they are plentiful year-round) and are usually thought to have benefits for those in ill health. Asari clams are served in broth or broiled, but the most popular Asari dish consists of clams simmered in soybean paste along with green onions, considered an excellent drinking dish to accompany rice wine.
Descending Earth
Conger Eel
Conger Eel are a shorter species of eel, living inside holes they dig in the mud along the seabed. They have a light taste, considered at its best during Descending Earth, when they are ready to lay eggs.
Conger eel has flavour sufficient to be served raw, but it can also be enjoyed grilled in sauce, simmered, or even breaded and deep-fried along with a similar preparation of vegetables.
--- Conger Curd: The most luxurious dish made from conger eels is prepared by taking several baby eels and placing them in a pot of water with a large block of bean curd.The pot is heated, and as they become uncomfortably hot, the baby eels burrow down into the cooler bean curd, where they are eventually cooked alive. The beancurd loaf is then sliced and served.
Abalone
Abalone are considered most flavourful during the month of Descending Earth, just before they spawn. At this time, the genitals of male abalone turn light brown and female genitals turn deep green. Once they spawn, during Ascending Wood, they take on a foul taste which sees them rejected from Dynastic tables until the arrival of the next Earth season.
Abalone flesh is considered delicious when served raw, either over rice or as Mizugai, a Shogunate-era dish of abalone rubbed in salt, then chopped and served in ice-cold water.
The guts of the Abalone are also favoured, either served fresh with vinegar or be boiled and served with a cream-egg sauce. Abalone guts are thought to be good for the eyes.
Gemstone Trout
More common in the Scavenger Lands than the Blessed Isle throughout most of the year, spawning during Descending Earth sees an increase in the population of these riverfish within the Isle's river systems. It gets its name from the gleaming, multicolored scales which cover its back.
It has light, tender flesh and a mild, somewhat nutty flavor, with earthy tones sometimes present in fish caught amidst upland streams. The fish is thought to be best when prepared either grilled or fried, rather than broiled, and is served most often on a bed of steamed vegetables.
Ascending Wood
Ascending Bonito
Bonito is a large seafish that swims along the currents near the surface of the ocean, swimming northward during the Wood season and returning south during the season of Air. Bonito caught during this month have a flavour which is considered more 'fresh' and 'light' than during their return, though with less of the flavour of the sea.
Bonito is a favourite of warriors and young Dragonblooded due to its high protein content, and it forms a key part of the meal regimen at many martial arts schools.
Bonito does not stay fresh for long, meaning many dishes involve steaming older fish, or drying it into blocks and shaving off flakes to create a rich broth. However, the best way to enjoy Ascending Bonito is to visit the coast where it can be taken straight off the boat, cut into fillets, and seared quickly on the outside while being left raw inside. Regardless of preparation method, bonito is complimented well by seasoning with ginger and garlic, though green horseradish and hot peppers are thought to clash with it and produce a poor dish unfit for Dynastic tables.
Cuttlefish Eggs
There is a saying, "Cuttlefish eggs grow tasty when wisteria flowers begin to bloom". True to these words, the clusters of large eggs laid by cuttlefish are abundant off the shores of the western Blessed Isle when Sextes Jylis begins his Ascent, and as a result, this delicacy is a must for drinking parties and dining tables during that time.
The flavour of cuttlefish eggs is quite distinctive, and they are usually eaten shredded in a sauce made from vinegar, soy, and broth, after the outer skin has been discarded. The fresh ones, though, are thought to be best eaten raw, bite-sized accompaniments to wine and spirits.
Char
The star of freshwater fishing on the Blessed Isle is the Char, which become most delectable during the early Wood season. During the Ascending month it is thought best prepared either raw or by grilling with salt, moving on to deep-frying or simmering through Wood's Resplendance and then smoking as the season Descends. Smoked char destined for Dynastic consumption is an elaborate affair, flavoured and scented by careful choice of woods sprinkled with herbs and spices during smoking.
Resplendent Wood
Sweetfish
Sweetfish are a type of riverfish most plentiful in Wood's Resplendance. They are known amongst Dynastic gourmets for their characteristic 'forest' aroma, a result of eating moss along the riverbed. They are considered best eaten salted and grilled, but they can also be served raw, while baby sweetfish can be floured and deep-fried to create a simple appetizer. Sweetfish, despite its rather light taste, is rich in protein, and is said to be healthy for the heart.
Sweetfish are favoured again much later in the year, in the month of Descending Fire, as Downstream Sweetfish.
Sea Bass
Sea Bass are seafish which grow abundant in the Western oceans during the early Wood season. It swims in a distinctive fashion, almost perfectly straight, which some refer to as an 'innocent way of swimming'.
The light taste and elegant, translucent appearance of sea bass is a perfect dish for the warm spring weather of Ascending Wood, but the fish is firm, and can also be enjoyed in paper-thin slices, dipped in a sauce of mustard, vinegar, and soybean paste. It can also be enjoyed salted and grilled, sprinkled with a few drops of rice wine before serving.
Pregnant women are often encouraged to eat sea bass, as it is thought to accelerate growth in the womb and prevent miscarriages.
Goby
The Goby season kicks in at this time of year, filling the brackish waters of river estuaries with small fish hiding amongst rocks and weeds. Fresh goby is best eaten in raw, paper-thin slices, a painstaking effort to prepare. Another way of enjoying the delicacy is slitting open its back to take the bones out, and then dusting with a little salt and flour before frying.
Sea Cucumber
Sea Cucumbers reside in the mud on the ocean floor, harvested by divers or during low tide. The plump, chunky examples are good to eat, while the ones that bear spines tend to present too much difficulty.
A sea cucumber is prepared by first immersing it in salt for an hour, a process which shrinks the sea cucumber into a solid mass. The shrunken sea cucumber is then washed in water, and both ends are chopped off, before using the knife to split it open to remove the guts.
The sea cucumber can then be pickled, or sprinkled with a little salt or soy sauce to produce a popular dish.
-- The gut of the sea cucumber is considered a luxury dish, which can be eaten as is, though it is better when complimented by other ingredients, such as thin strips of squid.
-- The ovaries of sea cucumbers can be dried to produce a Shogunate-era dish called Konoko, which is a delicacy amongst delicacies.
Descending Wood
Takabe
Most seafish taste the best during the colder months, but Takabe is an exception. The fish starts to put on fat in the Wood season and is the best right before its spawning as Sextes Jylis begins his descent. Takabe are about 8 inches long, with a yellow stripe running along their backs. Its fatty but easy-to-eat white meat tastes best when broiled and seasoned with salt.
Whiting
This seafish bears silvery-white scales and white flesh with a sophisticated taste. It is considered good raw or for broiled dishes, but perhaps the best way to enjoy Whiting is a deep fry in a batter spiced with red peppers. Whiting cut into strips, dried over-night and broiled lightly makes an excellent side dish for a flower-gazing party.
Pike Eel
Larger than the Conger Eel which also graces Dynastic tables, the Pike Eel is considered good broiled after being marinated in sweetened soy sauce, or boiled lightly and served with vinegar-based dressing and a clear soup on the side. It can sometimes be difficult to eat, due to the fact that it is full of small bones, and often the staff of a Dynastic kitchen spend a great deal of time removing such bones before service.
-- Peony Eel is a particular delicacy made from pike eel. Slices of eel are dusted with starch and then boiled lightly. The flesh 'pops' out to resemble little white peony flowers, and is served as a light dish with an accompanying sauce. Possibilities include pickled plums, vinegar & soybean paste, or soy sauce and grated green horseradish.
-- Eel Skin is another dish derived from Pike Eel. On the Blessed Isle, eel meat is often used to make dishes for wealthy customers, while leftover skin is usually broiled and sold to poorer clients at market. Small bones often stick to the eel skin, which are removed as the skin is sliced into strips before serving with sliced cucumber and a few drops of vinegar. Few Dynasts would dream of touching such a low-class dish to their mouths.
Ascending Fire
Reef Squid
The best squid species to be enjoyed during the Fire season (when it appears near the coast of the Blessed Isle), the Reef Squid is a denizen of the Western oceans known for its wide fin, growing to be about 20-25 inches long. Because the body is thick and rather chewy, reef squid is best enjoyed by simmering slightly in boiling hot water after the surface of the body has been lightly slit in a cross-hatch pattern.
Amberjack
Amberjacks are voracious seafish predators, residing near reefs and wrecks where they hunt squid and smaller fish. Amberjack flesh has a light taste, best eaten chilled in raw slices, but can also be enjoyed grilled with salt, basted with sweetened soy sauce, or steamed with rice wine.
Sometimes Amberjack is used as a substitute for White Tuna in certain recipes. It does not attempt to imitate that more expensive fish, having a quite different flavour, but its tendency to respond similarly to other flavours and seasonings allows it to fit well into dishes composed for tuna.
Gizzard Shad
A small seafish, eaten raw. Young Gizzard Shad, measuring about 2 inches long, are consumed alive, while adults that have grown to about four to six inches are served fresh-dead, topped with slices of pickled ginger.
Resplendent Fire
Mackerel
Mackerel is a seafish that becomes tastier as it gets fatter, during the Resplendence of Hesiesh. Locals near fishing ports tend to savour the delicacy raw, though most Dynastic gourmets think the fish should be eaten either marinated or heated, be it grilled with salt or simmered with a broth of citrus and hot peppers.
Waspfish
The Waspfish is a Wyld-touched creature of the Western oceans, known for its strange shape and fantastical colouration (most common are yellow and black stripes).
While rather bland in flavour, it maintains its colour when cooked, making it an excellent ingredient amongst the vibrant colours and strong spices of seasonal cooking under Hesiesh's purview.
Hair Crab
Hair Crabs are burrowing crustaceans native to the river estuaries of the southern Threshold and the coast of the Blessed Isle across the Inner Sea. Each adult hair crab is about the size of a human palm (excluding legs), and their name comes from the bumpy bristles which can be seen on their shells.
Hair crabs have a chewy texture, and their flesh is often prepared by immersion in boiling water with a dash of salt and a few drops of vinegar. Other popular variations include stir-fried vegetables with crab meat and crab roe, as well as light Tea Soup with crab meat dumplings.
-- Drunken Crab is a more extravagant dish, a famous product of Arjuf cuisine (in which the hair crab is a top delicacy). It is made by first pouring wine into the mouth of a hair crab until its movements slow, then dropping them whole into boiling water. As their colour deepens to crimson, they are removed and served, their flesh removed with knife or chopsticks and dipped in a light sauce of black rice vinegar and ginger.
White Tuna
Known in Firetongue as Thonblan, the White Tuna lives in the lower half of the Inner Sea. It is the more common of the two tuna breeds, though of a smaller average size. It is harvested year-round, though its numbers peak during this season. Its flesh is dense, cooking to an ivory colour (hence its name) which finds favour with chefs seeking to highlight visual elements such as vibrant vegetables or marks from grilling. The flavour is mild, subtle and without the taste of the sea found in other fish.
White Tuna is not so popular as its cousin the Blood Tuna in most Dynastic circles, as it is both cheaper and provides a less 'pure' flavour. It does however find some favour amongst some (those of the Earth aspect particularly) who find themselves dining on seafood they would otherwise avoid. Providing white tuna for Earth aspects at a meal with maritime themes is seen as a sign of respect, while ordering a dish of this fish for an aspect of Water is something of an insult.
White tuna, sealed in clay jars filled with oil, is found at tables across the South and East, but this method causes it to lose even more favour in Dynastic circles, where freshness is prized.
Descending Fire
Saury
Saury, a long-bodied seafish, fatten up for the colder months during the Fire season, making them a valued delicacy at this time. The fresh ones are eaten raw, along with green horseradish and pickled ginger, while older fish are halved and grilled with salt. The bitter taste of Saury intestines means they are discarded, and a chef must take great care when cutting the fish so that he does not cut the intestines and ruin the flavour of the remaining flesh.
A common expression goes "In comes saury, out go masseurs", as the fish is said to help relax muscles and invigorate the blood.
Downstream Sweetfish
While most plentiful during the Wood season, Sweetfish re-appear on Dynastic menus during Descending Fire, the month when surviving sweetfish turn rusty in colour and go downstream to spawn. They contain much fat, and the female sweetfish carry lots of eggs, making them good for grilled or broiled dishes.
Cherry Shrimp
These nocturnal creatures are also called 'Sun Shrimp' (though the Immaculate Order frowns on the term), as they emit light as they swim near the sea surface during nightfall. They turn a beautiful pink color when boiled, and are best cooked almost as soon as they are netted. Cherry Shrimp are eaten with vinegar, soy sauce, broth and/or grated white radish.
Calibration
On Calibration, the seas are empty of fishing boats, the only seafood remaining that caught in the last days of Descending Fire or preserved from earlier months. And who would want to eat food brought up from the darkest depths and distant oceans during this dangerous time?
Calibration places limits on the quality of Dynastic food, particularly seafood (where freshness is prized). A few Dynasts will offer exorbitant fees for Calibration fishing expeditions, or will force their retainers to undertake such missions in order to deliver certain fish to their tables, but most accept the limitations as part of Calibration's darkness and eagerly await the Caviar that will arrive with the coming of the Air season.
Conventions on Presentation and Consumption
In traditional Dynastic cuisine, there are strict conventions concerning the serving and eating of fish.
When served whole, seafish are placed on their platters with bellies facing the diner, while riverfish are placed with backs facing the diner. After finishing the upper side of a fish, it is proper for the diner remove the backbone and other bones, and then eat the bottom side. Some people turn the whole fish upside down, bones still attached, to eat the bottom side. This not only looks messy, but is considered bad manners and low-class. It is generally considered good manners to eat every piece of meat, so only bones are left on the plate. These bones are thought best arranged in a specific order, with the head and the backbone left at the center of the plate, and the smaller bones piled up at the right-front corner. An old saying from the Shogunate era states that the bones of a properly-enjoyed fish ought be so clean that "even a cat would step over them without stopping". However, some in the Dynasty have discarded this tradition, considering it too messy and unseemly to pick at bones. These more hedonistic individuals eat just the upper side of a fish when a whole fish is served, leaving the entire bottom side beneath the bones to be discarded. While more traditional Dynasts glower at the custom, it is generally not considered an insult to consume fish in this way.
When serving a fillet of fish, the cook should place it on a plate so the skin faces away from the diner, making it easier for the guest to eat the meat with chopsticks or fork and knife.
Sashimi
Raw fish, known as 'Sashimi', is generally served without spices, and trimmed of both skin and bones. This is considered a pure dish, allowing the diner to taste the seafood without any distraction or disguise of its authentic flavours. White rice is a standard accompaniment.
Some purists consider it barbaric, even offensive, to flavour or season sashimi, though others enjoy dipping in soy sauce, pickled ginger, and spicy radish paste.
