Zhongshan Crisp-Grass Carp

Zhongshan crisp grass carp is a farmed variety that resembles the ordinary grass carp but is prized for its firm, crisp-tender flesh, native to the Changjiang Reservoir in Zhongshan. Its texture stays resilient even after cooking, markedly different from the soft flesh of common grass carp; it is honoured as a Zhongshan name fish and was protected as a national geographical indication product in 2008, with Dongsheng town its chief farming area.

Crisp grass carp farming began in the early 1980s when Dongsheng town pioneered pond rearing, developing a mature technique of fattening the fish on a specific feed (notably broad beans) to make the flesh crisp. Zhongshan's particular mountain water and feed formula are the key to its texture; "Zhongshan Crisp Grass Carp" was recognised as a national geographical indication product in 2008 and later listed among China's renowned specialty agricultural products.

The crisp grass carp is cooked in many ways, the most classic being briefly blanched thin slices or steamed with black bean sauce—the slices plunged for a few seconds in boiling broth stay crisp and springy; it is also steamed with black bean, stir-fried with ginger and scallion, or made into congee. Crisp yet not tough, holding its texture through long cooking, it is a fixture of Zhongshan restaurants and farm-stays.

Its unique flesh—crisp, springy and resilient through long cooking—born of the Changjiang Reservoir water and broad-bean feed, is the signature of Zhongshan crisp grass carp.