Tusun Dong (Sea-worm Jelly)

Tusun dong is a translucent, springy jelly set from boiling and cooling a coastal marine worm known scientifically as the edible sipunculid.

Popular along the Quanzhou coast, it grew from local fishers' use of the tidal-flat worm into a distinctly southern-Fujian traditional snack.

Cut into cubes and plated, it is dipped in soy sauce, vinegar, mustard or minced garlic and eaten cool and slippery, a refreshing appetiser in summer.

The clear jelly with the worm faintly visible inside, an icy springy bite and a clean briny-sweet flavour make it instantly recognisable.