Xiamen Seafood

Xiamen is famous for its seafood. The seafood is of good quality and great varieties. Lobster, abalone, crab, shrimp, snail and shellfishes are refreshing and delicious. Especially in winter, they have excellent tastes.


Xiamen seafood dishes

Seafood is all over the place in Xiamen, and especially in Gulangyu, and is a great introduction to the culinary delights of the town. It has a long history here, locally the seafood has been around forever, but as early on as the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD), grouper, yellow croaker, red crab, lobster and sleeve-fish were already frequently ordered dishes in local hotels.


Strange Taste of Xiamen locals

The Chinese in Xiamen do have the strangest taste in their selection of edible fruits of the deep, with tendencies to select the most formidable, and horrific looking of the days catch. Having got over this, however, the seafood here is always fresh (you normally get a swim by preview outside most of the restaurants) and, once cooked, is delicious. Oysters (Muli), Crabs (Pangxie) and Prawns (Xia) are the best of the batch.

One final warning:

The Chinese have an amazing ability to place the most armoured of food into their mouths and, after a bit of teeth grinding and spitting, to end up with a plateful of bones and a bellyful of flesh. Attempt to follow with caution.