鲥鱼 (shíyú) · Reeves shad (Tenualosa reevesii), Chinese shad

Measure Word

一条鲥鱼 tiáo

Meanings

1 Reeves shad (Tenualosa reevesii)
2 Chinese shad

About the ingredient

水产 Fish and seafood

A shad with rich, fatty flesh and very many fine bones, one of the three Yangtze delicacies, traditionally steamed with its scales left on. Wild Yangtze shad has all but vanished, so what is sold is farmed or imported.

Contains fish

Characters

Examples

HSK 4

长江三鲜里，最有名的就是鲥鱼。

Chángjiāng sān xiān lǐ, zuì yǒumíng de jiùshì shíyú.

Of the 'three Yangtze delicacies', the most famous is Reeves shad.

HSK 7-9

鲥鱼最好清蒸，保留带鳞的鲜味。

Shíyú zuìhǎo qīngzhēng, bǎoliú dài lín de xiān wèi.

Shad is best steamed whole, keeping the scales to preserve the flavor.

Tips

history

One of 长江三鲜 (Yangtze's three delicacies, with 河豚 pufferfish and 刀鱼 knifefish). Due to overfishing and dam construction, wild Reeves shad has been commercially extinct in the Yangtze since the 1990s; most fish sold as 鲥鱼 today are American shad farmed as substitutes.