It's Time for New Year's Shopping: 7 Smart Ways to Choose and Safely Eat Dried Goods
Introduction: With the Spring Festival approaching, it's time to shop for New Year's goods. Dried goods are surely on your list, but how do you choose high-quality ones? This guide teaches you how to smartly select 7 types of dried goods and provides safe eating methods to ensure a healthy New Year. Come and take a look, and you're guaranteed to buy high-quality mushrooms, dried shrimp, abalone...
● Golden Needle Mushrooms
Good quality golden needle mushrooms come in two colors: golden yellow and snow white, while those produced in mainland China may have a coffee hue. However, many vendors use sulfur dioxide to smoke the mushrooms to enhance their color, and long-term consumption can affect health. Sampling reports have found that the non-compliance rate for golden needle mushrooms is as high as 70%, so consumers must be cautious when purchasing.
Smart Choice: Golden needle mushrooms with thicker bodies, a light brown color, and sufficient dryness (which feel prickly to the touch) are of better quality. Be wary of those with a bright orange or overly white color.
Safe to Eat: Before cooking, soak the mushrooms in 25°C cold water for 60 minutes, or in 45°C warm water for 20 minutes. Then, twist them dry and repeat the soaking process with fresh water 2-3 times. This can remove about 70% of the sulfur dioxide. Boiling for another 3 minutes afterward can remove over 90%, making them safe to eat. Alternatively, soaking them in 100°C hot water for 20 minutes and repeating 2-3 times can also remove over 90% of the sulfur dioxide.
● Bamboo Fungus
Many manufacturers bleach bamboo fungus to make it look snow-white and beautiful. Sampling reports show a non-compliance rate of 71.43% for bamboo fungus, even higher than for golden needle mushrooms.
Smart Choice: A yellowish-brown color is normal for bamboo fungus; those that are snow-white and pretty have likely been artificially bleached. Choose bamboo fungus with intact stems and caps, good dryness, and a springy feel when pressed; those that are dry and flat are of poor quality. A slightly sour smell is normal, but if there is a pungent chemical odor, do not buy it.
Safe to Eat: Refer to the method for golden needle mushrooms, but since bamboo fungus cooks easily, it is recommended to use cold water to soak and remove any residual chemicals.
● Shiitake Mushrooms
The biggest worry with shiitake mushrooms is buying stale or even moldy, low-quality products. Earlier this year, sampling of New Year goods in traditional markets found that many dried shiitake mushrooms had yellowish folds on the back, possibly due to excessive soaking in sulfur dioxide.
Smart Choice: Vendors from Dihua Street share tips for choosing shiitake mushrooms. Good ones have a natural aroma; avoid those with a moldy smell. Choose mushrooms with deep brown, thick caps, a complete shape, and firm, thick stems. If they are broken or not dry enough, they are not fresh. Additionally, the folds should be off-white. If they are too white, too yellow, or even have mold spots (black dots), they may have been treated with chemicals or stored for too long and are not recommended for purchase.
To avoid overpaying for low-quality mushrooms, pay attention to the stems. Manufacturers with low labor costs cut the stems off to use as a vegetarian meat floss material, so the stems are very short and flattened. However, in places with expensive labor, it's not cost-effective to spend time trimming the stems.
Safe to Eat: Soak the mushrooms in water before cooking to remove dust and any potential residual chemicals.
● Dried Shrimp
The price of dried shrimp depends on its size, but this is not equivalent to its quality. Some dried shrimp have edible colorants or sulfur dioxide added to make their color bright and red, so when buying, you need to use your eyes, nose, and hands.
Smart Choice: It is recommended to choose dried shrimp that have been peeled, with shells and legs removed. The color should be a natural light orange. Shrimp that are overly orange in color or have a strange smell may be problematic. Also, feel for dryness; if they are damp or moldy, do not buy them.
Safe to Eat: Soak in warm water or blanch before cooking to reduce the residue of colorants or sulfur dioxide.
● Mullet Roe Safe to Eat: Mullet roe is high in salt, so patients with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and kidney disease should consume it in moderation. It is also not recommended for the general public to eat too much, as its high wax content is difficult for the human body to digest. It's best to just eat a few slices to taste the flavor. Overconsumption can easily cause diarrhea and vomiting. ● Abalone Investigations have found that some vendors sell canned conch meat as abalone to increase the price. The "nine-hole" abalone from Spain and Chile looks very similar to real abalone and was once found by Japan to contain lethal "paralytic shellfish poison." Scholars have urged importers of seafood to require toxicity test reports from the place of origin for peace of mind. Otherwise, if problems arise, the damage to their reputation is not worth it. Smart Choice: 1. Check the packaging: Identify the two common English names on imported cans: "ABALONE" (abalone) and "LOCOS" (shellfish). 2. Check the appearance: Abalone has a convex navel and ridged edges, with a yellowish-brown color. Shellfish, on the other hand, have a concave navel, no ridged edges, and a whiter color. Safe to Eat: The secret is, whether it's abalone, nine-hole, or conch meat larger than a thumb, it's safer to eat only the meat and not the digestive gland (mid-gut), as this is where the digestive tract and internal organs of the shellfish are located, and it is the most toxic part if the shellfish is poisonous. ● Dried Scallop Like many dried goods, dried scallops can be artificially bleached, and there are even "fake dried scallops" made from fish paste. Smart Choice: A golden amber color is best. Fresh scallops are firm in shape without cracks or disintegration. If the surface is damp, the color is偏黑 (biased towards black) or偏白 (biased towards white), or it has a fishy and foul smell, the quality is poor. It is recommended to taste a piece before buying. If it is very salty, it may be imported from mainland China. As for scallops made from fish paste, they will be looser, so you can try to peel them apart to feel the texture. Safe to Eat: Soak the dried scallops in hot water, changing the water as needed, until they are completely soft.