Autumn is the perfect time for seasonal delicacies—foodies shouldn't miss these three.

In autumn, whether it's seafood or freshwater fish, the freshness is simply unbeatable! Crabs, shrimp, shellfish, and snails are all at their most plump and delicious, and they are also very nutritious. Let's see what nutrition experts have to say about how to eat them.

1. Eel

Ricefield eel is not only a delicacy on the table, but its meat, blood, head, and skin also have certain medicinal values. According to "Compendium of Materia Medica," ricefield eel has effects such as nourishing blood, replenishing qi, reducing inflammation, disinfecting, and expelling wind-dampness. The meat of the ricefield eel is sweet and warm in nature, and has the effects of tonifying the middle and nourishing blood, and treating deficiency and damage. It is used in folk medicine to treat conditions like deficiency cough, damp-heat itching, hemorrhoids, anal fistula, and deafness. The head of the ricefield eel, calcined into ash and taken on an empty stomach with warm wine, can treat hard and painful breast lumps in women. Its bones, when used as medicine, also treat shin sores with quite significant effects. Moreover, eel is rich in DHA, lecithin, vitamin A, and iron. For diabetic patients, its low fat content and the presence of "eel factor" also help regulate and stabilize blood sugar.　　

When buying eel, choose ones that swim actively and are of medium size. After death, they produce histamine, which can easily cause food poisoning, so it's best to kill and cook them immediately. In addition, people with unhealed post-operative wounds or skin diseases should try to eat less of it.

Dried Scallop and Eel Congee

2. Shrimp

Shrimp is warm and sweet in nature, and slightly warm, entering the liver and kidney meridians. Shrimp meat has effects such as tonifying the kidney and strengthening yang, promoting lactation and resisting toxins, nourishing blood and securing essence, resolving stasis and detoxifying, replenishing qi and nourishing yang, unblocking collaterals to relieve pain, and stimulating appetite and resolving phlegm. Shrimp is also rich in magnesium, which plays an important regulatory role in heart activity and can well protect the cardiovascular system. It can reduce cholesterol levels in the blood, prevent arteriosclerosis, and at the same time dilate the coronary arteries, which is beneficial for preventing hypertension and myocardial infarction. Autumn shrimp are fresh in meat, have a great texture, and are rich in magnesium and calcium, which can help protect the cardiovascular system.

There are many ways to cook shrimp, such as in soups, stir-fried, or blanched. But a reminder to everyone: try to eat less of the shrimp head. Due to pollution, shrimp from coastal waters may accumulate some heavy metals such as arsenic, mercury, and lead, most of which are concentrated in the shrimp head.

Pumpkin and Fresh Shrimp Baked Rice

3. Pacific Saury

Pacific saury meat is a high-quality protein that is easy for the human body to digest and absorb. Moreover, the fish is rich in protein and fatty acids. According to analysis, Pacific saury contains indispensable polyunsaturated fatty acids for the human body, such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). EPA and DHA have the effect of inhibiting hypertension, myocardial infarction, and arteriosclerosis. The nutritional value of Pacific saury is highest in autumn. It has the effect of improving brain function and preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. If you have an oven at home, you might as well try oven-roasted Pacific saury. It should be noted that patients with liver and kidney diseases should not eat too much, as it may increase the metabolic burden.

Roasted Pacific Saury