At 5:00A.M., the fishermen in Kouhu Town, Yunlin County, are waiting for their most important moment in a year.
凌晨5点的台湾云林县口湖乡的渔民迎来了决定他们一年生计的关键时刻。
Mullet roe is a specialty in the areas along the southwest coast of Taiwan.
乌鱼子是台湾西南沿岸的特产取乌鱼卵腌制而成。
Looking like a China's ink stick, it's called "karasumi", literally "Tang Ink" in Japan.
由于形状像中国的墨日本人把乌鱼子称为“唐墨”。
The Japanese also see it one of the top three delicacies in the world.
并把它视为世界三大美食之一。
Over the past 300 years, mullet roe was always one of the most valuable sea products in Taiwan.
三百多年来乌鱼子一直是台湾最贵重的渔获之一。
Around the Winter Solstice, adult mullets would breed in the waters off the southwest coast of Taiwan after a long trip from the sea areas off the north coast of the mainland.
每年冬至的前后十天成熟的乌鱼一定会从大陆北方沿海南下到温暖的台湾西南部海域产卵。
The captive breeding of mullet has emerged in the past 10 years.
最近10年台湾沿海各地开始人工养殖。
The mullet harvest season is also called the "Golden Season."
乌鱼丰收季节也被渔民们称为了“黄金季节”。
Mullets take 3 or 4 years to mature.
乌鱼需要养殖三到四年。
Their roes are big and taste good.
乌鱼卵也因此大而肥美。
Now, it has been the largest mullet roe production area in Taiwan.
现在,这里已经成为台湾岛内最大的乌鱼子产地。
The fresh mullet roes will be salted for 4 to 5 hours before pressed in order to squeeze out water.
取出鱼子后以食盐渗入各部位盐渍4至5个小时。
After dehydrated in the open air, they will turn into mullet roe products with expected firmness or color.
板压脱水,再经过日晒、风吹的过程才能制成优质的乌鱼子外型厚实饱满,色泽橙黄通透。
Mullet roes can be cooked in various ways, while the original taste can be best retained after they are roasted in a traditional way.
乌鱼子的吃法很多遵循古制的香烤最能发挥它的天然原味。
Rice wine would be sprayed over the roes before roasting.
炙烤之前,先要撒上米酒。
The roasting time is important.
而炙烤的时间很为重要。
Insufficient cooking would ruin the taste.
差上几秒,口感就会有天壤之别。
The fragrance will float out when both sides turn golden.
烤至双面金黄时,香气四溢。
Just after taking a bite, you can feel an extremely fine texture.
入口之后,通过轻微的黏牙感可以感受到它无比细腻的质地。
The slightly spicy radish and fresh garlic sprouts will enhance the fine texture of mullet roes.
再配上甘甜微辣的白萝卜和鲜辣的青蒜最大程度彰显乌鱼子绵密、软糯的原味。
Many restaurants have renovated recipes so far to cook mullet roes with vegetables and mullet meat.
除了最传统的香烤吃法,许多餐厅也开始推陈出新将它与蔬菜和乌鱼肉等食材混搭。