Bijia Fish Maw with Minced Chicken

Bijia fish maw comes from the long-whiskered catfish (Leiocassis longirostris) caught in a narrow stretch of the Yangtze near Shishou, Jingzhou — a natural backflow bay that produces fish with unusually thick, dense air bladders whose cross-section mirrors the silhouette of nearby Pen Stand Mountain, giving the ingredient its name. By the Song dynasty it was reputedly already a tribute delicacy; under the Ming Hongwu reign it was reputedly entered into the imperial tribute register, and sources note it was priced by the gram in later eras, earning the nickname 'golden belly' (金肚). The dish pairing the maw with hand-minced chicken puree appears in Qing-era Jingzhou banquet records as the opening prestige course. On 26 December 2011, the State Administration of Quality Supervision granted geographic-indication protection to Shishou bijia fish maw, restricting the designation to 14 townships along the Yangtze in Shishou. In December 2020, 鸡茸笔架鱼肚 was enshrined in the first 21 Hubei Chu Cuisine Standards (楚菜标准) as Jingzhou's flagship entry.

The maw dissolves on the tongue — a trembling, ivory square that gives way to bone broth and a whisper of chicken. Gelatinous warmth without weight. The soup beneath it carries everything.

Dried fish maw is nearly pure type-I collagen — protein content 76–84%, fat under 1%. Soaking for 8–12 hours rehydrates the cross-linked collagen matrix; gentle braising at 70–80°C uncoils the triple-helical collagen strands into soft gelatin without dissolving them entirely, producing the characteristic custard-like bite. The chicken puree (鸡茸) is emulsified with egg whites and cold broth before steaming: egg-white proteins denature at 60–65°C, trapping incorporated fat and stock into a silken, cloud-white foam — the 芙蓉 (hibiscus) texture that offsets the maw's translucent richness.