Categories: ALL / Agriculture, Forestry, Fishery, Minerals, Foods / Fishery Products / Fishery Products, Live, Fresh or Chilled
Product Feature
A shark fin has very little muscle tissue. There is a membrane, and in some cases a fatty layer under the skin, covering a bundle of collagen fibres spread out like a fan. In most fins these fibres are supported by a cartilaginous platelet in the centre. The cartilaginous platelet is absent in the caudal fin.Sharks do not have scales. The skin of the fins, like that of the rest of the shark?? body, is covered with large numbers of usually very small thorn-like structures or denticles. These make sharkskin feel like sandpaper.
The collagen fibres of the fin are rounded at the base, tapering to fine points at their extremities, giving the appearance of needles. Appropriately, they are commonly known as fin needles. Separately or joined as a bundle, the fin needles will eventually find their way in different preparations onto the dining table
2.1.3 The chemical composition
Nutritionally, the composition of 100 g of dried sharks??fin needles is as follows:
Water
14.0g
Protein*
83.5g
Fat
0.3g
Carbohydrate
0.0g
Ash
2.2g
Fibre
0.0g
Iron
15.2mg
Calcium
146.0mg
Phosphorus
194.0mg
Food energy
337kcal
The benefits of shark fin as documented by old Chinese medical books include the following: rejuvenation, appetite enhancement, nourishing to blood, beneficial to vital energy, kidneys, lungs, bones and many other parts of the body.
The more traditional person will swear to the benefits as claimed. On a radio show when the owner of a shark fin restaurant was asked about the health benefits of shark fin, he said that he consumed it daily and thus maintained his youthful appearance. An elderly shark fin trader reasoned that, since fins have had long years of exercise in the sea, there is no doubt that they are good for the bones and muscles of the consumer.
Most consumers note the bland taste of fin needles, which need to be cooked with various tasty ingredients to acquire any flavour. Few commented on the transparency of the fin needles, which make the food appealing to the eye.
Wet fins are rehydrated ready to cook fin needles. They are sold in supermarkets and retail outlets for the restaurant and the home consumer. Some processors add sodium carbonate to the soak water to accelerate the rehydration process and increase the rate of water absorption by over 250 %. Using established processing methods, one kilogram of raw fin yields 0.75 to 1.5kg of wet fins, the cleaner the cut of the raw fin, the higher the yield. The addition of sodium carbonate will yield 4kg of wet fins from 1kg of raw fins. Wet fins processed this way look plump and juicy but shrink once heat is applied. Sodium carbonate is generally used only in the rehydration of more robust fishery products such as dried cuttle fish and octopus,
Product Specifications
Qualities: B1, b2, b3Measurements:
B1: Pectoral +50 cm
Dorsal +20 cm
Full tail +55 cm
B2: Pectoral 40-50 cm
Dorsal 15-20 cm
Full tail 45-55 cm
B3: Pectoral 25-40 cm
Dorsal 10-15 cm
Full tail 35-45 cm
Cutting: Straight
One full set contains:2 pectoral,1 dorsal and one full tail fin.
The fins are frozen on board, fresh, unsalted and no chemicals have been added to preserve them.
Standard packing: Polybags of 25 KG with fins of the same kind in it.
No ice in the polybags or container is added
Meat ratio:2%
The fins are cut in Tunisia
Approx ratio fins: Dorsal 10%, pectoral 39%, tail:51%
Naturally dried No salt or chemical add.
