🍽️ Shunde Raw Fish Slices

Thin raw freshwater fish slices with scallion, ginger and peanuts.

Shunde raw fish slices, or yu sheng, represent the pinnacle of the traditional freshwater-fish eating style of Shunde in Foshan, and are considered one of the ancestors of Chinese-style sashimi. Freshwater fish, often grass carp or bass, is bled, deboned and filleted, the flesh patted dry with clean cloth and sliced paper-thin. Served glistening and translucent, the fish comes with a dozen or more condiments—peanuts, garlic, ginger, scallion, lime leaf, coriander, shredded radish, peanut oil and salt—which diners toss together at the table. The bite is ice-cold, silky, sweet and free of fishiness, with the aromatics and nutty oil building a rich layering. Shunde cooks insist on killing the fish to order and precise knife work, and a sip of local rice wine complements it well. The dish embodies the famous saying that food reaches its peak in Guangzhou and chefs come out of Shunde, showcasing refined knife skills and pursuit of pure ingredient flavor.