刚好的味道

刚好的味道

即便在物产如此丰富的北海，人们每餐一定少不了的是：一份咸鱼，一碗白粥，这两者在北海人眼里，尤如秤不离砣的绝配。

一个鲜咸香口，一个平淡清爽，两种截然不同的味道在口腔里交融，互相平衡，互相牵引。就像这座城市刚刚好的生活，有快有慢，有奋进也有安守。

TASTE GOOD, TASTE RIGHT

In Baihai, even the islanders and fishermen who never have a lack of fresh seafood, will surely have one piece of salted fish and a bowl of porridge.

One salty, the other plain, two different tastes meet in your mouth, balancing each other and drawing into each other, just like the development of a city, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes radical, sometimes just to keep up, but always just right.

Text by Yan Junling Translation by Tao Wenjia Photos by Zeng Jian & A Du

Drying salted fishes by the shoreside 岸边晒咸鱼

Gift from the Beibu Gulf

In the Nan Wan seafood restaurant by the Beibu Gulf, the waving South China Sea is under the floor that you walk across. They say every evening when the tide rises, you will taste the just-washed-up freshness on the seafood you are chewing.

The owner presents us with two dishes∶ sandworm and squid. Boiled in water, adding a few leeks, and it is a delicious dish with no complicated cooking procedure, nor seasoning. People in Beihai told us that if you have enough confidence in the quality of the seafood, then you can dare to use such simple ways to cook them.

The Beihai people are very confident about the quality of their seafood. Seafood there is not big though. For instance, the local squid is almost half the size of the Vietnamese squid, however, the price is twice as much. Brother Pang, a fisherman with 30 years of experience, is from the Dishui Village of the Weizhou Island. He grins when he told us that their local squid is much more popular. “Once you taste both, you will be able to tell why our local squid is

1.Fried clams with fruits from Red Woods

红树林果炒蚬

2. Fried salted fishes

煎咸鱼

3. White steamed sandworms

清蒸沙虫

more expensive. The seafood here is much fresher and chewy with almost none of the 'smell' of the fish. It's the taste of the natural sea.”

As a young volcanic island, Weizhou Island has rich volcanic ash and sea corals on its seabed. Consequently, the sea provided people with rich marine resources. “More than 20 years ago, coral on the island grew as tall as a House. A variety of sea creatures lived between corals, producing a very high quality seabed environment. The fishermen didn't have to go to the open sea, as long as they drove their boats around the island for a few hours, then they can catch a lot of fish, shrimps, crabs, snails, cuttlefish, squid, sea bass, eels, yellow croaker, and white sea cucumber which were unique to the North Sea." Brother Huang, an old fisherman told us. Even if you did not go to sea, you could just put up a net, and gained plenty when you collected the net at night. However, “As time has changed, the demand for seafood has also increased. The abundance of offshore resources cannot be compared with the past. We cannot say no to development, but you can at least try not to destroy, nor waste any. Let people with more expertise guide us and protect this sea for generations.” Brother Pang says, "air and sea, nature and the environment, aren't those the island's most appealing aspects?”

The taste of leisure

In Weizhou Island, when the fish market opens every day at four o'clock in the afternoon, some boats return in droves. Fresh fish are then shipped to the food market which is only 10 metres away, and soon be selected by the islanders and visitors.

Ten years ago, A Du moved from Nanning to Weizhou Island. He opened a Bed and Breakfast there. He now produces freshly baked mackerel with a fancy molecular gastronomy machine from the United States with practical ease. Soon after, a molecular mackerel with an interesting smell of wood is done. Accompanied by a glass of the molecular cocktail, sitting on his terrace under the burning clouds over the sea, he utters, "It is the most beautiful day." Not far from his village, fishermen sat in hammocks, chatting and drinking tea. When the mood is great, they will cook their freshly caught shrimp, adding some rice wine and a shisha, they can eat and talk until late into the night.

The wealth and leisure in the North Sea nourishes and keeps people, no matter whether you are outlanders like Adu, or local fishermen who have been living there for generations. In Qiaogang, there are even some Vietnamese immigrants. So in this city, you can eat authentic Vietnam Fire ice, as well as other cuisines from outlanders who stay.

北部湾的馈赠

北部湾边上的南 渔村，地板下面就是起伏的南海。他们说，每到傍晚涨潮时，嘴里咀嚼的海鲜，仿佛是刚刚被海水冲上来的。

店主端上一盘沙虫，一盘鱿鱼。过水白灼，加一点点葱花蒜蓉，不需任何复杂的烹饪和调味。北海人说，越是对海洋和海鲜品质有信心的地方，越敢用这种最简单原始的烹调方法。

北海人对自己的海鲜有强烈的自信。北海海鲜不以个头取胜，比如本地鱿鱼似乎要比越南鱿鱼小一半，但价格却要贵一倍。打了30多年鱼的涠洲岛滴水村渔民庞大哥咧嘴笑着说，即便如此，本地鱿鱼依旧更受欢迎。“贵在哪里是可以吃出来的。北海的海鲜甜，有嚼劲，没有一点鱼‘骚’味。那是天然的海的味道。”

作为年轻的火山岛，涠洲岛周边的海底有丰富的火山灰和珊瑚群，孕育了丰富的海产资源。“二十几年前，涠洲岛的珊瑚可以长到房子那么高。渔民们根本不用去远海，只要驾着小艇在周边绕几小时，就可以捕到丰富的鱼、虾、蟹、螺、墨鱼、鱿鱼、石斑、鳗鱼、黄花鱼，还有北海独有的白海参。”渔民黄大哥说。有时，随便在近岸的地方支个网，晚上收网时也能有不少收获。“时代发展了，人们对海鲜的消费量成倍增加，资源肯定不会像过去那么多。我们不可能不发展，但至少可以做到不破坏、不浪费，更专业地保护好世代生存的这片海洋。”庞大哥说，“空气和海，不就是这个岛最吸引人的地方吗？”

悠闲的滋味

在涠洲岛，每天下午4点，一些小艇陆续地返程。新打上来的鱼鲜被运到十几米外的鱼市场，立刻被岛民和游客们选走。

十年前从南宁来涠洲岛开民宿的阿杜，不紧不慢地用美国进口的分子美食机，处理着刚买来烤好的秋刀鱼。很快，一股带着奇异木头香的分子秋刀鱼就做好了。配上一杯分子鸡尾酒，坐在能看到七种颜色海面也能看到火烧云的露台上，他说，“这就是最美的一天。” 离他不远处的村子里，渔民们坐在吊床上，聊天，喝茶。兴致好的时候，还会立刻把刚捕捞到的虾过水煮了，配上白酒，一边吃一边聊到天黑。

北海的富足与悠闲，滋养和留住了每个人。不管是像阿杜这样来了就不想走的外乡人，还是世代在此的原始渔民。在侨港有早期定居下来的越南移民，于是，在这个城市里，人们可以吃到地道的越南炒冰，以及其他留下的异乡人带来的外地美食。