Penghu dried octopus stewed with pork ribs soup, a pot that brings out the fresh sweetness of the island

In late summer and early autumn, after the sea recedes, across the vast intertidal zone, women in twos and threes seem to wander listlessly, yet all the while their weather-beaten, sharp eyes are wide open. In what looks like a boundless desert, they search for their prey - the dried octopus, a kind of bottom-dwelling octopus. When the catch is plentiful, each woman can catch more than ten jin of octopus. Add to that the ones caught by diving and the ones lured by artificial bait, and there is an abundance of octopus. In the early days when there were no refrigerators, the only way to preserve it was the most primitive method: sun-drying.

The sun-drying process: the women use their skillful hands to clean out the innards from the octopus head, which is the first step. The second step is to split the octopus head open from the middle. The ball-shaped head is opened out into a round flat shape, and the preliminary work is done.

Next comes the sun-drying step. In this seemingly simple task, the octopus tentacles must be arranged into a curled, upward-curving mustache shape, then laid out in order on the drying net, to undergo the sublimation of wind and sunlight. After repeated turning over, over the course of a few days, the dried octopus, ochre-red like rubies, becomes an indispensable ingredient for the people of Penghu, whether for banquets or for everyday home cooking.