Where Does Hairtail Come From? Main Producing Sea Areas and How to Choose It

Hairtail (Trichiurus lepturus), also known as the largehead hairtail or ribbonfish, is a common marine commercial fish in China. Its body is flat and elongated like a belt, and it is silvery white all over, widely distributed in coastal waters. The so-called hairtail producing areas generally refer to the main fishing grounds for hairtail. Hairtail is caught in the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea, East China Sea and South China Sea of China, among which the East China Sea is a traditionally important producing area, and hairtail from the area around the Zhoushan fishing ground is well known in the market.

Hairtail has a migratory habit, moving between coastal and offshore waters as the seasons and water temperature change, so fishing shows clear seasonality, and winter has traditionally been the peak fishing season. Besides China's coastal waters, hairtail is also found in the waters of neighboring countries such as Japan and South Korea, as well as parts of the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Hairtail from different sea areas differs slightly in body width and taste.

It should be noted that hairtail does not survive easily out of water, so live hairtail is rarely seen on the market, and it is mainly sold as chilled fresh or frozen. Many fishing boats freeze hairtail immediately after catching them for freshness and long-distance transport, which is why frozen hairtail is relatively common in supermarkets.

When choosing hairtail, you can start with its appearance. Fresh hairtail has a complete, glossy silvery membrane on the body surface, clear bright eyes, and firm, elastic flesh; if the silvery membrane has largely fallen off, the body has turned yellow, or there is an obvious off odor, it means freshness has declined, and it is advisable to buy with caution.