Barb Liver Soup

Barb Liver Soup is one of the famous cuisines of ShiJia restaurant (established by a person with Shi his surname) in MuDu township as well as a famous traditional dish in Soochow.
This fish, particular to Taihu Lake, is like the puffer in its appearance. Its back, with some spots, is blue and gray, thus its another name: Spotted Fish. Its stomach will plump up like a balloon when it gets frightened, thus being called Bubble Fish as its nickname. This fish can grow to at least 10 centimeters in its length with a big head. When stripping its skin away, you can see its tender and tasty fresh. In particular, the dish, with the fish’s lliver as the food material, has always been a delicacy. It is exquisitely cooked with many materials such as the liver of the barb, the shredded ham, the Chinese cabbage. The golden liver and the Chinese cabbage match each other perfectly. The barb’ liver is so tender that it seems to melt in man’s mouth. It is fair to say that the hot soup is much more delicious than the chicken soup. In addition, this dish has been listed into the Famous Chinese Cuisines.
The origin of this dish has a long-established relationship with Mr Yu YouRen (an eminent calligrapher during the period of the Republic of China). In 1929, when he was eating food with his friends in ShiJia restaurant in MuDu township, he showed great appreciation of the Barb Liver Soup by composing a poem from which we can see such a verse: thanks to the Ba Lung Soup of ShiJia restaurant. Years later, Mr Li GenYuan specially inscribed four Chinese characters: Ba Fei Tang Guan( the Restaurant of Barb Liver soup). Barb fish is very seasonal as it can only be on sale during August to October. Its liver must be taken out from those fish alive, therefore, this dish is unique to WuZhong district. In Soochow there has been an old saying: eating Barb Liver Soup in Autumn is like enjoying life in heaven.
Source: Suzhou Municipal People's Government