The South China Sea boasts clean waters and favorable ocean currents, nurturing plump squid, the raw material for traditional Hainan sun-dried squid. Along Hainan’s coastal fishing ports, the craft of lightly sun-dried squid has been passed down for generations. Relying on sunlight and sea breeze for dehydration, it differs from industrial machine drying, representing a distinctive seafood processing technique unique to the island.
Raw Material Selection: Freshly Caught, Carefully Screened
The quality of dried squid starts with raw ingredients. Right after fishing boats return to harbour, squid is sorted immediately. Only large, firm and fresh squid are selected, while damaged or deteriorated ones are discarded. Fishermen manually cut open the squid, remove innards and ink sacs, then rinse thoroughly with clean water. The light-processing method avoids heavy salting, preserving the natural sweetness of squid to the fullest.
Natural Coastal Sun-Drying: Weather-Dependent Craft for Slow Dehydration & Freshness Locking
Cleaned squid is laid flat on coastal drying nets for natural sun-drying. This craft is at the mercy of the weather. It requires sunny days, using ample sunshine and mild sea breeze in Hainan to slowly draw moisture out of the flesh. During drying, workers flip the squid regularly and stretch them manually to keep them flat and neat. Drying stops on rainy or cloudy days to prevent spoilage from moisture. Natural sun-drying is low-temperature slow dehydration, which will not destroy the natural flavour compounds in the meat. Machine high-temperature drying is fast yet tends to lose the natural sweetness of seafood. Approximately 5 jin of fresh squid yields only 1 jin of dried squid, concentrating the original taste of the ocean.
Many people wonder about the thin white coating on dried squid: it is formed by precipitated natural amino acids and seawater minerals from the meat during drying. It is not mould, and is a normal feature of high-quality lightly dried seafood.
Quality Control & Storage: Safeguarding Seafood Quality
Yingtianfangzhou goes deep into Hainan producing areas for full traceability, inspecting every batch of dried squid. We pick finished products with translucent flesh, intact shape and no strange odour, strictly controlling raw materials and processing links, with no preservatives or artificial flavours added. 👉 Storage tips: Keep sealed, dry, cool and away from light. Refrigerate in humid environments to prevent moisture regain.
Food Tips
Lightly sun-dried squid has a sweet flavour without excessive saltiness. Soak fully in warm water before cooking. After softening, it can be grilled, stir-fried or made into soup. Various cooking methods release rich ocean aroma. Slow-dried squid features tight and springy texture, retaining the unique savour of South China Sea seafood. It is one of the most representative local specialties of Hainan.
Rooted in Hainan producing areas, Yingtianfangzhou explores traditional seafood crafts, bringing island seafood nurtured by natural rhythms, sunshine and sea breeze to every household.
