Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 312 Developing Fisheries

Starting in June, it is the salmon migration season (mainly sockeye and pink salmon), with millions of fish migrating from the vast Pacific Ocean to the freshwater lakes inland from Qiming Island.

Their journey is an epic tale filled with resilience and heroism. Along the way, they encounter many obstacles, yet they continue to swim forward with unwavering determination. Only the strongest and most blessed salmon can successfully return to their birthplace.

Some of these fish can migrate thousands of kilometers, undertaking extremely long journeys.

As these salmon migrate, their body color gradually changes from silvery-gray to reddish-brown, making them particularly conspicuous in freshwater.

They have to traverse various terrains on their journey, and many salmon expend too much energy to climb over the fences built by beavers or the rushing streams.

Their carcasses washed ashore and became food for foxes, coyotes, brown bears, and various birds.

Many lazy brown bears sit upstream in the creek, waiting for salmon to swim upstream.

They don't even need to use their "hands" to catch them; they just open their big mouths, and countless salmon jump in.

After this lavish feast, their round bellies will bulge high, and thick fat will form – all thanks to the salmon.

Why do salmon go to great lengths to return to their birthplace?

Compared to the ocean, the birthplace has no ocean currents and no egg-eating fish, making it the best spawning ground.

After hatching from the eggs, the fry grow in freshwater and then travel back to the Atlantic Ocean along streams and rivers.

By this time, they had grown to a very large size and were able to compete with the fish and shrimp in the sea.

After living in the ocean for several years (salmon typically live for seven years), salmon reach sexual maturity, which also means that their lives are about to end.

Once inside a freshwater lake, the salmon stop foraging and rely entirely on the energy stored in the sea.

Having been away from freshwater for several years, the osmotic pressure of the salmon's epidermal cells is no longer adapted to freshwater. After swimming in it for a while, their epidermis begins to peel off, which is the perfect time for freshwater parasites to find a host.

Many salmon reach their spawning grounds with only a few organs free from parasites. As long as their brain, ovaries, and seminal vesicles are intact, reaching the spawning grounds is a victory.

To swim faster, salmon make full use of every oxygen molecule in the freshwater, secreting hormones in their bodies at an alarming rate, producing several times more hemoglobin than usual, gradually turning their entire body red. The fat in their bodies serves as their fuel for propulsion, but this also brings a drawback: predators can easily spot them.

At this time, it is early winter in November, and the large-scale salmon migration has basically ended, which also means that the annual fishing feast of the new Chinese has come to an end.

A cold wind swept across Nanxi Fort on Qiming Island (now Colwood Town), and the damp air was filled with the aroma of burning pine wood, adding a warm and mellow scent to this settlement, which was less than two years old.

On a hillside overlooking the river, more than ten tall kilns were built, and dozens of immigrants dressed in coarse cloth short clothes were busy working around the kilns.

Several thick logs were placed above the kiln, on which hung cut salmon—the dark red bodies were slightly wrinkled from being rubbed with salt grains, and the tails swayed gently in the breeze.

Inside the furnace, damp pine wood and birch bark burned slowly, and bluish-white smoke rose and enveloped the fish, seeping into every muscle.

A burly man squatted at the stove opening, poking at the embers with a wooden stick, carefully adjusting the flames to ensure they were neither too strong nor too weak, maintaining only a steady, smoldering smoke.

“Remember, the fire can’t be too strong, otherwise the fish will get tough,” he said to a new immigrant next to him in Xinhua Mandarin with a slight Cantonese accent. The immigrant was carefully hanging a new batch of salted salmon on the smoking rack.

Although the salmon fishing season has ended, salmon processing is still ongoing on a large scale.

After the salmon to be smoked is gutted, it is usually salted for a week, then cleaned slightly, and then hung in the oven to be smoked over a smoldering fire with pine wood and sawdust for several weeks.

During this process, the salmon become extremely dry and hard, completely filled with the smell of smoke.

Once removed from the kiln, they can be packaged into barrels for sale.

This smoking method was adopted by the new Chinese from the local indigenous people and combined with their native curing and smoking techniques, allowing these plump salmon to be preserved for a longer time and to have a more flavorful taste.

Besides smoking, the new Chinese also use salting, air-drying (though this method is not very reliable due to the damp climate of Qiming Island), and natural freezing to preserve large quantities of salmon. Not far away, a few indigenous people stood quietly watching, occasionally exchanging simple gestures and speaking softly.

Although they were already familiar with this preservation method, the coarse salt and more refined cutting techniques brought by the new Chinese made the smoked fish more flavorful and delicious.

A local woman stepped forward and offered a bundle of fresh herbs, suggesting that they be added to the stove to enhance the flavor.

Feng Guibao paused for a moment, then turned to look at Old Ma, who was controlling the fire next to the kiln.

Old Ma nodded, and Feng Guibao then nodded his thanks to the local woman, took the herbs, and sprinkled them on the charcoal fire.

Immediately, a plume of smoke carrying a sweet aroma rose up.

The indigenous woman stood by the kiln, gazing longingly at Old Ma, and pointed to the buckets of salmon behind her.

"Change them," Old Ma ordered calmly. "...Three live fish for one smoked fish."

Upon hearing this, Feng Guibao immediately turned around and walked towards the local people, inspecting the salmon they had brought in each of the wooden buckets.

He threw the dead salmon out without any politeness, leaving them scattered all over the ground, prompting the natives to hurriedly bend down and pick them up.

But they dared not utter a single complaint about the brutal actions of the new Chinese.

Because they need large amounts of smoked fish and salt to survive the food shortages of winter and spring.

Winters on Qiming Island are damp and cold, and food resources are scarce. The traditional preservation methods of the local people are proving somewhat inadequate under the harsh test of nature.

They preserve salmon using only natural freezing or air drying methods, which is not enough for long-term storage. By the time spring arrives, all the dried fish will have gone bad and become inedible.

In contrast, the new Chinese can still enjoy plenty of plump salmon even in the warm summer.

The people of Xinhua have salt, and they can also build these amazing kilns to achieve large-scale drying and smoking of fish, preserving salmon until the following summer.

The smoked salmon had a golden-brown, slightly charred skin and flesh that had turned a warm orange-red, with the marbling filled with the rich aroma of spices and smoke.

Simply slice the corn into thin pieces with a knife, place them on a coarse cornbread, and serve with a jar of tangy and delicious pickled vegetables for a rich and satisfying meal.

Since the arrival of the new Chinese last year, the local indigenous people were initially suspicious and watched from afar. Then, they tentatively engaged in simple trade with them by hunting furs and catching salmon. Subsequently, they exchanged the fruits of their labor, such as "helping" them to cut down trees and level the land, for salt, grain, and delicious smoked salmon.

All of this allowed them to enjoy a touch of "civilization" and helped them safely get through the cold winter.

The large-scale processing and production of smoked fish by the Xinhua people does not entirely involve their own consumption; more than half of it is exported.

Smoked fish was added to the smuggling trade list between Xinhua and Spanish America, shortly after the two sides announced a ceasefire two years ago, in order to meet the fish needs of the local people.

Although the Spanish established maritime dominance as early as the mid-16th century, they were never a traditional fishing power.

The Pacific coast of the Americas, especially the waters around the Baja California Peninsula, are rich in fishing grounds due to the convergence of warm and cold currents. The Yucatan Peninsula region along the Gulf Coast is also famous for its sea turtles, red snapper, and oysters. Chile is home to one of the world's four major fishing grounds. However, the Spanish insisted on going out to beg for food despite having such a lucrative fishing ground.

Whether in the American colonies or in Spain itself, the fishing industry was in dire straits. Every year, they had to spend a lot of money to import large quantities of herring and cod from countries such as England and the Netherlands to meet the needs of the people and for frequent religious consumption (the Catholic Church only allows the consumption of cold-blooded animal meat, such as fish, shrimp, and crab, during the fasting days).

When Xinhua's smuggling fleet tentatively transported pickled and smoked salmon to Spanish American colonies, it was immediately welcomed by local consumers.

Moreover, salmon has a richer flavor and is rich in high-quality oils. When chewed, the fish oil is slowly released, bringing a rich and mellow flavor. For Spaniards, who generally lack oil in their diet, this is undoubtedly the best "supplement".

In less than two years, Xinhua smuggled more than 400 tons of salmon products to Mexico. With the expansion of its consumer base, its export volume has also increased dramatically, and it has gradually become Xinhua's third largest export product after hardware products and fur (mainly re-exported to Europe).

In their trade with Spanish America, the new Chinese immigrants gradually learned about the local dietary preferences. In addition to smoked fish, they also began to try processing some fish products that were more in line with the Spanish taste, such as dried fish marinated with local Mexican spices, in order to further expand the market.

The new Chinese not only need to gradually conquer the Spanish market, but also their stomachs.
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(End of this chapter)