Shark Fin Soup

Last night, I went out to dinner with my boyfriend and his family. He is 1/4 Chinese, so his grandfather took us out to a huge Chinese food dinner in downtown Oakland, right near Chinatown. During this dinner, I had the opportunity to try many different things, including tongue (nobody specified what kind of tongue it was), jellyfish (I've discovered I'm not a fan at all), red bean soup, and many other traditional Chinese foods.

There was one food on the menu, however, that didn't sit right with me: Shark Fin Soup.

I'm an avid lover of the ocean. I swim, surf, and have always wanted to study marine biology. In short, I'm fascinated with it, and the creature that fascinates me the most in the ocean is the shark. I adore sharks. They're just about the coolest thing ever, and I'm not scared of them the way most people are. So I am a staunch advocate of banning the capture and sale of shark fin, and am completely and totally against the idea of shark fin soup.

But it was served to me. I didn't order it, and my boyfriend's grandfather was paying for it. Morally, I felt I should eat it, and not be rude. It was a cultural dish. Anyway, the animal had given it's life for me to have this bowl of soup, shouldn't I respect that?However, I didn't even want to try it. It went against everything I believed in. But alas, I felt I had no choice. I tried the soup.

I've never had it before, so I'm not sure what it's supposed to taste like, but all I tasted was a super thick, bland broth that could have been chicken broth, for all I could tell. There were stringy bits of something in it (probably the shark fin) that tasted like nothing but thick, chewy noodles. What is all the hype about? I don't personally see how this bland, boring soup could possibly be worth what it takes to get it, and what it cost!

In order to get shark fin, a fisher must catch a shark and cut of both its fins. It's a decently brutal thing, because after the fins are removed while the shark is alive, the shark is thrown back into the water. Without fins, the shark cannot swim, and dies shortly after. Because of this, the practice of finning sharks has been controversial, due to environmental concerns, and the inhuman way the fins are harvested. Bans on shark fin have been proposed and sometimes passed in many areas around the world. However, shark fin soup is a traditional dish in the Chinese culture.According to my boyfriend's family, the shark fin is believed to have medical properties that increase sex drive, energy, and skin clearness. Artificial shark fin is available, but authentic shark fin remains in demand. Many believe it is discriminatory to ban the dish.

So I personally will not be indulging in shark fin soup again, as long as I can help it. But I can see both sides of the debate. Here in California, the ban on the sale and trade of shark fin remains in place, but has recently undergone legal fire (ironically enough, the case took place in Oakland). For now, the debate on shark fin soup remains open, although the laws remain closed.