Sheng yan, raw pickled seafood
Crab, shrimp and shellfish steeped in soy, garlic and chilli and eaten raw; how long they steep depends on what it is.
Pronunciation shēng yān｜Food and tea｜One entry in the Chaoshan glossary
What it means
The crab is jointed, the shrimp shelled, and both go under soy, garlic, chilli and coriander without heat. Time in the liquor follows the goods: crab takes longer, shrimp and shellfish less.
Locally it is called the poison, which describes the difficulty of stopping rather than any effect of eating it. Proportions differ by household; the common base is soy, lifted with garlic and chilli, with coriander added last. The crab should be hard-shelled — a soft one falls apart in the steep.
When you eat it
On the night counter beside the fish rice and the braises, and mostly late. Less of it is made in hot weather: what matters is that the goods are fresh.
Words easily confused
This is raw, fish rice is cooked, braised dishes are braised: three methods set side by side on the same counter, made in opposite ways, and not to be called by one name.
Read next: Chaoshan cooking and snacks, written apart.
Same group: fish rice, the night counter, casserole porridge.
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Last revised: 3 November 2026