Xingkai Lake Whitefish 兴凯湖大白鱼
Xingkai Lake Whitefish is featured among the local specialties of Heilongjiang.
Xingkai Lake Whitefish (兴凯湖大白鱼) is the topmouth culter (翘嘴红鲌) caught in Xingkai Lake (兴凯湖), the freshwater lake on the border between Heilongjiang and Russia's Primorsky Krai (滨海边疆区), and it is listed as the lake's own specialty in the Chinese Wikipedia article on Jixi (鸡西).
Where it comes from
Xingkai Lake, known in older texts as Beiqin Sea (北琴海), is described by Chinese Wikipedia as the largest freshwater lake in Northeast Asia, covering about 4,380 square kilometres. A natural sand bar about 90 kilometres long divides it into Greater and Lesser Xingkai Lake, and the Chinese shore is mostly fine sand. Chinese Wikipedia counts the lake's culter among China's four famous freshwater fish, a group that also includes Songjiang perch (松江鲈) and Yellow River carp (黄河鲤).
Flavour and texture
The fish is long and slender, with tender, fresh-tasting flesh and a clean aroma. Chinese Wikipedia credits the quality of the meat to the lake's food chain: a white shrimp found in Xingkai Lake is the fish's main food.
How it is made
Chinese Wikipedia records two ways of cooking it at the lake. In the first, the fish is clear-stewed (清炖) in lake water until the broth turns as white as milk, and the flesh comes out exceptionally tender. The second, a traditional method, is plain steaming (清蒸), which has earned the nickname "赛蟹肉" ("better than crab meat") for its flavour.
More dishes to compare
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Hegang Whitefish 鹤岗白鱼 →
Another Heilongjiang white fish sold under a place name, but tied to Hegang rather than to Xingkai Lake in the Jixi area.
Sources & reading
Written from the linked sources and fact-checked against them on 2026-09-24. Recipes and servings vary between kitchens.