The Pacific sea cucumbers (Stichopus Holothurioidea species and
other family members) of the revered Chinese cooks since ancient
days. In particular, the sea cucumber dishes for special
occasions, mainly in New Year’s Eve celebrations. An old
Confucian recipe, loosely translated The Eight Immortals
Crossing the Sea and made of sea cucumber, shark fins, and five
species of fish and shellfish, is one of the classic banquet
dishes. The sea cucumber is assessed as well as other delicacies
such as shark fins is Ginseng, Cordyceps, Tremella, and disease
preventive and longevity tonic. This was the agent of medical in
the Bencao Congxin (New Compilation of Materia Medica) of the Wu
Yiluo 1757. The popular Chinese name for sea cucumber is
haishen, which means, roughly, ginseng of the sea. Often known
in the medical literature fangcishen (fang = four-sided, ci =
spiky, referring to the spiky protrusions that emanate four
sides), or in abbreviated form, fangshen. The Asian demand for
sea cucumber is so high that it gat