Bird’s Nest 燕窩

Edible Bird’s Nest， One of Sarawak’s treasures…

Birdnest, one of the world’s most luxurious health food, which was only consumed by Chinese Emperors in ancient times…

It is largely imported from regions in Southeast Asia, the only climate suitable to breed the swiftlets (that produce bird nests) in which includes SARAWAK.

Bird’s Nest is an edible nest created by the Swiftlet using its saliva, along with other items for the purpose of breeding.  The shape of the nest is created to look like a shallow cup that is placed on the walls of caves.  The nest has high nutrients especially proteins, calcium, potassium, and other minerals, which are traditionally used for digestion, improving immune system, or alleviating symptoms of asthma. Bird’s Nest must be cleaned of all large impurities prior to consumption. These impurities can include feathers, twigs, and mud. The cleaning process is extremely time consuming and requires a lot of skill in performing. As the process is extremely tedious, there are certain individuals who will use chemicals, including chemical bleach, to clean the Bird’s Nest. Most chemicals are unhealthy and unethical to us.  Thus, when purchasing Bird’s Nest, make sure that it is a pure product with no chemical processing.

Bird’s Nests are prized in Chinese cuisine due to their rarity and high nutritional value when made into bird nest soup. For centuries, Sarawak has exported top quality nests from its extensive cave systems, and in recent years local entrepreneurs have also introduced “swiftlet-houses” for the sustainable harvesting of nests.  A number of specialist retailers offer high quality bird nests for sale at very competitive prices.

食用燕窝，砂拉越的珍品……

燕窝是世界上最豪奢的健康食品之一，古时只有中国的皇帝才有资格享用。

燕窝是金丝燕筑的鸟巢，主要产地是气候适宜金丝燕居住的东南亚，包括砂拉越在内。

养殖金丝燕的主要目的在于取其燕窝，燕窝乃金丝燕以其唾液做成，可食用。燕窝一般筑于岩壁上，形如浅杯状，富于营养成分，尤其含有特别丰富的蛋白质、钙、钾和其它矿物，因此传统上用于促进消化、提升免疫系统或改善哮喘症状。燕窝首先必须进行清洗，去除羽毛、树枝和泥土等杂质，这个过程非常耗时，而且考验技巧。由于过程相当麻烦而且乏味，有些人索性采用化学药物来清洗燕窝，包括漂白剂。这是非常不道德的行为，因为大多数药物都对人体健康有害。因此，选购燕窝时务必确认有关产品未经化学处理。