If you are travelling to Malaysia and you dine at restaurants where they sell “crystal fish” you better avoid that dish.
According to The Star, the meat of the “crystal fish” is actually from the pufferfish which can killl an adult human being in a few hours if not filleted and gutted properly.
Pufferfish are poisonous to human beings as they contain tetrodoxin, a substance that can kills a person if eaten, even in small amounts as little as 25mg.
In the past few months, hawkers and restaurant owners started to use “crystal fish” instead of the original Spanish Mackeral (Tenggiri) or Grouper fillets as their prices have increased over the last two years.
In the northen states of Penang, Kedah and Perak, the “crystal fish” meat is served as “fried fish meat” and as part of the cold dish in Chinese wedding banquets at hotels and restaurants.
Pufferfish is also served in Japan as Fugu. The chefs go through strict training before they can serve fugu at restaurants.
The Malaysian Health Ministry has recorded 55 cases of pufferfish poisoning and 17 tetrodotoxin-related deaths from 1985 to 2014.
So if you dine at Chinese restaurants in Malaysia, you better be careful what fish meat you’re consuming.
