TeaCode - Bird's Nest (燕窝)

Bird's Nest /Swiftlet's nest/ Swallow's Nest / Yàn wō / 燕窝

Bird Nest is produced by Swiftlets (Collocalia species). They use a glutinous secretion, also known as “nest cement” to bind together materials for nest building, or construct a whole nest with it. The nest cement is secreted from a pair of sub lingual glands located beneath the tongue of the swiftlet.

Bird's nests are among the most expensive animal products consumed by humans. The nests have been used in Chinese cooking for over 400 years, most often as bird's nest soup

Benefits of consuming bird's nest

Amino Acids - Help to repair body cells and generate new cells
Antioxidant - Helps to eradicate free radicals in the body. Prevent or slow the oxidation damage to our body. Health problems such as heart disease, muscular degeneration, diabetes, cancer, etc. are all contributed by oxidation damage. Antioxidants may also boast our immune defense and therefore lower the risk of cancer and infection.
EGF(epidermal growth factor) - Anti aging effect, making regular Bird Nest consumers young and radiant looking
Source of protein

Type of Bird's Nest - Unprocess

Saliva Nest

Around 90% edible
Saliva Nest (Aerodramus fuciphagus) provides the best nourishing effect to human bodies and has higher nutritional value than other categories bird nest. It produces aroma of eff white after cooking. Texture is smooth and soft.

Feather Prime Swiftlet Nest

Around 50% edible
Effect is less prominent compared to saliva nest. Produces a crispier texture after stewing.

Grass Swiftlet Nest

Around 10% edible
Cheaper and thus welcomed by beginners. Textures is soft and smooth. Since the nests are built by saliva and grass, the nests contain little fiber of fresh grass.

Bird Nest different in colour

The colour of bird nest influenced by the environment, food and climate, hence swallows produce nests in different colors.

Best time to consume Bird's Nest

It is best to drink Bird Nest soup before sleep as the rich antioxidants will help the body to
eradicte free radicals as the body heals during our sleep

House Bird's Nest Vs Cave Bird's Nest

The harvesters often face considerable danger when harvesting these bird nests. Since cave bird nests are formed by free, naturally-living swiftlets, some people consider them to be more valuable than birds nests found in houses. Thus, cave bird nests often fetch a higher price as compared to house bird nest.

However, unknown to many consumers in the market, cave bird nests generally contain more foreign materials and feathers than house nests. Besides, cave bird nest are exposed to the risk of heavy metals contamination from external environmental factors. So, consume cave bird's nest at your own risk!

Red Bird's Nest

It is believed that the red-coloured “blood bird nest” is specially prized because they are formed by swiftlets that vomit their blood to build the nest.

There is also another belief that the “blood bird nest” was formed by a different species of swiftlet which consumes different kinds of water and food.

Contrary to these beliefs, swiftlets do not vomit blood; neither do they consume different kinds of water and food. In general, Bird's nests act like sponges. They absorb the chemical elements from the environment such as iron from the cave walls, dirty waters and poisons. Hence, “blood bird nest” may be harmful rather than beneficial to human beings.

Some dishonest bird nest traders even dyed their bird’s nests red in order to fetch a higher price. So, play it safe – choose only pure bird’s nest!

Identify fake bird's nest

Beware that you might end up buying fake bird's nest. Not only you didn't the nutritious of real bird's nest, it may harm your body. Below are some simple guidance for you to identify real bird's nest.
Make sure it is highly in translucent!