Things You Need To Know Before Buying Swiftlet’s Nest

Our parents or relatives have probably fed us Swiftlet’s Nest at some point, and we’ve consumed it at their behest, willingly or not.

But if there’s one thing that’s clear as day, it’s that the folks seem to have an unfaltering love for the delicacy. From meeting your in-laws to family reunions, if you’re searching for that one-size-fits-all gift that’s bound to impress - it’s Swiftlet’s Nest. But this quick fix doesn’t come cheap; so it’s important to know exactly what you’re consuming, and how to make sure you’re getting the biggest bang for your buck.

1. How is Swiftlet’s Nest produced?

After the eggs have been laid and hatched, the baby Swiftlet’s Nest will remain in the nest until it is able to fly away independently. The Swiftlet’s Nest becomes abandoned and will never be re-used. If not harvested, scavengers such as ants, lizards and cockroaches will consume the Swiftlet’s Nest.
Swiftlet’s Nest is produced by Swiftlet’s Nest (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 sublingual glands located beneath the tongue of the swiftlet.
A Swiftlet’s Nest is built primarily for laying eggs and housing the baby Swiftlet’s Nest.
After the eggs have been laid and hatched, the baby Swiftlet’s Nest will remain in the nest until it is able to fly away independently. The Swiftlet’s Nest becomes abandoned and will never be re-used. If not harvested, scavengers such as ants, lizards and cockroaches will consume the Swiftlet’s Nest.

Things You Need To Know Before Buying Swiftlet’s Nest

2. How often to eat Swiftlet’s Nest ?

So how often to eat Swiftlet’s Nest ? We recommend 5 g of dried Swiftlet’s Nest (60-80 ml of Swiftlet’s Nest) a day. A small amount of Swiftlet’s Nest goes a long way towards preserving your health and beauty.
How often to eat Swiftlet’s Nest
Scientifically, proteins which make up 60-70% of Swiftlet’s Nest are eliminated within hours by enzymes in the body.
Furthermore, not all this proteins can be absorbed by the body. This means small and frequent dose of Swiftlet’s Nest is much more effective, since excess Swiftlet’s Nest generally gets eliminated and removed from the body.
Continuous dose is desirable to give you the sustained effect.
So how often to eat Swiftlet’s Nest ? We recommend 5 g of dried Swiftlet’s Nest (60-80 ml of Swiftlet’s Nest) a day. A small amount of Swiftlet’s Nest goes a long way towards preserving your health and beauty.

3. How to identify the genuine Swiftlet’s Nest?

Swiftlet’s Nest is an expensive and nutritious product. Thus, it is important to distinguish a genuine piece of Swiftlet’s Nest. In the market, there are many unethical businessmen who would increase the weight of Swiftlet’s Nest by adding additives like white fungus, jelly and animal skin.
Appearance: Good and genuine nests consist of two main types of filaments:
The outer layer that has longer and bigger filaments whereas the inner part has finer, shorter filaments.
After Cooking: When double boiled for 1-2 hours the Swiftlet’s Nest inner filaments become water-soluble.
The outer filaments contain mainly minerals; it is less soluble but gives Swiftlet’s Nest its signature fibrous taste and appearance.
Odour: During double boiling a fine scent of near albumin smell will occur.
Much like the smell of faint cooked egg white.

4. How to cook Swiftlet’s Nest in slow cooker (or double boiler)

Add 2 tablespoon of rock sugar and further cook for another 5-10 minutes. Buying Swiftlet’s Nest from Hello Nest, they will give free rock sugar or special dried lotus.
1) Soak the Swiftlet’s Nest until soft in tap water. This may take up to an hour.
I usually consume one whole piece, which is actually quite alot. Is even sufficient for 2 people.
2) Add the softened Swiftlet’s Nest, together with about 250mL of water. Using slow cooker or the double-boil method, no lost of water volume.
3) Switch on and turn to high. For my cooker, it takes about 45 mins if I started out with room temperature water. But it is much faster if I use hot water.
4) Add 2 tablespoon of rock sugar and further cook for another 5-10 minutes. Buying Swiftlet’s Nest from Hello Nest, they will give free rock sugar or special dried lotus.
5) Serve warm or chilled. Wala!

5. How to cook Swiftlet’s Nest with rock sugar in a double boiler (simple Swiftlet’s Nest recipe)

You can also cook Swiftlet’s Nest with rock sugar using a slow cooker like above method.
- Prepare a double-boiler and fill the external pot with water that covers almost half the internal pot.
- Place the drained Swiftlet’s Nest in the internal boiler and add 1 - 2 bowls of water depending of the pieces cooked.
- Cover both the internal and external pots and start boiling the pot.
- Once it's boiling, turn to low flame to continue to boil for another 2 - 3 hours.
- When the Swiftlet’s Nest is cooked to desired texture, stir in rock sugar to taste and cover for about 5 minutes to allow the sugar to dissolve fully
- Do remember to check the water in the external pot is not dried up and sufficient throughout the boil. Once cooked you can have your Swiftlet’s Nest served hot or cold in a bowl depends on your preference.
You can also cook Swiftlet’s Nest with rock sugar using a slow cooker like above method.

6. What are the health benefits of eating Swiftlet’s Nest?

Many clinical trials of using Swiftlet’s Nest as an anti-cancer food is now currently being conducted.
From the chemical analysis report of pure Swiftlet’s Nest, we can identify soluble amino acids that will help to repair body cells and generate new cells. The antioxidant helps to eradicate free radicals in the body.
Swiftlet’s Nest also contains EGF(epidermal growth factor) which produces an anti aging effect, making regular Swiftlet’s Nest consumers young and radiant looking.
Many clinical trials of using Swiftlet’s Nest as an anti-cancer food is now currently being conducted.

7. How do you store uncooked Swiftlet’s Nest?

Dried Swiftlet’s Nest can be kept for 6 months to 1 year, preferably in an air tight container in a cool and dry room or in the refrigerator. So, it is very easy to keep the Swiftlet’s Nest and you can get your bulk purchase now to enjoy our cheaper bulk price!
You need to ensure that the Swiftlet’s Nest is dry. When you detect some moisture in your Swiftlet’s Nest, you can dry it in front of a fan in an air conditioned room for a couple of hours. DON’T dry the nests under direct sun as it might damage the protein. Dried Swiftlet’s Nest can be kept for 6 months to 1 year, preferably in an air tight container in a cool and dry room or in the refrigerator. So, it is very easy to keep the Swiftlet’s Nest and you can get your bulk purchase now to enjoy our cheaper bulk price!

8. How to cook Swiftlet’s Nest for pregnancy:

I think the home-made Swiftlet’s Nest tastes more natural and possesses a pretty strong 'egg-like' smell than instant or bottled Swiftlet’s Nest drink bought from supermarkets or TCMshops. Nevertheless, the plain home-made Swiftlet’s Nest is still bearable to drink.
How to cook Swiftlet’s Nest for pregnancy: here are easy steps for you
Ingredients:
1pc Dry Swiftlet’s Nest
1 cup Hot water
1 cup Drinking water or boiled then cooled water, for soaking
5-6 pcs Rock/Lump sugar
Methods:
Step 1. Soak the dry Swiftlet’s Nest in a bowl of water for about 30 minutes. Use drinking water or water that has been boiled and cooled down to soak the Swiftlet’s Nest. After 30 minutes, carefully strain the Swiftlet’s Nest and throw the water away.
Step 2. Put the soaked Swiftlet’s Nest and pour 1 cup of hot water into a slow cooker. If you prefer thinner soup, you may add more hot water into the slow cooker. Cook the soaked Swiftlet’s Nest and water in the slow cooker for about 2 hours.
Step 3. Once the Swiftlet’s Nest is soft and cooked, add the rock sugar into the Swiftlet’s Nest in the slow cooker and stir gently. You may add more rock sugar into the soup if you wish for sweeter Swiftlet’s Nest. Turn the slow cooker off.
Step 4. Consume the Swiftlet’s Nest when it is cooled.
I think the home-made Swiftlet’s Nest tastes more natural and possesses a pretty strong 'egg-like' smell than instant or bottled Swiftlet’s Nest drink bought from supermarkets or TCMshops. Nevertheless, the plain home-made Swiftlet’s Nest is still bearable to drink.
I found this article that may be useful in preparing Swiftlet’s Nest and alternatives in cooking home-made Swiftlet’s Nest to make it more delectable by adding pandan leaves, dried red dates, dried longan, etc..

9. Why do Swiftlet’s Nest come in different colors?

Thus it is a common misconception that blood nest is formed when the swiftlet vomits blood. Another misconception is that the swiftlet’s different diets give rise to different colour of nests.
When Swiftlet’s Nest is first formed by the Swiftlet’s Nest, they are white in colour; thus it is fair to say that white Swiftlet’s Nest (Bai Yan) is the purest form of Swiftlet’s Nest. As the Swiftlet’s Nest spend more time in the house, natural fermentation of the nest gradually takes place and the nest absorbs minerals such as iron from the walls and water, slowly changing its color from white to yellow (Jin Si Yan) and then orange and finally red (Blood nest). Thus it is a common misconception that blood nest is formed when the swiftlet vomits blood. Another misconception is that the swiftlet’s different diets give rise to different colour of nests.

Swiftlet’s Nest Is An Expensive Delicacy And It’s “Mm! Mm! Weird!”

The high cost of Swiftlet’s Nest comes from the dangerous retrieval process of the nests, and the painstaking cleaning they go through to become safe to eat.

Made from Swiftlet’s Nest, called the “Caviar of the East,” Swiftlet’s Nest is extremely rare and extremely valuable. The main ingredient, the nest of the swiftlet bird, costs anywhere from $2,500 to $10,000 per kilogram, resulting in a single bowl of soup that will set you back anywhere from $30 to $100.
The hefty price tag comes from the dangerous and extensive process of procuring the nests and cleaning them, so they are safe for consumption.

A nesting house, and the traditional mountainside caves where the Swiftlet’s Nest.

In the wild, the swiftlet builds its nest at dizzying heights, usually in mountaintop caves. Native islanders in Malaysia often visit the Madai Caves to scout for Swiftlet’s Nest, risking their lives in the process.
Three times a year, scouts climb up to the highest reaches of the near-pitch-black caves, armed only with a helmet, handmade ropes, and makeshift ladders. However, reaching the nests is just half the battle.
Once there, the climbers must be able to determine which nests are ready for picking, and which nests are not. The nests must be picked precisely at the right time – after one batch of eggs has hatched, but before the female swiftlet lays another or else the nests won’t sell for as high a price.
Traditionally the Swiftlet’s Nest are collected from the wild, though due to pollution and agricultural restrictions, certain nesting houses have been created for Swiftlet’s Nest to nest in.

As the nests are constructed from a mixture of bird feathers and bird saliva, the nests must be cleaned before they can be used for soup. Nest cleaners traditionally use tiny tools to pull each individual feather out of the nest, though occasionally commercial cleaners and bleaching agents are used to move the process along.

What’s left behind after cleaning is a small, hardened shell made almost entirely of swiftlet saliva.

The most prized are “red nests” from the red-Swiftlet’s Nest, which can cost as much as $10,000 per kilogram. However, the most common are white and black-Swiftlet’s Nest, which run between $5,000 and $6,000 per kilogram.
According to those who have tasted it, Swiftlet’s Nest is soft and jelly-like. The swiftlet saliva is roughly 70 percent protein, which, when dissolved in water, creates a gelatinous mixture with a sweet flavor.
In addition to Swiftlet’s Nest, the Swiftlet’s Nest can be used as an ingredient in congee or boiled rice, or as an addition to egg tarts or egg cream desserts. Swiftlet’s Nest jellies are also common.
Though it’s not a part of a swiftlet’s body, the nests are considered animal byproducts and are thus regulated strictly by various food administrations and departments of agriculture. The import and export of Swiftlet’s Nest in some countries are prohibited, due to H5N1 avian flu.