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bĂȘche-de-mer
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bĂȘche-de-mer (trepang)
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Quick Facts
Plural:
bĂȘche-de-mer or bĂȘches-de-mer
Also called:
trepang
Related Topics:
seafood
sea cucumber
soup
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bĂȘche-de-mer (trepang)
bĂȘche-de-mer (trepang) Boys holding bĂȘche-de-mer (trepang), Borroloola, Northern Territory, Australia.

bĂȘche-de-mer

seafood
Also known as: bĂȘches-de-mer, trepang
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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History

bĂȘche-de-mer, boiled, dried, and smoked flesh of sea cucumbers (phylum Echinodermata) used to make soups. Most bĂȘche-de-mer comes from the southwestern Pacific, where the animals (any of a dozen species of the genera Holothuria, Stichopus, and Thelonota) are obtained on coral reefs. BĂȘche-de-mer is consumed chiefly in China.

BĂȘche-de-mer, or beach-la-Mar, is a pidgin English term used in New Guinea and nearby islands, where the trepang trade has long been important. The term BĂȘche-de-Mer has also come to designate the pidgin English language spoken in these regions.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Jeff Wallenfeldt.