Some of those who know caviar as soon as they sight it, still don’t understand why there is so much fuss about it and why it is given any recognition at all, and most importantly, why is it so darn expensive?
If you have all these questions lined up in your head, your answers are some words away.
Caviar is exactly what we can classify as luxury dining, and by the time you are done understanding its benefits, you wouldn’t mind indulging every once in a while. Let’s also get to find out what exactly caviar tastes like before you taste it for yourself.
What Is Caviar
Caviar can be described as fish eggs from the species of fish called sturgeon. Sturgeon does not just refer to one fish, but a combination of 27 different fishes from the family of Acipenser, which is a species of fish found mostly in fresh water.
Sturgeon is known for having the uniqueness to keep its form over the years with little or no noticeable changes in adaptation. Some types of sturgeon have the ability to grow for over a hundred years and can get immense in size as they grow older.
There have been known different cases of people catching weighty sturgeons. The harvested sturgeon fish is not just called caviar; they go through other processes such as salting and curing before they are in perfect shape, the curing of the fish eggs is what gives them a solid look and taste.
Is Caviar The Same With Roe?
Roe refers to all form of eggs which can be gotten from a fish of any species and of any kind, but caviar relates particularly to only the Acipenser species of fish eggs.
Although all roe cannot be classified as caviar; all caviar can be classified as roe, in that all caviar still fall under the category of fish eggs, so they qualify to be called roe as well.
Some popular types of roe aside caviar include salmon roe also called Ikura which is commonly found in sushi and the Topiko roe amongst others. Unlike caviar that usually has a very dark colour, some other roe come in beautiful bright colorations ranging from yellow to orange.
History Of Caviar
The word Caviar is gotten from the Persian word “khav-yar” meaning ‘power in cake.’ In the early ages, caviar was reserved mainly for royalty.
It was taken only by the king and his household before it started to gain further recognition. The primary process of taking the caviar under curing and salting began within China, and that became the norm for producing quality caviar.
It is impossible to talk about the history of caviar without mentioning the rise and fall of the caviar industries within the US in the early 1800’s.
At that time, the caviar-producing companies in America were booming, and they were the biggest exporters of caviar around the world, caviar was sold at very cheap rates and was served as an accompaniment with drinks in some places in America.
Some years down the line, the American caviar started to deplete due to over harvesting and the sturgeon fishes in the US were on the verge of extinction, this lead to a sharp rise in the price of caviar making it a rear commodity altogether.
Russia is also regarded as one of the producers of quality caviar.
What Does Caviar Taste Like?
For one, caviar has a salty taste to it because of the salting and curing it undergoes during preparation in addition to its natural properties. Most people are of the opinion that caviar should taste like where it comes from, fish! But that is not the case.
The fishy taste in caviar is in fact very minimal as it has other flavours to give. In totality, the taste that caviar offers mainly depends on the quality of caviar being consumed.
It will be unfitting to compare freshly gotten quality caviar with low-quality caviar that was not well processed.
Superior caviar has a natural sea taste with no sharp or obscure flavour. It is all very balanced, slightly buttery and mild. Caviar shouldn’t give off any odour or unpleasant taste.
When going for caviar, freshness is key, the fresher the caviar you eat, the more flavours and richness you can derive from the pop of each egg.
Caviar Try Out Recipes
Caver Canapés
Caviar looks so good on canapé and the ones in this recipe by girl and the kitchen is simple and classy, perfect for any event or party.
If you do not know what canapés are, they are small sizes of bread or other pastries, which are cut out and usually topped with colourful savoury food, and in this case, caviar made the topping.
You can make use of any caviar you have if you do not have the salmon roe used in the recipe.
Caviar pie
For another recipe video on how to make a caviar pie, follow the link and enjoy.
Finally!!
Caviar is nutrition packed with vitamins including vitamin C, E, and D so it would be utterly disappointing to waste such a fine and pricey dish due to mishandling, or wrong forms of preparation.
When buying caviar, it is important that you understand the different kinds of caviar, the ‘true caviar’ as it is called is the one gotten from only the osetra, sevruga, and beluga sturgeon fish.
There are also other farmed species of sturgeon which are mainly for commercial purposes, and their eggs are considered as good caviar, but in recent times, many substitutes have been made to get caviar from other types of fish, but their eggs are not regarded as ‘true caviar.’
Take the time to ask questions when shopping and be sure of what caviar you are out to buy. If you do try out some caviar recipes or taste caviar for the first time, let me know how it all goes, I am here to hear it all.