Caviar

[TPFKA@W]

For several years now I always buy a jar or 2 of some cheap caviar (under$10 for a small jar) and we enjoy it around Christmas. I rather suspect that we don't serve the cheap stuff that we buy properly. I use cream cheese with it and whatever crackers are lying about. I have read that one is supposed to serve it with a spoon made from mother of pearl. I use a stainless spoon. Anyway, while enjoying a cheap jar of caviar this year I got to wondering about the expensive kind. Has anyone here had the kind that busts the piggy bank at >$4K and served "properly"? If so, is it worth the difference in costs verses a difference in quality or flavor?

[MajGenl.Meade]

Two questions - two answers:

(a) No
(ii) Either is a waste of cream cheese and crackers

[TPFKA@W]

You eat marmite thus your opinions on taste don't actually count.

[MajGenl.Meade]

...not on cream cheese and nice, juicy crackers I don't

"The Cornish salt is a very wet salt and produces rather a soft egg," states Exmoor Caviar Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Benning. "The Hebridean salt is drier, so makes for a more robust taste."

... soft and wet egg probably accounts for boG (the antipodean epicure of caviar and Marmite)

[oldr_n_wsr]

The only thing I heard about caviar is that you are not supposed to spread it with a metal knife/spreader. I think some type of wood is best, but what do I know, I usually use fish eggs for bait.

I did tast caviar once, salty with a wierd texture. Gimme a chunk of meat instead.

[Big RR]

I have had a number of different caviars and have found that all were different in taste, although my preferences didn't correlate with the price. The most expensive I have had (at a party) was a fairly expensive Russian Belluga that didn't taste much better to me than some cheaper ones. The cheapest caviars I find tend to be more oily and have a lot of broken eggs compared with the more expensive ones, but the best tasting is a matter of taste. I tend to prefer the Danish caviars, which are less expensive, but have a flavor I prefer more. It's worth testing a few brands and types to see what you like best.

As for serving, I do think proper serving can make a difference; I prefer chilled (and kept on ice, caviar with a little finely chopped onion and a neutral flavored cracker, but have also seen people use chopped egg--I've never tried it with cheese, but would think something like cream cheese might mask the taste (although too much onion could do the same thing). I don't think the spoons make a difference, but I have always had it served using a small silver spoon. For me, the other thing is not to overdo it; a little caviar is better than a lot.

Hope this helps.

[RayThom]

"Fish Fetuses."

[Big RR]

Thank you Beldar.

[Joe Guy]

Which came first? The fish, the caviar or the metal container?

[wesw]

fish roe is considered a delicacy by many around here, but I feed it to the animals. yuck!

I don t do raw oysters either..., well maybe one if they are Chincoteague salty oysters....

oyster fritters are popular too. I like the taste of the batter of the fried fritter, but I just eat around the actual oysters, they have a yucky color , so they must not be eaten (wes' rule of food #3)

[rubato]

Good caviar is nice. On toast points it is lovely. But not enough for me to pay for it more than once a decade.

On the other hand Ikura is lovely when fresh:



Little crystalline bursts of sea water in your mouth.

Tobikko is nice too, crunchy!





yrs,
rubato

[oldr_n_wsr]

Think of all those fish that will never hatch.
No wonder the stock is depleted.