What Is Caviar? Origin, Process And More

If there is one food that is associated with pure luxury, it is caviar. This particular delicacy made of sturgeon fish eggs is quite rare and expensive and is also considered as a coveted item in the culinary world. Caviar comes from a number of species of sturgeon. The different caviars are such as royal white sturgeon caviar, beluga caviar and more. However, beluga caviar is the largest, rarest and the most expensive caviar.  

What exactly is caviar?

Caviar, typically, is unfertilized fish eggs, sometimes also known as fish roe. It is a salty delicacy, that is usually served cold. The true caviar comes from wild sturgeon, which belong to the Acipenseridae family. Even though the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea have produced most of the world’s caviar for a very long time, the farm-produced caviar has gained popularity as the wild sturgeon populations have been depleted from overfishing.  

What is the process of harvesting caviar?

The highest quality of caviar comes from the eggs that are harvested as the females prepare to spawn. In the wild, the sturgeons are caught as they move from saltwater to fresh tributaries to lay their eggs. In the fish farms, sturgeon will always be monitored through ultrasound in order to determine when their eggs are ready for harvesting. Depending on the size of the fish, a sturgeon can even release several million eggs at once.

 

Characteristics of caviar
Each type of caviar has its own unique qualities, ranging from coloring to flavor. For instance, beluga caviar is quite smooth and buttery with a nutty flavor that is close to hazelnut. All of the glistening caviar eggs range in color from pure black to a greenish-grey. Caviar is mainly differentiated on qualities such as size, color, firmness, taste and aroma.