Caviar
Place of origin | to avoid tainting the taste of the caviar
Caviar (also known as caviare, originally from The roe can be "fresh" (non-pasteurized) or economic value.[5]
TerminologyAccording to the United Nations' Polyodontidae or paddlefish) are not caviar, but "substitutes of caviar".[6] This position is also adopted by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora,[7] the World Wide Fund for Nature,[8] the United States Customs Service,[9] and France.[10]
The term caviar is sometimes used to describe dishes that are perceived to resemble caviar, such as "eggplant caviar" (made from eggplant) and "Texas caviar" (made from black-eyed peas). HistoryCaviar and sturgeon from the Sea of Azov began reaching the tables of aristocratic and noble Greeks in the 10th century, after the commencement of large-scale trading between the Byzantine Empire and Kievan Rus'.[11] VarietiesThe main types of caviar from sturgeon species native to the Caspian Sea are U.S. Pacific Northwest. The rarest and costliest is from beluga sturgeon that swim in the Caspian Sea, which is bordered by Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan. Wild caviar production was suspended in Russia between 2008 and 2011 to allow wild stocks to replenish. Azerbaijan and Iran also allow the fishing of sturgeon off their coasts. Beluga caviar is prized for its soft, extremely large (pea-size) eggs. It can range in colour from pale silver-grey to black. It is followed by the small golden sterlet caviar which is rare and was once reserved for Russian, Iranian and Austrian royalty. Next in quality is the medium-sized, light brown to rich brown Ossetra, also known as Russian caviar. Others in the quality ranking are the grey sevruga caviar, the Chinese Kaluga caviar, and the American white sturgeon caviar. The Siberian variety with black beads is similar to sevruga and is popular because of its reduced (five years) harvest period, but it has a higher brine content than other kinds. The Chinese Kaluga hybrid varies in colour from dark grey to light golden green and is a close cousin of beluga caviar.[citation needed ]
Quality factors and costAn expensive caviar example at 1 kilogram (2.2 lb) sold for £20,000 (then US$34,500) is the Iranian 'Almas' product (from North Atlantic salmon.[citation needed ]
Conventional sturgeon caviar was priced in 2014 at about $105 per 1 ounce (28 g) and from albino sturgeon up to $800 per ounce.[14] Other quality factors are texture – with firmness having higher quality value – flavour qualities, such as creaminess, butter taste, and brine or mild fish finish, and whether the caviar was taken from the fish by massage (higher value) rather than by killing it.[14] Caviar is generally sold in ounces. An ounce of sturgeon caviar costs between $45 and $1,000, depending on the variety of sturgeon and other factors. Industry
ChinaChina produces the most caviar of any single country.[16] The largest caviar company in the world is the Chinese brand Kaluga Queen, which cultivates sturgeon at Qiandao Lake in Zhejiang.[17] RussiaIn the wake of over-fishing, the harvest and sale of black caviar were banned in Russia in 2007.[18] The ban on sturgeon fishing in the Caspian Sea has led to the development of aquaculture as an economically viable means of commercial caviar production.[19] Russian caviar exports were also banned from 2002 to 2011.[20] ItalyCristoforo da Messisbugo in his book Libro novo nel qual si insegna a far d'ogni sorte di vivanda, Venice, 1564, at page 110, gave the first recorded recipe in Italy about extraction of the eggs from the roe and caviar preparation "to be consumed fresh or to preserve".[21]
The writer and voyager Jérôme Lalande in his book "Voyage en Italie", Paris, 1771, vol. 8, page 269, noted that many sturgeon were caught in the Po delta area in the territory of Ferrara.[22]
In 1753 a diplomatic war broke out between the Venetian Republic about sturgeon fishing rights in the Po River, the border between the two states.[23] From about 1920 and until 1942, there was a shop in Ferrara, named "Nuta" from the nickname of the owner Benvenuta Ascoli, that processed all the sturgeons caught in the Po River for caviar extraction, using an elaboration of the original Messisbugo recipe, and shipped it to Italy and Europe. A new owner sporadically continued production until 1972, when the sturgeon stopped swimming up the Po River. Since 2015, some sturgeon have reappeared in the Po.[24]
Currently, Italian caviar is obtained almost entirely from bred sturgeons. The caviar production is concentrated predominantly in Brescia, which is considered the capital of Italian caviar:[25] in this area, in Calvisano, is located the world's largest sturgeon farm[26] that produces annually 25 tonnes of caviar.[25] Italy is a top producer of caviar.[27] North AmericaIn the early 20th century, Canada and the United States were the major caviar suppliers to Europe; they harvested roe from the lake sturgeon in the North American Midwest, and from the shortnose sturgeon and the Atlantic sturgeon spawning in the rivers of the East Coast of the United States. The American caviar industry started when Henry Schacht, a German immigrant, opened a business catching sturgeon on the Delaware River. He treated his caviar with German salt and exported a great deal of it to Europe. Around the same time, sturgeon was fished from the Columbia River on the West Coast of the United States, also supplying caviar. American caviar was so plentiful at the time that it was given away at bars to induce or prolong patrons' thirst.[28][29] Today, the shortnose sturgeon is rated Vulnerable in the Endangered Species Act. With the depletion of Caspian and Black Sea caviar, production of farmed or "sustainable" caviar[30] has greatly increased. In particular, northern California is reported to account for 70% to 80% of U.S. production.[31]
In 2021, a significant illegal sturgeon egg harvesting and selling ring run in part by the former top sturgeon biologist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) was discovered and broken up by investigators.[32] SpainThe 17th-century book Don Quixote mentions "cavial"[33][34] in a banquet of German pilgrims. Until 1992, sturgeons and caviar were collected at the lower parts of rivers Tajo .
From 1932 to 1970, the Ybarra family had a factory in Coria del Río.[35]
Acipenser naccarii .
In Spain, a fish farm called Caviar de Riofrío[36] produces organic caviar[37] at Loja, Granada, Andalusia.
UruguayAs well with Canada and the United States, Uruguay has become a major producer and exporter.[38] IsraelKibbutz Dan in Israel[39] produces four tons of caviar a year. The farm is fed by the Dan River, a tributary of the Jordan River.[40]
MadagascarMadagascar is the first African country that produces and exports caviar since 2018.[41] MalaysiaIn Malaysia, caviar production is relatively new and smaller in scale. Caviar is harvested from farmed sturgeon fish in Tanjung Malim, Perak. The caviar produced here is marketed as "tropical caviar".[42] The first Malaysian brand of tropical caviar was launched in March 2019.[43]
United KingdomThe British royal family had held a long affinity with the sturgeon since 1324, when Edward II decreed it a royal fish, whereby all sturgeons found within the foreshore of the Kingdom were decreed property of the monarch. EcologyOverfishing, smuggling and pollution caused by sewage entry into the Caspian Sea have considerably reduced the sea's sturgeon population.[44] In September 2005, the Ural River. Under the CITES agreement, Kazakhstan was granted the right to produce 13 of the 80 tons allowed up until 28 February 2011.[48]
ExtractionCommercial caviar production historically involved stunning the fish and extracting the ovaries. Another method of extracting caviar is by performing a caesarean section, which allows the female to continue producing roe.[49] Other farmers use a process called "stripping", which extracts the caviar from the fish via a small incision made along the urogenital muscle when the fish is deemed to be ready to be processed. An ultrasound is used to determine the correct timing.[50][51] Removing the caviar by massage may yield higher quality and a more sustainable source.[14]
PreparationPreparation follows a sequence that has not significantly changed over the last century. First, the ovaries are removed from a sedated female sturgeon and passed through a sieve to remove the membrane. Freed roes are rinsed to wash away impurities. Roes are now ready to become caviar by adding a precise amount of salt for taste and preservation. The fresh product is tasted and graded according to quality. Finally, the eggs are packed into lacquer-lined tins that will be further processed or sold directly to customers.[52] SubstitutesIn coastal British Columbia, Fraser River white sturgeon are sustainably farmed to produce caviar.[53] A sturgeon caviar imitation is a black or red-coloured lumpsucker caviar sold throughout Europe in small glass jars.
In common whitefish , are also commonly eaten in a similar manner as caviar. However, they are not caviar 'substitutes' but are enjoyed in their own right.
alginate (a seaweed polysaccharide) is used to recreate caviar's texture. With liquids flavored to resemble caviar, one obtains kosher and vegan caviar substitutes. They resemble beluga caviar in appearance and are either used as a food prop for television and film or enjoyed by vegetarians and other people worldwide.[54][55]
In Scandinavia, a type of sandwich spread is available, made from smoked cod roe and other ingredients, which is referred to as smörgåskaviar (meaning "sandwich caviar"). Outside Scandinavia, the product is referred to as creamed smoked roe or in French as Caviar de Lysekil. Storage and nutritionCaviar is highly perishable and must be kept refrigerated until consumption.[56] Caviar is 48% water, 25% protein, 18% fats, and 4% carbohydrates.[57] In a common serving amount of 16 grams (one Daily Value (DV) of vitamin B12, and moderate amounts (10-15% DV) of sodium, iron, magnesium, and selenium, with no other micronutrients in significant content.[57][58]
See alsoReferences
Further reading
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