The most expensive caviar in the world: description, fish and the best recipes

As for the cheapest caviar in the modern food industry, everything is clear. Surrogate product is a beautiful ball of gelatinous algae, the taste of which resembles a fish. There is also a natural cheap caviar - pollock, herring. Falsifiers sometimes forge a pike caviar. They paint it black and try to pass it out for the sevryuja. But in this article we are not interested in surrogates or products of the lowest price segment, but what caviar is the most expensive in the world. Or at least in Russia. And anyway, what kinds of fish give the most expensive caviar? And how much does such a product cost?

Myths and facts about caviar

There was an opinion that the most expensive caviar is black. Red, though larger, is a cheaper delicacy. In fact, everything is more complicated. After all, there are a number of species of fish that spawn black caviar. This beluga, sturgeon, stellate sturgeon, sterlet. It is in this order that delicacy is valued. But that's not all. The age of the fish is important. The older she is, the more delicious her caviar is. And, as a paradox, it is lighter. In the world of manufacturers, a product classifier based on color has been developed. Caviar of light gray shade is the best grade of black.

Further, the taste of the product is affected by the degree of maturity. Sometimes the eggs do not have time to transform into solid beads. This mass is called yastyk. Together with the connecting film it is salted. Yastyma caviar is the cheapest of the noble varieties. Above is pasyusnaya, salted in brine (strong saline solution). And even higher is the grainy, pasteurized caviar. It is mature, with solid beads, salted in a dry way. For gourmets it is important that the eggs of different species of fish do not mix. Therefore, not only black or red caviar is valued, but beluga, sturgeon, salmon, chum salmon, etc. Glass cans are preferable to iron. So you do not buy a "cat in a bag", but you see the quality of the product (integrity, size, color of the grains).

The most expensive caviar in the world

We have already mentioned that the older the fish of the sturgeon family, the more delicious and lighter the product. Therefore, the most-most valuable and, accordingly, expensive caviar is not black, but white caviar. Her special fish are chasing - beluga-albino. Already this alone makes the spawn rare. And now take into account the fact that such a fish should be at least a hundred years old! Beluga albinos are found in the southern (Iranian) part of the Caspian Sea. Despite the fact that the individuals of these fish are groomed and cherished, there are quite a few of them left. The international market receives no more than ten kilograms of such caviar per year.

In Iran, the product is called "almas", which means "diamond". And in the West and North America it is called "Golden Caviar" - "golden caviar". And not so much radiant yellow color defines the name. This caviar is worth its weight in gold. For a hundred grams you need to pay two and a half thousand dollars. But it should be noted that a significant share in the pricing of the goods is played by its packaging. The Iranians believe that the only worthy frame for such a diamond as the caviar "Almas", can only be a jar of gold nine hundred and ninety-fifth test.

The demand for delicacy

It seems strange and almost impossible that someone wants to buy caviar for the price of a small car. After all, so one meal costs more than the food of one African village throughout the year. But nevertheless the most expensive caviar in the world is very in demand. Tolstosumy from around the world are waiting for their turn for five years to be able to lay out for a jar of delicacy two and a half thousand American dollars. Why do they give their "hard-earned money" money? Well, certainly not for a jar of the 995th test! They say that the gold (or diamond) caviar has a unique taste that is incomparable to anything in the world. She does not smell like fish. Its taste reminds almond. And the caloric content of caviar is better than meat. But, unlike pork and beef, it is much more useful.

The taste and purse of Russians

What is the most expensive caviar in Russia? Naturally, this should be the beluga. And the price of the product is directly affected by the age and size of the fish. Thus, the paradox is that the most expensive black caviar is not charcoal, but light gray. This product, of course, granular. Completely ripened eggs are light gray whole and well-shaped balls of a certain diameter. To do this, they are delicately sifted through a special sieve-roar. Only the largest eggs go to the bank. They are completely cleared of the films and veins of the yastik.

The caviar is hardly palpable. This is called a dry method. Eggs are poured very fine table salt (not more than five percent of the product) and so mature for a couple of minutes. Then the delicacy is packed in cans with top and clogged with a high lid. When opening the container, caviar should keep the shape well. But the official catch of beluga in the Russian Federation is prohibited. On the black Russian market, the price of the product is six hundred twenty euros per kilogram.

The best sturgeon caviar

Since the beluga for the domestic user remains a "forbidden fruit", let's see what a law-abiding Russian can indulge in on holidays. This sturgeon is a fish that breathes in the back of the head to the leader of all the throwers of black caviar. The volume of legal production is one hundred and eighty tons per year. It is palpable more than ten kilograms of "diamond". The most expensive sturgeon caviar in supermarkets costs four hundred and fifty euros per kilogram. Without cheating shop - two hundred and thirty. Near the fisheries you can buy a liter jar of excellent black sturgeon caviar and for a thousand rubles. But such an acquisition is not entirely legal.

The most expensive red caviar

This incredibly useful and valuable product is derived from salmonid fish . Like sturgeon, there are several species in this friendly company. In addition to the salmon itself, the family includes keta, pink salmon, trout, sockeye salmon, chinook salmon, sima and coho salmon. By utility, fat content and the level of valuable, easily digestible proteins, the eggs of all these fish are the same. But the size of eggs is different. Yes, and taste slightly different. Keta is the biggest caviar. Grain in five, or even nine millimeters in diameter, will not be lost in the salad. These eggs also have a smart bright orange color with a red interspersed. They have a dense shell. So they burst on their teeth, shooting to the roof of the sky with their amazingly tasty middling. This caviar is not bitter, and therefore is considered the best.

Outlandish product

Salmonids do not have such a gradation in value, as in sturgeon. Therefore, there is no unequivocal answer to the question of which is the most expensive red caviar, which fish is the product. In pricing, the population of a given species is often important. Caviar roe cost three and a half thousand rubles per kilogram. But you can not say that it is the most delicious and valuable. Coho salmon eggs have a diameter of three to five millimeters. Color - closer to red, not as smart as a chum. Nerka is talking about very small eggs. The taste of the fish is much better. But the price per kilo of caviar is three thousand rubles. So it's up to you - what to put at the forefront: a rare type of product or its taste qualities.

Pink salmon is the sales leader

We already found out which red caviar is the most expensive. But the people vote with a purse. The salmon roe still remains the favorite of the public. She has the same elegant amber color as the ketova. But eggs themselves are slightly smaller - from three to six millimeters. They have a not very dense shell. But the market is so inundated with falsifications, that this quality only confirms once again that caviar is real. The taste slightly bitter. The annual catch of pink salmon in Russia is the largest in terms of volumes from all salmonids. And this inevitably affects the price. Thus, despite all the economic crises, the average Russian can afford to buy a can of pink salmon roe for a holiday.

And other salmon

With the growing popularity of sushi, demand has also appeared for very small eggs - for running the rolls. Eggs of sockeye salmon are too bitter and have a specific taste. Therefore, trout caviar is more popular. It is very shallow (two or three millimeters in diameter), it sticks well to sushi. Its coloring, based on the species of trout, can be both yellow and orange. No less delicious is the caviar of coho salmon. It is also not large - the grains hardly reach a diameter of four millimeters. The most expensive caviar is in chinook salmon. Its large grains are six to seven millimeters in diameter and have a rich red color. However, this delicacy is distinguished by a somewhat bitter taste. The high price is due to the fact that the fish species of the Chinook salmon family are listed in the Red Book.

How to choose caviar

With the abundance of protein surrogate on the market, it is important not to make a mistake in choosing a quality product. Too beautiful kernels of uniform color with a distinct fishy smell testify just that caviar is not real. Gelatin does not crack, but clings to the teeth - another marker of falsification.

Now we will learn how to choose a real product from sturgeon. It is better to buy a glass jar - so you can view its contents. But quality Iranian caviar - black, not diamond - is sold in metal containers. But in this case, you can determine whether the product is good. The lid should have a stamped inside marking. The bank should not gurgle when shaken. The label must include the information: what kind of fish is this caviar and what is the method of its processing. It is even easier to determine the quality of the delicacy of red color. In natural eggs there is a "peephole" - the embryo of a fish.

The best recipes with caviar application

This delicacy is able to transform even a very simple, everyday dish. We already found out which fish are the most expensive. Hence, and a sandwich with her will be oh as cheap. But for such a delicacy you need to come up with something more refined than a sandwich. With red caviar they prepare a national Russian dish - pancakes. And how to apply black in cooking?

Here is the recipe for the festive salad "The Gifts of Neptune". Black caviar is perfectly combined with seafood. Take for a salad a pound of squid and two hundred grams of shrimp. Boil the seafood. Two eggs and 150 grams of cheese are consumed. Squid let's go through the meat grinder, mix with two cloves of garlic and 100 g of mayonnaise. We spread a layer of boiled rice into the dish. Then half the squid. Next - two cut cubes of tomato. We put eggs on them. Top - the second half of squids and cheese. Lubricated with mayonnaise. The top of the salad is decorated with boiled peeled shrimps and black caviar.