Which fish produce black caviar?
Black caviar usually refers to the caviar from sturgeon species, which include Osetra, Sevruga, and Beluga. Fish with black caviar are raised in commercial fish farms.
Black caviar not only impresses with its exquisite taste but is also very healthy due to its high content of trace elements. It contains all essential amino acids and numerous vitamins. Nevertheless, it remains a precious and very expensive delicacy. This is due both to the elaborate breeding of sturgeons and the dramatic decline in their wild populations.
Black Caviar: Which fish does it come from?
There are three main types of black caviar, depending on the fish species: Osetra, Beluga, and Sevruga.
Which fish produces the best black caviar? The most valuable and largest are the eggs of Beluga caviar. Osetra caviar is slightly smaller but is in no way inferior to Beluga in taste and nutritional value. Sevruga caviar is considered the smallest and at the same time the most affordable.
There are six so-called maturation stages of caviar. Caviar is considered granular ("grain caviar") from the fourth maturation stage onwards. The third stage corresponds to pressed caviar, the second to sack caviar. Granular caviar has the best taste characteristics. To determine the degree of ripeness, small samples are taken in fish farms with a special probe.
Thanks to modern aquaculture, commercial farms succeed in producing first-class products. Depending on the production method, four variants are distinguished: granular canned caviar, granular barrel caviar, pressed caviar, and sack caviar.
Production Methods of Black Caviar
Granular caviar consists of intact, round grains that are easily separated from each other. It is not pasteurized. Depending on the salt content and packaging, a distinction is made between lightly salted canned caviar and more heavily salted barrel caviar. Pressed caviar is prepared in a hot, saturated brine. This process involves constant stirring and subsequent pressing of the grains. Sack caviar is salted directly in its natural membranes by dipping them in hot brine. This type is the cheapest but is hardly produced anymore due to low demand.
Sturgeon fish are very demanding. A single sturgeon requires more than one cubic meter of water. Rearing is lengthy and expensive. The first caviar harvest can only be expected after 7–10 years. Therefore, black caviar remains one of the most exquisite and expensive delicacies in the world.
Fish with black caviar
Article: How and where are fish raised for caviar production? Which fish produce black caviar?
