Squid caviar: why is it useful and can it be eaten?

The planet Earth truly surprises the human race with its natural diversity. Thus, nature has shown one really unusual and, at the same time, curious creature - squid. This cephalopod mollusk has a very unusual structure. But the squid has one interesting ability - it reproduces by eggs. And people often wonder - is it possible to eat his caviar?

What is squid caviar

As you cut up a shellfish like squid (and it doesn't matter if it's frozen or not), you can find an unusual mass of tiny particles in its belly. This is what is called squid caviar. This product has very useful properties, filled with a variety of microelements and unique taste. And although often this golden mixture is constantly disposed of, in fact, it is realistic to prepare many tasty things from it. However, the sharp, specific, with a slightly bitter aftertaste of caviar may not be to the liking of not every spiked gourmet.

How the product looks like

In terms of appearance, it has an unusual appearance: it does not look like any other caviar that fish have. You can even say that the caviar looks a lot like a chicken egg - the top of the oval is more elongated. The "production process" of it, however, is quite unusual. When the mating season comes, the male hands the female a spermatophore sack. At the same time, its size can reach about one meter. It is this substance that is mistaken by some for caviar.

Squid roe has a pinkish-beige hue. At the same time there is a slight transparency, beautifully glistening in the sun. It can be similar to fish roe cluster. Because of that it is often equated with mashed fish.

What is the benefit of squid caviar?

This product has no analogues thanks to its extraordinary properties. In terms of vitamin, trace element and mineral composition, this product has no equal. It also contains an extremely low percentage of calories. This will unspeakably please everyone who keeps track of the number of calories consumed per day. This product even has those properties that are characteristic of fish products.

In the content of the eggs there is a large amount of iodine, so necessary for the human body. It improves memory, stabilizes human hormonal background.

Based on the above-described beneficial properties, the content of minerals and so on in this delicacy, we can safely say: squid eggs not only can, but also just need to sometimes include in the human diet.

Harm and contraindications

As such, there can be no harm from squid caviar. Unless a person has an individual intolerance to seafood. And usually, knowing this fact, he simply avoids their use in his diet.

How to choose and store the product correctly

During her whole life, the female squid can bear eggs only once. For immediately after the emergence of their offspring, they simply die. You can find squid or squid eggs in special fish stores.

As a rule, this ingredient is extracted with the help of specially trained people. This is due to the fact that the female reliably protects her clutch for eggs.

After the caviar is extracted, it is packed in a vacuum space. This procedure prevents the entry of various bacteria into the product and keeps it fresh for a long time.

Important! Sometimes the caviar may have a whitish tint. It is normal for it. However, the presence of yellow color in the caviar indicates its lack of freshness.

For long-term storage, caviar is simply salted in jars. However, it is important to remember one thing: the longer you plan to store clam eggs, the more you need to keep them in the salt brine.

As a container for storage, a simple glass jar with transparent walls is considered the best.

Important: When selecting the carcass on your own, just shake the frozen squid. If the mollusks stick together - the conditions of storage and transportation were violated. The film shell, which covers the entire body of squid, must be of the purest white hue.

How to cook squid caviar correctly: recipes

In cooking, only the body and tentacles are used. The meat itself can be purchased in boiled, dried or pickled form. The meat of this creature desperately enough to replace the chicken, turkey or even beef meat.

Even if the clam roe has never been eaten before, it does not mean that nothing can be prepared from it. On the contrary, the taste of the product can surprise considerably. But it is important not to spoil it. Here are a few simple, but delicious recipes for caviar dishes:

Squid caviar baked in the oven

To prepare it, you will need:

• The caviar itself;
• Two tablespoons of olive or sunflower oil;
• A little lemon juice and spices;
• A couple of spoons of white wine.

Caviar is carefully washed and then sent to marinate in lemon juice (time - about 5 minutes). In the meantime, a mixture of oil, salt and spices is prepared (this is the marinade for baking). Now the caviar is smeared with the sauce, placed on a baking tray and poured with white wine. Then baked for 18 minutes over low heat.

Squid Pie

Products needed:

• 750 grams of clam caviar;
• A couple of eggs;
• Two slices of bread or five tablespoons of breadcrumbs;
• lemon juice;
• oil to grease the molds;
• 1 tablespoon of anchovy paste;
• Mashed potatoes - 250 grams;
• spices for flavor.

The caviar itself should be boiled in boiling water for about 10 minutes. All other products, except mashed potatoes, mix and place in an oiled form. Put mashed potatoes on top and put it all in the oven for about half an hour at medium baking temperature.

For note! Caviar can be added to a variety of fish salads. But it is important to remember: it should not interfere with the taste of other ingredients. On the contrary, it should serve as a kind of flavor enhancer. It is necessary for the caviar to shade and add "zest" to the taste.

Squid zrazy with eggs

Ingredients needed:

• 1 kilogram of frozen clams;
• spices for flavor;
• onion - 1 pc;
• chicken eggs - 3 pcs;
• a small amount of greens;
• butter.

Cooking process
To obtain a dough-like mixture, you need to pass the meat of the sea creature through a meat grinder. Onions are fried in butter until golden crust and mixed with the meat. After that, pepper and salt are added. Next, all the chicken eggs are boiled, cleaned, finely chopped and seasoned with salt. Now the greens are used: they also need to be chopped and sent to the eggs.

The meat and onion mixture is used to make a sort of cutlets, and the egg filling is put in the middle, and then the zrazy are formed. The last step is to fry all sides of the zrazy until golden brown. All this is done on a low heat and with the addition of butter.

Squid caviar as a filling for potato cakes

For this recipe, it is only necessary to rinse the caviar itself thoroughly and mashed potato it with a mortar (a simple tablespoon will do for crushing) and set aside for a while. After that, a small amount of the main ingredient is taken (about thirty grams), mashed potatoes (you need to take about five pieces), one onion, and some herbs. This is all mixed and to them are added breadcrumbs. The previously prepared stuffing should be put into the patties themselves and fried in oil.

Squid + caviar

There are also many recipes for cooking the clam itself, along with its caviar.

List of necessary ingredients:

• any pasta;
• about 400 grams of squid;
• 2 tomatoes;
• 2 to 3 garlic cloves;
• Five tablespoons of olive oil;
• a couple of pinches of herbs of Provence;
• lemon juice;
• salt and pepper.

Method of cooking
The carcasses must be defrosted, thoroughly washed, gutted and cut into rings. Put a saucepan with 2.5 liters of water on a stove, add a spoonful of oil and a pinch of salt. After that, you need to add the pasta and cook it until it is completely cooked, stirring all the time. Now you need to wash the pasta. Tomatoes are used: they are washed, peeled and grated. Then a frying pan is taken and heated over the fire, along with vegetable oil. Then the tomatoes are poured, all this is stirred and fried for one minute. Then the calamari is added to the tomatoes and fried for another minute. Peel the garlic, crush it and mix it with the contents of the pan. After everything, sprinkle with herbs and pour the juice of the lemon. At the end, everything is fried for another minute. Now the pasta is mixed with the calamari and after everything is served to the table. If you want you can sprinkle the ready pasta with grated cheese (preferably Parmesan or other hard varieties).

Is it possible to salt caviar?

Not only you can, but it is necessary. The longer the caviar of sea creatures is in the salt, the richer and more unusual is its taste. Such salt can be spread on a sandwich and eaten. To salt the caviar, you need to put it in a bowl and sprinkle it well with salt. After you need to put it in the refrigerator for 2-3 days for the best disclosure of all the flavor spectrums.