Bottarga
Encyclopedia
Botargo, also called bottarga (Italian), poutargue or boutargue (French), botarga (Spanish), batarekh (Arabic) or avgotaraho (Greek αυγοτάραχο) is a Mediterranean delicacy of cured fish roe
.
Sometimes called the poor man's caviar
, botargo is the roe
pouch of tuna
or grey mullet
, or sometimes swordfish
. It is massaged by hand to eliminate air pockets, then dried and cured in sea salt for a few weeks. The result is a dry hard slab, which is coated in beeswax
for keeping.
It is usually used sliced thinly or grated.
In Italy, it is best known in Sicilian and Sardinian cuisine; its culinary properties can be compared to those of dry anchovies, though it is much more expensive. Bottarga is often served with lemon juice as an appetizer or used in pasta
dishes. In Lebanon it is served sliced, where each slice is covered with a piece of raw garlic and the whole is immersed in olive oil then eaten with flat bread.
buṭariḫ بطارخ (attested in 1400), which in turn comes from the Coptic
outarakhon, from the Byzantine Greek < 'egg' + τάριχον 'pickled fish', mentioned (and denounced) by Simeon Seth
in the 11th century. The modern Greek name substitutes the modern version αυγό for the ancient word .
caught in Greek lagoons. The whole mature ovaries are removed from the fish, washed with water, salted with natural sea salt, dried under the sun, and sealed in melted beeswax.
Avgotaracho Messolonghiou, made from fish caught in the Messolonghi-Etoliko Lagoons
is a European and Greek protected designation of origin
, one of the few seafood products with a PDO.
Roe
Roe or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses of fish and certain marine animals, such as shrimp, scallop and sea urchins...
.
Sometimes called the poor man's caviar
Caviar
Caviar, sometimes called black caviar, is a luxury delicacy, consisting of processed, salted, non-fertilized sturgeon roe. The roe can be "fresh" or pasteurized, the latter having much less culinary and economic value....
, botargo is the roe
Roe
Roe or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses of fish and certain marine animals, such as shrimp, scallop and sea urchins...
pouch of tuna
Tuna
Tuna is a salt water fish from the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. Tuna are fast swimmers, and some species are capable of speeds of . Unlike most fish, which have white flesh, the muscle tissue of tuna ranges from pink to dark red. The red coloration derives from myoglobin, an...
or grey mullet
Flathead mullet
The flathead mullet, Mugil cephalus, is a mullet of the genus Mugil, found in coastal tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its length is typically 30 to 75 centimeters...
, or sometimes swordfish
Swordfish
Swordfish , also known as broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long, flat bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood...
. It is massaged by hand to eliminate air pockets, then dried and cured in sea salt for a few weeks. The result is a dry hard slab, which is coated in beeswax
Beeswax
Beeswax is a natural wax produced in the bee hive of honey bees of the genus Apis. It is mainly esters of fatty acids and various long chain alcohols...
for keeping.
It is usually used sliced thinly or grated.
In Italy, it is best known in Sicilian and Sardinian cuisine; its culinary properties can be compared to those of dry anchovies, though it is much more expensive. Bottarga is often served with lemon juice as an appetizer or used in pasta
Pasta
Pasta is a staple food of traditional Italian cuisine, now of worldwide renown. It takes the form of unleavened dough, made in Italy, mostly of durum wheat , water and sometimes eggs. Pasta comes in a variety of different shapes that serve for both decoration and to act as a carrier for the...
dishes. In Lebanon it is served sliced, where each slice is covered with a piece of raw garlic and the whole is immersed in olive oil then eaten with flat bread.
Etymology
The word in most languages comes from the ArabicArabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
buṭariḫ بطارخ (attested in 1400), which in turn comes from the Coptic
Coptic language
Coptic or Coptic Egyptian is the current stage of the Egyptian language, a northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century. Egyptian began to be written using the Greek alphabet in the 1st century...
outarakhon, from the Byzantine Greek < 'egg' + τάριχον 'pickled fish', mentioned (and denounced) by Simeon Seth
Simeon Seth
Simeon Seth or Symeon Seth was an 11th-century Jewish Byzantine doctor, scholar, and grand Chamberlain under Emperor Michael VII Doukas, originally from Antioch...
in the 11th century. The modern Greek name substitutes the modern version αυγό for the ancient word .
Avgotaracho Messolonghiou
In Greece, avgotaracho is produced primarily from the flathead mulletFlathead mullet
The flathead mullet, Mugil cephalus, is a mullet of the genus Mugil, found in coastal tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its length is typically 30 to 75 centimeters...
caught in Greek lagoons. The whole mature ovaries are removed from the fish, washed with water, salted with natural sea salt, dried under the sun, and sealed in melted beeswax.
Avgotaracho Messolonghiou, made from fish caught in the Messolonghi-Etoliko Lagoons
Messolonghi-Etoliko Lagoons
The Mesolonghi-Aitoliko lagoons complex is located in the north part of the Gulf of Patras in the central west coast of Greece . It is one of the most important Mediterranean lagoons. It is a shallow area of 150 km2, extended between the Acheloos and Evinos rivers...
is a European and Greek protected designation of origin
Protected designation of origin
Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
, one of the few seafood products with a PDO.
See also
- MyeongranMyeongranIn Korean cuisine Myeongran or Myeongran jeot is a jeotgal made with the roe of flathead mullet or pollock and seasoned with chili pepper powder. It is commonly served as a banchan, or small dish accompanying rice or as an ingredient for altang , a kind of jjigae...
, a Korean fermented seafood consisting of mullet roe - KarasumiKarasumiKarasumi , Romaji: karasumi; ) is a food product made by salting mullet roe and drying it by the sunlight. A theory suggests that it got its name from its resemblance to a block of sumi imported from China and used in shodo...
, an East Asian dried mullet roe