White caviar

Most varieties of caviar from river and sea fish are considered a delicacy. The cost of incredibly delicious black sturgeon, red salmon and dried Icelandic cod caviar reaches an outrageous level, but white beluga caviar is considered the most expensive and noble.

Beluga is recognized as the largest fish from the sturgeon family ^[1]. Its average weight reaches 50 kilograms. Lean coarse beluga meat is boiled, fried, stewed, baked, even used for fish kebabs. It does not crumble into pieces, holds the structure and tolerates heat treatment well. But beluga caviar is served in small portions as the most valuable part of the meal.

What you need to know about beluga and white caviar, how to distinguish a quality product from a fake, and is it worth spending your material resources on this marine delicacy?

General product characteristics

Beluga is a fish from the sturgeon family ^[2]. This species is included in the Red Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Beluga is recognized as the largest freshwater fish, and the weight of the largest representatives of this family reaches one and a half tons.

The beluga is characterized by a short snout, which is pointed upwards, but it is soft and shieldless on the sides. The mouth of the fish is large, lunate, the lower lip is interrupted. Beluga antennae are flattened on the sides and dotted with leaf-like appendages. The gill membranes of the fish have grown together and formed a free fold under the intergill space and are one of its distinguishing features. The whole body of the beluga is covered with bone grains. The back is painted in a dull grayish-brown shade, while the belly, on the contrary, is light ^[3].

The size of the beluga is impressive. One of the largest freshwater fish reaches 4-5 meters in length. According to unconfirmed data received from fishermen and industrial fish catchers, they met especially large individuals weighing up to 2 tons and 9 meters long.

Interesting: stuffed especially large fish are kept in museums. For example, a beluga caught in 1989 has been preserved in the Astrakhan museum. Its weight was 966 kilograms, and its length was 4 meters. ^[4]. More than 100 kilograms of caviar were obtained from the animal.

Habitat

Beluga is considered an anadromous fish. Part of its life cycle takes place in the sea, and part in the rivers that flow into it. The main habitat is the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas. From there, the fish enter the rivers to spawn. If earlier beluga populations were numerous, now this species is under the threat of extinction. This is due to an increase in the volume of fish caught and its further sale at a high price.

Until the 70s of the XX century, the fish lived in the Adriatic Sea, from where it spawned to the Po River. But the beluga abruptly disappeared from this area, and it has never been seen on the Adriatic coast over the past 30 years.

The Adriatic fish population is considered extinct.

Chordal growth / reproduction

The life cycle of fish can reach the mark of 100 years, so the family is classified as long-lived. Almost all sturgeons mate and fertilize eggs several times in their lives. This is not true for all fish. For example, Pacific salmon dies immediately after spawning. At the end of spawning, the beluga returns to its usual habitat: from the river back to the sea.

Formed caviar is bottom and sticky. The size of the fry varies from 1,5 to 2,5 centimeters. Most often, fry roll into the sea, but some specimens linger in rivers and live there up to 5-6 years. Sexual maturity in females occurs at the age of 13-18 years, and in males at 16-27 years (the active period falls on the 22nd year of life).

The fecundity of the fish depends on the size of the female, but the average varies from 500 to 1 million eggs. In exceptional cases, this number can reach 5 million.

Migration

For the period of spawning, fish move to the rivers: from the Black Sea – to the Danube and Dnieper, from the Azov – to the Don and Kuban, and from the Caspian – to the Kura, Terek, Ural and Volga. The spawning run begins in March and ends in December. Small flocks of fish remain to winter in the rivers, but most return to the seas.

Features of food

In the food chain, the beluga is listed as a predator. It feeds mainly on fish. The predatory nature manifests itself immediately after birth: the fry begin to hunt small fish and mollusks.

Fact: Scientists have found cubs in the Caspian Beluga stomach.

Beluga food competitors with the most similar diet and lifestyle:

• zander;
• asp;
• pike;
• sturgeon;
• stellate sturgeon.

Human interaction with fish and importance for the food industry

Beluga is considered a valuable commercial fish. Until the 90s, beluga catches accounted for more than 10% of the total annual sturgeon catch. Since the beginning of the 90s, there has been a constant decline in the level of industrial catch ^[5]. This is due to a decrease in populations and protection of fish by the International Union for Conservation of Nature ^[6].

A person uses the meat, entrails, skin, heads and caviar of the beluga. The concentration of fat in the body of the fish is 7%, in the entrails – 4%; The highest figure was recorded in caviar – 15%. Beluga meat is cooled, frozen, boiled, canned and put on the market in dried form. The elmiga (sturgeon chord) is also eaten, and special solutions are prepared from the dried swim bladders for clarification of wines.

Beluga caviar is represented on the market in all 2 varieties:

• grainy. This type of caviar is not pasteurized. It consists of undeformed whole salted grains, which are easily separated from each other. They are ground through a special sieve to remove films and streaks. Caviar can be slightly or strongly salted barrel. The granular type is also called raw;
• pressed. Immediately after the catch, the caviar is salted in yastiks (a natural film in which caviar is stored), after which they are laid out in special containers, dried and salted. The product is freed from filmy ovaries, mucus, veins, and then crushed in massive vats with pushers. As a result, the eggs become dense, saturated with brackish beluga fat.

Beluga numbers have drastically declined in all seas. Natural spawning areas have been built over, resulting in a decline in populations ^[7]. Artificial reproduction of fish showed low efficiency, since there were no producers ready to seriously take on this market segment. An additional factor that influenced the status of the beluga is overfishing both in the seas and in the rivers. As a result, it was given the status of “Species on the verge of extinction”. Now scientists are actively developing new methods of breeding fish, improving the biotechnology of artificial breeding and trying to maintain their habitats. ^[8].

In the natural environment, the fish hybridizes with sturgeon, stellate sturgeon, sterlet and thorn. With the help of artificial insemination, it was possible to create several viable fish species that successfully populated the Volga, Kuban, the Sea of ​​uXNUMXbuXNUMXbAzov and some reservoirs. Sturgeon hybrids have also successfully taken root in aquaculture farms.

What you need to know about beluga caviar?

Beluga females throw black caviar, but white caviar is obtained as a result of natural mutations. Among sturgeon, as among any other living organisms, albinism occurs. ^[9]. This is a congenital absence of pigment, which is responsible for the shade of the skin, iris and hair color. Some sturgeons simply do not have the necessary pigment, and they take on a snow-white hue. The caviar of such beluga also changes color to white. It is noteworthy that in young fish, the shade of caviar is closer to gold or cream. The older the fish, the whiter the caviar, so the most snow-white, almost transparent eggs are typical for long-lived fish.

Important: the taste and nutritional properties of ordinary beluga and albino caviar are identical. The only difference is in the shade. Due to the fact that albinism is a relatively rare occurrence, white eggs are much more valuable. ^[10]. An additional factor that affects the cost of the product is the volume of production. In just a year, only a few tens of kilograms of albino beluga caviar are mined in the world.

Beluga caviar is quite large. Its diameter is 2,5 millimeters, and the weight varies from ⅕ to ¼ of the weight of the fish itself. It is this caviar that is considered the most valuable (compared to the caviar of other sturgeons). The shade of standard caviar is dark gray with a noticeable silvery sheen. Palettes of taste and aroma differ in intensity, richness and variety of accents. The caviar is characterized by a traditional sea taste and a unique almond aftertaste.

An interesting fact: before the revolution, the best varieties of granular caviar were called “Warsaw redistribution”. Why? Most of the deliveries of products from the Russian Empire went through Warsaw, and from there – abroad.

How to distinguish a real product from a fake?

Each marine product has its own characteristics. In caviar, this is the structure, specific notes of taste and shade. Some people may confuse two different types of caviar, to say nothing of a quality fake. Sometimes beluga caviar is combined with other, very similar, but cheaper varieties. It is quite easy to notice a fake, you just need to look at the product. The eggs must be the same color and size. If these parameters are violated, then the manufacturer decided to save on the quality of the batch.

Important: it is very difficult to distinguish caviar by taste. Even professionals or gourmets make mistakes and do not catch the necessary accents of taste.

Often, poor quality caviar, overripe or underripe, can be caught in a jar. This is not a fake, but simply one of the manifestations of the manufacturer’s negligence. In both cases, the caviar shell will be too hard, the film will burst, and the caviar taste palette will shift to bitter or too salty. A quality product should burst slightly and literally melt in your mouth.

If you buy loose caviar, then focus on the smell and appearance. Also, do not miss the opportunity to try the product before buying. If the choice falls on caviar in a jar, then give preference to proven well-known brands that value their own reputation. Moreover, if you still come across a low-quality product, then you can contact the consumer protection service, return your money and compensate for the damage.

Important: canned caviar by default is considered lower grade. A good product is usually not canned, but sold fresh.

The cost of beluga caviar, and especially white caviar, is high. It is best not to save and focus on the average market price. A product that is too cheap can be manufactured in questionable ways under unhygienic conditions, and this is fraught with infections and health risks. Moreover, cheap caviar may be last year. The eggs are washed from mucus, salted again and distributed in jars.

5 of the main rules for the selection of beluga caviar:

• buy the product in the “season” when there is a lot of caviar and it is fresh;
• do not spare money and focus on the average market price;
• beware of the dye;
• give preference to the product by weight, evaluate the appearance / taste / smell, but do not forget to clarify the documents and find out the manufacturer;
• if you buy caviar in a bank, choose proven, reputable companies that value their own name and the trust of the client.

Chemical composition of the product ^[11]

Useful properties of sea delicacy

The unique composition of seafood helps us maintain and improve health, stimulate the growth of nails/hair, fill internal resources and find psycho-emotional harmony. Let’s start with the positive aspects of using caviar to maintain the external beauty of a person.

Antioxidants in ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and tocopherol (vitamin E) protect human skin from ultraviolet rays of group B. Nutrients reduce the pathological effects of free radicals in cells, thereby slowing down the aging process and skin fading. B vitamins, which abound in beluga caviar, are responsible for the formation of the epithelium, beautiful hair and strong nails, and retinol (vitamin A) helps them recover. Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids minimize inflammation inside the body and make our skin literally glow from the inside. ^[12][13].

Unsaturated fatty acids control almost every aspect of our existence. Omega-3s are the main structural element of cell membranes. They control all metabolic processes in the body: the transmission of nerve impulses, the quality of the brain, the functionality of the circulatory system, the protection of the body from infections and pathological microflora. Particular attention to caviar should be paid to people with impaired vision and constant weakness in the muscles. The use of unsaturated fatty acids helps to lose weight, protect the body from the development of diabetes and even cancer. This substance regulates the content of cholesterol in the blood, strengthens the nervous system, makes the heart work more efficiently and speeds up metabolic processes.

Another advantage of beluga caviar is the abundance of protein. It contains all vital amino acids, and in terms of nutritional properties, the product may well compete with meat. But seafood has a significant advantage: the animal protein of marine life is absorbed much easier and more efficiently. The percentage gap between the degree of digestibility of fish meat and caviar can reach 10-20%.

Also, beluga caviar can prevent the development of osteoporosis and rickets due to vitamin D (calciferol). Calciferol helps the body to more easily absorb phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca), which strengthens the bone skeleton, the muscular system and additionally protects them from destructive processes.

Important. The only thing to watch out for even in quality seafood is mercury and plastic. Pollution of the world’s oceans entails the infection of fish. Harmful substances through fish fall directly onto our plate, and this can cause a number of diseases and irreversible internal changes. To minimize possible risks, eat seafood 2-3 times a week and choose your food basket responsibly.

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