Uni and Eggs
When Sherry went by Catalina Offshore Products this past Friday to pick up some fish (grouper and yellowtail - both were fantastic) she also grabbed a tray of uni. I'd been looking forward to trying uni for some time now - admittedly with some trepidation, as I find the idea of eating sea urchin gonads a bit off-putting.
This is what the uni looks like in the wooden tray it comes in:
The verdict? At the risk of losing what foodie street-cred I may or may not have, I have to confess that I'm not a fan. We first tried them straight-up. I can see why lots of people like them - they have a sweet, rich taste of the sea about them. But I just couldn't get past the texture.
We also gave them a try in eggs - with much the same reaction from me, I'm afraid. And while Sherry liked it considerably more than I did, I don't think uni is going to find a regular spot in our rotation. The offal in our eggs is more likely to come from larger creatures.
For some more positive takes on local uni, have a look at this post from Dennis, and this one from Kirk.
Holy cr*p Mike, that looks so amazingly delicious!! To be honest I wasn't a huge fan of uni just 3~4 years ago. Like I could eat it but I didn't know what the big deal was (my sister was always crazy for them). Things slowly changed for me, especially once I got past the texture. It's also good with EVOO. Anyway thanks for the mention!
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely willing to try it again. I'm not optimistic that my reaction will change, though... :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat is the texture like? I was tempted to try the live sea urchin at the Sea Rocket Bistro, but wasn't brave enough :-)
ReplyDeleteThe texture was soft, custardy and - I don't want to say slimy, but a bit in that direction.
ReplyDeleteI had uni long long time ago and didn't like it at all. The texture was not that bad but the smell reminded me of fish innards and the taste was a bit bitter if I recall. I chalked that up to just wasn't fresh uni. I still want to try fresh uni but just not convinced that I'd like it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think uni is definitely one of those things that just isn't for everybody...
ReplyDeleteHey Mike - I'm sorry I missed this post, I think we were away. Perhaps you should get live uni, it is much better than the boxed stuff. Sort of like oceany custard. I'll admit that it, like many food items is not everyone's cup of tea.
ReplyDeleteHi Kirk - I can definitely see live uni being better. Not sure it would change my opinion, though...
ReplyDelete