Hi,

I'm not sure what kind of Ikura I am getting - but I much prefer Tobiko
over it.


Can flying fish be farm raised?

I would hope not.

Thanks

Hello Rick,

> Hi,
>
> I'm not sure what kind of Ikura I am getting - but I much prefer
> Tobiko over it.

Mmmm, recently I had fresh ikura for the first time. Usually it's preserved.
Fresh ikura is very nice - same briny character, but crisper and cleaner.

Rick Nelson wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I'm not sure what kind of Ikura I am getting - but I much prefer Tobiko
> over it.
>
>
> Can flying fish be farm raised?
>
> I would hope not.
>
> Thanks


I think of tobiko as like masago, only better. Ikura is very different.

Tobiko gunkan-style with a little ume salt is excellent.

Ikura (salted salmon Roe) and Tobiko (flying fish roe) are very
difficult to compare. Size, texture, flavor are very different between
the two. Did you perhaps mean masago (Smelt/Capellin roe)?
-tmo

Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs that had
the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the taste, it
was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my teeth
that I remember.


"tmo" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Ikura (salted salmon Roe) and Tobiko (flying fish roe) are very
> difficult to compare. Size, texture, flavor are very different between
> the two. Did you perhaps mean masago (Smelt/Capellin roe)?
> -tmo
>

Sonoran Desert dweller wrote:

> Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs that had
> the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the taste, it
> was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my teeth
> that I remember.

That could have been kazunoko http://japanesefood.about.com/librar...blkazunoko.htm
or Herring Roe. I've tried it once and it was hard and bitter.

Smelt isn't hard usually, maybe it was very old.

--
Dan

"Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
...
> Sonoran Desert dweller wrote:
>
> > Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs that
had
> > the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the taste,
it
> > was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my
teeth
> > that I remember.
>
> That could have been kazunoko
http://japanesefood.about.com/librar...blkazunoko.htm
> or Herring Roe. I've tried it once and it was hard and bitter.
>
> Smelt isn't hard usually, maybe it was very old.
>
> --
> Dan

Definitely sounds like Kazunoko.
Shishamo eggs go soft rather than hard if it is old.

M

Musashi wrote:
> "Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Sonoran Desert dweller wrote:
>>
>>> Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs that
> had
>>> the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the taste,
> it
>>> was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my
> teeth
>>> that I remember.
>> That could have been kazunoko
> http://japanesefood.about.com/librar...blkazunoko.htm
>> or Herring Roe. I've tried it once and it was hard and bitter.
>>
>> Smelt isn't hard usually, maybe it was very old.
>>
>> --
>> Dan
>
> Definitely sounds like Kazunoko.
> Shishamo eggs go soft rather than hard if it is old.
>
> M
>
>

The kazunoko I have had was kind of a hard flat yellowish piece about
the size and shape of a sushi neta. I though at the time the eggs had
been salted and pressed into that shape. Or do they come out of the fish
that way?

Geoff wrote:
> Musashi wrote:
>
>> "Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>
>>> Sonoran Desert dweller wrote:
>>>
>>>> Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs
>>>> that
>>
>> had
>>
>>>> the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the taste,
>>
>> it
>>
>>>> was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my
>>
>> teeth
>>
>>>> that I remember.
>>>
>>> That could have been kazunoko
>>
>> http://japanesefood.about.com/librar...blkazunoko.htm
>>
>>> or Herring Roe. I've tried it once and it was hard and bitter.
>>>
>>> Smelt isn't hard usually, maybe it was very old.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Dan
>>
>>
>> Definitely sounds like Kazunoko.
>> Shishamo eggs go soft rather than hard if it is old.
>>
>> M
>>
>>
>
> The kazunoko I have had was kind of a hard flat yellowish piece about
> the size and shape of a sushi neta. I though at the time the eggs had
> been salted and pressed into that shape. Or do they come out of the fish
> that way?

They are taken out, I believe.. still in the sac.

--
Dan

"Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
...
> Geoff wrote:
> > Musashi wrote:
> >
> >> "Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
> >> ...
> >>
> >>> Sonoran Desert dweller wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> Smelt Roe - Is that the nasty stuff I tried once? Little hard eggs
> >>>> that
> >>
> >> had
> >>
> >>>> the texture of sand and tasted well, I don't really remember the
taste,
> >>
> >> it
> >>
> >>>> was the sand like texture and picking those darn hard eggs out of my
> >>
> >> teeth
> >>
> >>>> that I remember.
> >>>
> >>> That could have been kazunoko
> >>
> >> http://japanesefood.about.com/librar...blkazunoko.htm
> >>
> >>> or Herring Roe. I've tried it once and it was hard and bitter.
> >>>
> >>> Smelt isn't hard usually, maybe it was very old.
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> Dan
> >>
> >>
> >> Definitely sounds like Kazunoko.
> >> Shishamo eggs go soft rather than hard if it is old.
> >>
> >> M
> >>
> >>
> >
> > The kazunoko I have had was kind of a hard flat yellowish piece about
> > the size and shape of a sushi neta. I though at the time the eggs had
> > been salted and pressed into that shape. Or do they come out of the fish
> > that way?
>
> They are taken out, I believe.. still in the sac.
>
> --
> Dan

Yes, the whole piece is the way they come from the fish, then brined.
The other kazunoko item you sometimes run into is Komochi-Konbu,
which is Konbu that the herring have spawned on and is covered in individual
eggs.

M

Hrrmm... tobiko or masago... they suit two entirely different purposes to me. I *love*
masago so a gunkan maki filled to the brim with masago is a delicacy for me.

Then again, in any variation where the smaller roe are used, such as a topper or in a
spicy tuna mixture maybe, tobiko are nice (although I do prefer the masago in a spicy
kewpie concoction).

Ikura, namely salmon roe are just attrocious in my opinion. To be fair, I have never had
ikura that looked as lovely as these:

http://www.thesushibar.com/sushikaji008.jpg

I have never even seen kazunoko (herring roe) offered, but am definitely open to try it.

My two cents.

-Lost

"Ikura, namely salmon roe are just attrocious in my opinion. To be
fair, I have never had
ikura that looked as lovely as these:"

You must have had bad salmon roe then. Salmon roe is good - but the
tiny flying fish roes, or whatever they are - yeah they do taste
something like edible sand. I see them selling them in various colours
in the 99 Ranch Market - green, orange...ugh!



ww

-Lost wrote:
> Ikura, namely salmon roe are just attrocious in my opinion. To be fair, I have never had
> ikura that looked as lovely as these:
>
> http://www.thesushibar.com/sushikaji008.jpg

I have once and it was awesome!

> I have never even seen kazunoko (herring roe) offered, but am definitely open to try it.

Had it once and it was hard and bitter. Not my thing.

--
Dan

"-Lost" > wrote in message
...
> Hrrmm... tobiko or masago... they suit two entirely different purposes to
me. I *love*
> masago so a gunkan maki filled to the brim with masago is a delicacy for
me.
>
> Then again, in any variation where the smaller roe are used, such as a
topper or in a
> spicy tuna mixture maybe, tobiko are nice (although I do prefer the masago
in a spicy
> kewpie concoction).
>
> Ikura, namely salmon roe are just attrocious in my opinion. To be fair, I
have never had
> ikura that looked as lovely as these:
>
> http://www.thesushibar.com/sushikaji008.jpg
>
Unless you are talking about the natural "fishyness" of ikura, it's pretty
rare to run into "bad" ikura.
About the only thing you can do to make it "bad" is poor storage and
refridgeration.
Without that, even under the best of conditions ikura can lose
moisture resulting in excessive saltiness at first and crumpled non flexible
skin (of each egg)
later on. The moisture can be compensated and my personal preference is to
do it with sake,
something I wish more sushi restaurants would do.
There is no excuse for any professsional establishment to serve "bad" ikura
and I would never
eat anything else there.

> I have never even seen kazunoko (herring roe) offered, but am definitely
open to try it.
> My two cents.
> -Lost

Some places use Kazunoko, just the herring roe, sometines using a strip of
nori to hold it on
the shari. Othertimes you may run into komochi konbu, which is a piece of
kelp with herring eggs on
it. This is how herring lay their eggs.
Either way, kazunoko isn't all that much to write home about flavorwise,
it's biggest feature being the
texture as each little egg dort of "pops" as you chew it. Far more so than
tobiko or masago.

Musashi