Would you like some more caviar?
How to enjoy caviar? On blinis or toast? Barely topped with a cloud of sour cream, a hint of butter - unsalted, unfortunate! or Russian-style with malossols? Purists will tell you that this rare egg needs no artifice. All it needs is a special spoon..
They didn't teach you this at school, unless you graduated from EHL Lausanne, but you know: you don't cut foie gras with a knife. Still in the luxury department, caviar also requires a special utensil. Snobbery? Necessity. Tasting a sturgeon egg must be just like it: delicate, and above all, protect it from a contact to which it is allergic: metal. Don't talk to him about a silver spoon, which would oxidize the incomparable flavor of its grains. The choice of spoon is therefore essential.
To find the thread of this delicate utensil, and of its big sister, the " pelle ", used as a serving spoon, we have to go back to the history of this egg that made a career. "Jonathan Swift wrote: " He had courage who first ate an oyster. But who was the first to taste caviar? In the 9th century, he is said to have plunged his hand into the belly of a female sturgeon to extract the roe and swallow the tiny beads. Rabelais in Gargantua and Pantagruel was naturally not indifferent to these gray or brown grains, whose powerful marine flavor lingers on the taste buds. It was he who first spelt the word " caviar ". In Russia, where sturgeon flourished, the early Romanovs began to appreciate this particular delicacy, and Tsar Alexis Iᵉʳ declared it an imperial monopoly. Great travelers evoked it in their tales, imbuing this fish egg with a veritable mythology.
The industrial revolution of the 19th century, ice and railroads finally enabled fresh caviar to travel to European tables. With the Bolshevik revolution, a " Russophile wave " swept through Paris and the Riviera, carrying the luxurious delicacy in their suitcases. This was the birth of the great houses. A special spoon and shovel were already in use. When we say shovel, we're not exaggerating: unless your name is Rasputin, you don't stick your osciètre or beluga in your mouth. The spoon should be small, tapered and rounded at the tip. Its gentle shape allows it to slip delicately between the beans without damaging them or altering their taste. Shame on you if you attack a jar vertically! Iodized notes, hazelnut aromas, slight citrus acidity... To preserve these aromas, the spoon should be made of river mother-of-pearl, or even vermeil. And above all, never, never silver. If, miraculously, a jar of caviar should happen to fall into your hands, a wooden or plastic utensil will do the trick. And you can always use these spoons for boiled eggs, which also prefer mother-of-pearl to metal. Although boiled eggs with caviar...
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