exhibit A
10 months ago i was introduced to bottarga and initially it didn’t go well. but really what i had gotten my hands on was bottarga’s ugly step cousin – some dried powdered tuna roe. it was, in my opinion – overpriced and somewhat pointless. wanting to understand the hype, from there the bottarga experience went from here (bad) to here (heavenly) to here (domestic, smoked and yes, heavenly). and now i am enamored with the stuff… because dear readers, listen to me,
IT’S THE BACON OF FISH…
that’s right. it is that good. stupidly good. it is absolute comfort food and it kicks mac and cheese’s ass from here to sardinia. i’ve had it three times in two days. and i could easily have it again tonight. but i am saving it. because otherwise it would be all gone and that would be just too sad.
the first night i decided to do it with bread crumbs and i used panko which was cheating and i have regrets. for what i would want in a breadcrumb, it’s a little too uniform, a little too crunchy – without having true substance. it’s meant to be used as a filler, or a coating for pan frying. really, it’s just a far cry from being italian and i know that neither mario nor lidia would have ever used panko. the italian gods knew that i’d thrown them an asian curve and well, next time i swear i will use a proper bread. because we’re talking bottarga here, folks. and it’s best to keep it all as it should be, if you know what i mean… and if you’re reading, i think you do.
exhibit A – i browned the panko in some olive oil with a touch of butter, then added salt and pepper and thinly sliced garlic. i grated about 1/4 cup of bottarga, zested a lemon and used some of the juice, chopped parsley and some minced chile pepper. i tossed it all with the pasta and grated some more bottarga on top.
and to all you egg fans out there, listen to this. the leftover breadcrumb bottarga mixture? i had saved about 2 tablespoons of it and the next morning i had it with a quickly fried egg – and it was outstanding. but truly outstanding. it was a gabrielle hamilton dish, a wannabe prune brunch menu item. but hers would have been served on a perfectly grilled slice of peasant bread with chopped cherry tomatoes.
gabrielle are you listening?
exhibit b
exhibit B – no bread crumbs, but everything else was pretty much the same. except no heat was used, just a raw mix of olive oil, bottarga, lemon zest, parsley and chile - tossed with the hot pasta. equally good if not better, and lighter for a warm august night in nashville.
and now can we please talk about the pasta? i know it looks like spaghetti, but dear readers, no… this is chitarra which entails an entirely different pasta making process. shaped like guitar strings, this square edged noodle is made by pressing sheets of semolina dough through tight rows of metal strings. and if you want the low down, i suggest you get the big picture from francois over at fx cuisine, because i just buy chitarra. but francois… well he is an insanely obsessive gastronome. i love this guy.
if you’ve not tried bottarga, then i suggest that you do. it’s very orderable and your $70 investment will make ten very generous portions. it comes in two lobes and one can be vacuum sealed and placed in the refrigerator for another time.
bottarga. i ‘m telling you…
37 responses so far ↓
1 Traci @ Soup of The Day // Aug 16, 2008 at 8:28 pm
OOoooo….. Yes! I’ve seen MB use this. He really talked it up, and I was intrigued. I’ll have to get some. How long would the other half last in the fridge do you think? What the hell is it exactly? Ground fish?
2 Traci @ Soup of The Day // Aug 16, 2008 at 8:32 pm
OK, I just looked at that link you have. Did you get the Mullet or Tuna? I’m thinking if the Tuna is stronger it might go farther? But which tastes best?
3 Diana // Aug 16, 2008 at 8:37 pm
Thanks for the ideas! Since I started back at school, I’m going to have to switch from complicated preparation to exceptional ingredients. I am now brave enough to give bottarga a try. (And yes, I made the Yukon Gold pizza the CORRECT way, and I see the light.)
4 Robert // Aug 16, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Fret,
“The Bacon of fish”
Conceptionally I’ll let you have that one……. although a properly cured and smoked Mullet belly (Biloxi Bacon) might one-up technically.
Fixed two huge Mullets this weekend, no sign of any roe development at all yet. So purchasing store-bought Bottarga is the only way to get some right now.
I’m holding out for fresh, but you are making it veerrry hard to resist. Hope that fabulous visual doesn’t wake me in the night.
5 cookiecrumb // Aug 16, 2008 at 11:14 pm
You turn me on.
May I say that?
6 [eatingclub] vancouver || js // Aug 17, 2008 at 1:08 am
Bacon of fish? Seriously, I have to get me some of this.
Oh how I do love your cooking. I’m still angling for that invitation, you know?
7 ayankeeinasouthernkitchen // Aug 17, 2008 at 7:43 am
Well, I like bacon and I like fish….I don’t like roe-but gosh Claudia, I trust you 100% so this is on my must try list. I admire your persistence, in search of the ingredients for this dish.
8 lifeinrecipes // Aug 17, 2008 at 8:37 am
Okay, your post just cost me $70 and change.
9 Donald // Aug 17, 2008 at 9:49 am
Okay…school is in session boys and girls!
I just found a chitarra maker online. Relatively inexpensive too.
So, all in all, this post set me back about a C note.
That’s okay, I can hear the enthusiasm in your writing. I have to try this!!!
10 diva // Aug 17, 2008 at 8:51 pm
the japanese like to eat a spaghetti dish with spicy cod roe..aside from cod, ebi and salmon roe, i havent ever tried bottarga with spaghetti. interesting! maybe i’ll try it soon
x
11 Meg // Aug 17, 2008 at 11:26 pm
bacon of fish is most assuredly a good sell job. I had bad bottarga myself sometime back and switched to mojama, but maybe, just maybe, I should give bottarga another go. It looks fantastic.
12 Heather // Aug 18, 2008 at 1:12 am
Claudia, if I buy Chitarra, then Lion-O will feel left out. Yes, that was just a Thundercats reference. Hoooooo!
But seriously, do I really need new Robot Jesus? Only if you insist. I’ll have an easier time finding the Japanese version, though.
13 Jennifer Hess // Aug 18, 2008 at 10:09 am
You and Amy are KILLING ME with the bottarga. I haven’t had it in far too long… I think I may have to procure some soon.
14 lisa // Aug 18, 2008 at 10:33 am
Must get bottarga soon.
There’s a restaurant in Houston that imports Sardinian products, and their price for bottarga is much lower:
http://www.gourmetsardinia.com/btg_Bottarga_whole.html
Any thoughts on tuna vs grey mullet?
15 Mal Carne // Aug 18, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Oh, bottarga, how I do miss thee…….
16 Brittany // Aug 18, 2008 at 3:36 pm
I MUST try it. 70 bucks sounds worth it to me. I’ll tell my husband I’m ordering….birth control pills.
17 joycooks // Aug 18, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Yum…loved the post and the pic, and of course, love the bottarga. The only other place I’ve had it was Chez Panisse and it was not as good as yours! So, you win. How’s that for a compliment?
18 Peter // Aug 18, 2008 at 6:19 pm
mmmmm… bacon of the sea….
19 Samantha G. // Aug 18, 2008 at 10:25 pm
I found you on a bottarga search. Great information and pictures. I’ll be checking back. Your blog is excellent.
20 melissa // Aug 18, 2008 at 11:35 pm
OK, bottarga is one of those items that has been at the top of my list for along time. The top of my recipe list = ingredients I want to use at some point, but don’t have a recipe in mind. Thanks for the info and for the praise for this bacon fish. It makes me more motivated to incorporate it.
P.S. I loved your comment heheheh. I’ve seen no less than 3 examples just today. *Banging head on desk*
21 melissa // Aug 18, 2008 at 11:35 pm
along?
a loooong.
Keee-rist.
22 Becky and the Beanstock // Aug 19, 2008 at 9:26 am
The bacon of fish? Woohoo!!! As a pescetarian, I’m always jonesing for a little bacon…. It will be the new sushi glow.
23 Anthony B. // Aug 19, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Claudia
Bottarga. Excellent.
AB
24 Julie // Aug 20, 2008 at 1:30 pm
OK, I’m ordering this sooner than later. Also wondering about tuna vs. mullet.
25 democ0mmie // Aug 20, 2008 at 8:05 pm
Claudia:
I just had some spaghettini with my own bolognese (an italian chef I know always just calls it “gravy”). It was nothing like what you describe but, damn, it tasted good with some shaved pecorino.
So, if bottarga is the bacon of fish, how would it be wrapped in pancetta and sauteed in olive oil, and something like pinot grigot and served over a grilled polenta cake studded with parma ham?
26 Michelle // Aug 20, 2008 at 9:25 pm
bottarga is delicious. and bottarga on an egg sounds stupendous.
27 Tommy Noodles // Aug 21, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Anything with “ini” screams thin sauce. “oni” go with Bolognese. The Abruzze way cut on a rectangular wooden box guitar. it mimics the shape. The perfect pasta for music city, baby.
28 democ0mmie // Aug 21, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Tommy Noodles:
You remind me of that guy who went to the court to have his name changed so the judge said;
What’s the matter with “Sam Spaghetti”? That’s a decent name. Mr. Spaghetti said, “My parents are long gone and I’d like to change it; it just sounds too “ethnic”. I’d like to change it to Mac Aroni.
29 Tommy Noodles // Aug 21, 2008 at 4:43 pm
I have an auntie, Ms. Liz Onya, as well.
30 democ0mmie // Aug 21, 2008 at 7:47 pm
Tommy:
She didn’t marry Pete Ceria, did she?
31 Tommy Noodles // Aug 22, 2008 at 9:00 am
Hardly. She ran away with Manny Khati….
32 claudia // Aug 22, 2008 at 9:16 am
yeah, right after Manny broke Lynn Guini’s heart…
33 Becky and the Beanstock » Blog Archive » Beans in a Bag (with “Bacon” and Bellas) // Sep 1, 2008 at 8:36 pm
[...] to meat will have to do the real thing; I suppose prosciutto would work well too. I wonder how the Bacon of Fish would taste here? Ah, that’s an experiment for another time). And for flavor, I collected [...]
34 Becky and the Beanstock » Blog Archive » Food as Improv: // Mar 24, 2009 at 8:13 pm
[...] virtue (it’s virtuous only it what it lacks). So then I was remembering that last summer, Claudia went nuts over the ‘bacon of fish” and I’m still trying to talk one or two of my [...]
35 Heidi Robb » Kale Caesar with Bottarga for Veggie U // Jun 11, 2009 at 2:35 pm
[...] whole. Finding my pantry devoid of anchovies, I turned to another now-staple in my kitchen, that “bacon of the sea”, as deemed by other Nashville friend, Claudia, the dried whole mullet roe known as bottarga. The bottarga played beautifully, and if I daresay, [...]
36 Pasta with Butter, Bottarga, and Breadcrumbs // May 11, 2010 at 7:40 am
[...] I couldn't find in Chicago. The ingredient that Claudia at Cook Eat Fret christened "the bacon of fish." Something relatively undiscovered and very difficult to find in the U.S. A secret [...]
37 Tweets that mention cook eat FRET - chitarra con bottarga -- Topsy.com // May 12, 2010 at 9:26 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Bottarga Gold. Bottarga Gold said: if you’ve not tried bottarga, then i suggest that you do / se você ainda não provou Bottarga, então sugiro que o faça > http://migre.me/DOap [...]
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