CAVIAR

Caviar is fish roe or eggs, sieved to remove fatty tissues and membrane and lightly salted with no iodized salt. This is an old preserving and curing method that is still effective today. 

All female fish lay eggs to reproduce, so they all have roe. However, not all fish roe is suitable for nor considered to be caviar. By most definitions and to a purist, true caviar comes from the sturgeon.

The sturgeon is a saltwater anadromous fish (meaning it moves to freshwater to spawn) which makes its home in the black and Caspian Seas between Europe and Asia and also the Pacific Nortwest and Southern  coasts of the United States. 

The sturgeon can grow to over 3000 pounds, but usually avarages about 60 pounds. The flesh of the fish, as well as its prized eggs, is quite delicious. 

The most prized caviar comes from the beluga, osetra and sevruga varieties of sturgeon. Nowadays you will also find caviar from other fish varieties, including salmon. lumpfish and tuna, as well as indiffrent forms.