The History of Bottarga
The caviar of Sardinia is held and protected within the womb of a fish, the grey mullet. It may not be considered particularly prestigious for its meat, but in Sardinia this fish is a genuine king.
Why? Its eggs. Washed, salted and cured transforming into an authentic delicacy with intense flavour and a delicately bitter, almost almond-like, aftertaste: bottarga. It was the Phoenicians who were the first to salt and cure the egg-filled roe sacs of the grey mullet.
It was the Arabs, with the name battarikh (salted fish eggs), who later exported this product throughout the Mediterranean. “I don’t remember ever eating anything so delicious”, pronounced Bartolomeo Platina in the middle of the 15th century in his book “On Honest Indulgence and Good Health”. A document dated 1386 speaks of a Catalan Aragonese pirate ship capturing a sailing ship as it left the port of Oristano full of “salted eel and bottarga”.
That is to say, just a quick look through the island’s archives and documents, as well as those of other areas, reveals many references to this amber-coloured delicacy of the sea.
Phoenicians and Carthaginians, Egyptians and Romans, all the peoples who’ve called the Mediterranean home have always adored this delicious amber delight. Not to mention the Sardinians.
It was the Arabs, with the name battarikh (salted fish eggs), who later exported this product throughout the Mediterranean. “I don’t remember ever eating anything so delicious”, pronounced Bartolomeo Platina in the middle of the 15th century in his book “On Honest Indulgence and Good Health”. A document dated 1386 speaks of a Catalan Aragonese pirate ship capturing a sailing ship as it left the port of Oristano full of “salted eel and bottarga”.
That is to say, just a quick look through the island’s archives and documents, as well as those of other areas, reveals many references to this amber-coloured delicacy of the sea.
Phoenicians and Carthaginians, Egyptians and Romans, all the peoples who’ve called the Mediterranean home have always adored this delicious amber delight. Not to mention the Sardinians.
Bottarga was often used for trading or as a gift, it was considered noble and precious. But it wasn’t available to all. Indeed, this delicacy has always been the reserve of lagoon and tunny fishermen.
These days bottarga can be found in the refrigerated counters of prestigious delicatessens and refined restaurants, in the 1970s it was still a product reserved only for the selected few. In the past it was necessary to speak to a seaman if you wanted some bottarga and it was impossible to buy in large quantities. Today it’s Sardinian gold: its market exploded as a result of high demand from France, Germany, Japan and Spain, not to mention the United States and the Americas in general.
There’s no shortage of grey mullet in the seas of Japan and Australia, but it’s the Sea of Sardinia which offers connoisseurs the ultimate bottarga, to be savoured slowly in every mouthful. The main centres of production are in Alghero, Carloforte, Sant’Antioco, San Teodoro, Cabras, Porto Pino, Cagliari and Tortolì. Small companies are also located in Tuscany, Sicily, Calabria, Provence, Turkey and Tunisia. But the combination of the seabed, climate and the traditional processing techniques puts Sardinian bottarga in a league of its own.
Bottarga was often used for trading or as a gift, it was considered noble and precious. But it wasn’t available to all. Indeed, this delicacy has always been the reserve of lagoon and tunny fishermen.
These days bottarga can be found in the refrigerated counters of prestigious delicatessens and refined restaurants, in the 1970s it was still a product reserved only for the selected few. In the past it was necessary to speak to a seaman if you wanted some bottarga and it was impossible to buy in large quantities. Today it’s Sardinian gold: its market exploded as a result of high demand from France, Germany, Japan and Spain, not to mention the United States and the Americas in general.
There’s no shortage of grey mullet in the seas of Japan and Australia, but it’s the Sea of Sardinia which offers connoisseurs the ultimate bottarga, to be savoured slowly in every mouthful. The main centres of production are in Alghero, Carloforte, Sant’Antioco, San Teodoro, Cabras, Porto Pino, Cagliari and Tortolì. Small companies are also located in Tuscany, Sicily, Calabria, Provence, Turkey and Tunisia. But the combination of the seabed, climate and the traditional processing techniques puts Sardinian bottarga in a league of its own.
