How to choose red caviar correctly and not be deceived by unscrupulous producers? (by weight)
To begin with, it is worth saying that red caviar can be sold in glass, plastic, or tin packages. There are also cases of caviar of sale by weight, but such trade is often found in salmon fishing areas. However, in the case when the packaging is transparent, or the caviar is in a large container (by weight), it is possible to evaluate it visually:
- Natural caviar - homogeneous, whole. The eggs are small and crumbly. The presence of juice and crumpled or sour eggs indicate repeated defrosting of caviar. Also, it should not have films and cracks.
- The caviar color may be different; it depends on the type of fish and the degree of maturity. But when choosing from other species, you need to know which caviar color belongs to which species. For example, chinook caviar is scarlet, and trout may even have yellowish caviar. However, too bright a shade can give out an artificial or spoiled product masked by dyes.
- Each egg of natural red caviar has a fatty core (embryo). There is no such thing as an artificial product, the eggs are homogeneous.
- When turning the jar, high-quality caviar slowly flows down the walls, unlike too liquid caviar, which immediately falls onto the lid.
- When buying caviar by weight (or at home, when you open any other jar), you can appreciate the smell of caviar: it should be a pleasant, barely perceptible aroma of the sea and not a sharp fishy, almost herring smell.
After a visual assessment of red caviar, you should pay attention to its packaging. Here we are talking about packaging in cans:
- First of all, the packaging must be intact: the lid and walls of the jar should not be indented or, moreover, swollen.
- When turning over, you should hear no sloshing or gurgling; otherwise, there is a lot of liquid in the caviar, which should not be in a high-quality natural product.
- The packaging must contain information about the type of fish from which removed the caviar, the date of manufacture (NOT packaging), and the product's composition. The inscription must be convex, i.e., as if knocked out from the inside and not pressed in. Here it is worth paying attention to the manufacturer and place of production. If the region of habitat and catch of salmon fish is indicated, then the quality of caviar must undoubtedly be high. But enterprises and regions remote from the sea indicate either a fake or the production of caviar from frozen raw materials. On the one hand, there is nothing wrong with this, and the main thing is that the freezing in shock. On the other hand, this cannot be checked by an ordinary buyer, which means there is a risk of purchasing a low-quality product.
You should always be aware of the current prices for red caviar. And if the cost of the product is low, you may have fake or poor-quality caviar.
Red caviar is stored exclusively in refrigerators at a -4 - -6 degrees temperature. This parameter is easy to track at home and keeps the delicacy correctly. But even in stores often, can check refrigeration equipment with a thermometer. Well, if suddenly red caviar is on a regular shelf at all, it's worth sounding the alarm.
As for buying caviar by weight, you should always ask the seller to present the necessary documents confirming its origin: certificates of conformity, veterinary certificates, and bills of lading.
So, you checked everything that you could study at the purchase stage and brought home the treasured jar. There can still be unpleasant surprises. A couple more tricks will help distinguish natural caviar from a fake.
First, artificial caviar is denser. Try to burst the caviar - the counterfeit does not splatter.
Secondly, test with hot water: natural caviar will turn white and sink to the bottom, while artificial caviar will dissolve and color the water.
And now a life hack: if you see red granular caviar of the Vostochny Bereg brand (Bering Seafood) in the store, feel free to take it, and you won't need all of the above! This is high-quality caviar of excellent quality!
