Poutargue (Cured Mullet Roe)
When Ava and I where in Marseille last year, enjoying a lingering Summer during the Rugby World Cup, we thoroughly enjoyed the local cuisine and tasting Provençal specialities. We ate navettes on Catalans Beach on the first evening there before watching the sun set on the Mediterranean Sea, we ate Pastis-flambéed prawns on the Frioul Islands, and dined on Bouillabaisse. We had a hard time finding panisses --chickpea flour fritters-- though and thought we'd leave without tasting them, but on one of the nights, we had dinner on le Vieux-Port, and hot and crispy panisses were brought with our cocktails. Panisses and Poutargue! This salty cured mullet roe pouch, cut into thin slices was a delicious discovery! Thus, when I bought beautiful fresh mullets at the market the other day, and the fishmonger inquired, while preparing the fish, whether I wanted the roe, I acquiesced enthusiastically! I knew I wanted to try and make my own Poutargue, and having a slice of this, with a glass of chill Pastis, even though this Sunday is awfully wet and rainy, it's almost as if I'm back under the cloudless azure skies of Marseille with my girl... Have a good one, friends!
Ingredients (makes 1):
the roe pouch of a fresh grey mullet
1/2 cup coarse sea salt
1/4 cup natural beeswax
Thoroughly and carefully rinse the roe pouch under cold water.
Gently pat it completely dry with paper towels. Set aside.
Place coarse sea salt in a mortar, and grind with the pestle until a fine texture (resembling coarse meal.
Spoon half of the salt into an even layer, roughly bigger than the pouch, onto a small plate. Place roe pouch onto the salt, and cover with remaining salt, making sure it's all hidden under it.
Set aside, to cure, 2 to 4 hours.
After four hours, rinse the salt off the roe pouch under cold water. It should have hardened by then, and taken on a golden hue.
Pat it thoroughly dry with paper towels, and place onto a small wooden board.
Place in a very cool place, not necessarily draught-free, but dry (a refrigerator is fine).
Flip poutargue every day, to ensure even drying, for at least a fortnight.
Once ready, melt beeswax in a small bowl fitted over a small saucepan of simmering water.
Once melted, dip poutargue into the beeswax, covering it entirely. Shake off excess beeswax, and return poutargue onto wooden board. Allow beeswax to dry and harden completely.
Serve Poutargue cut into thin slices, alongside Green Olive Tapenade, Anchoïade and glasses of Pastis for a truly Provençal apéritif. It is also apparently divine grated onto spaghetti!