Fish Roe vs Caviar – What Is The Difference Between Caviar And Roe?

Today, I’m going to take a look at whether or not salmon produce caviar and also explore some of the key differences between roe and caviar.

So what is the difference between fish roe and caviar? The difference between fish roe and caviar is that caviar is the eggs of sturgeon or other large fish while roe is the eggs from a variety of small saltwater or freshwater fish.

Both roe and caviar have different applications in cuisine but they’re produced through the same biological mechanisms.

Both roe and caviar can taste salty, buttery, briny, rich, and nutty depending on how they were harvested; but one thing is factual for both: they’re typically served as an appetizer with crackers or toast points to spread them on.

First, I’ll explore the differences between the two in deeper detail, and then I’ll go over caviar vs roe, or why there’s such a drastic difference in prices between the two. The difference between roe and caviar isn’t as big as you might think, but it’s still worth observing to decide which one you’d like to buy.

Why is Caviar More Expensive Than Roe?

There are a few reasons why caviar tends to have a higher price tag than salmon roe, but it always comes down to supply and demand. Caviar is a lot rarer than salmon roe because of the longer amount of time that must elapse for a sturgeon to reach sexual maturity compared to a salmon.

Whereas sturgeon often take up to a decade to reach sexual maturity, salmon can do so in as little as a year, with some species taking up to five years. What this means is that a lot more roe can be harvested from salmon per year compared to sturgeon, especially when you consider how many of them there are.

The fact that there are more salmon in the wild and farms than sturgeon means that they aren’t as scarce of a commodity either. Since roe likely won’t be getting much rarer in the future, it can be sold for a much more reasonable price than caviar, despite having a relatively similar taste and texture.

Whereas you can buy about two pounds of salmon roe for about $40, sometimes caviar, like ossetra and beluga has a much steeper price point. As the world’s most expensive caviar, beluga caviar costs about $4500 per pound.

The chart below is a quick overview of salmon roe vs caviar and how they’re different. I’ll later go over storage methods and the biggest differences between them, such as the salmon roe price and extraction methods.

	Caviar	Salmon roe
Color	Typically black, grey, or brown	Bright orange
Price	$4500 per pound	$40 per pound

Do You Have to Store Roe the Same Way as Caviar?

Since you get roe in a tin and it’s about as sensitive to temperature shifts and poor storage as caviar, you have to take a few steps to ensure that it doesn’t end up going bad. Just like caviar, salmon roe has to be kept at a relatively low temperature, but freezing it may end up ruining the taste and texture.

While you can freeze salmon roe in emergencies to prevent a whole batch from going bad, you’ll never want to freeze it more than once, as it will get progressively worse every time you freeze it. Instead, you should store it in the coolest part of your refrigerator, as fish eggs like salmon roe have to be kept relatively cold.

The coldest part of most refrigerators is near the bottom shelf where you can typically expect to keep the meat products. If your refrigerator doesn’t get cold enough to store salmon roe, then you can get a little more creative with how you store the tin, potentially surrounding it with ice.

Proper storage will stop your roe from going bad up to a certain point. Most types of salmon roe can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three months before it starts going bad. Always be sure to check the tin to know how long it will last.

A great tip is, when you serve caviar or salmon roe, place the container on top of some ice. It can be crushed, to evenly chill the container or whole cubes set in a leveled bowl or another container.

Do Salmon Produce Caviar?

So what is salmon caviar? Technically, salmon does not produce caviar, but it produces something called roe. What is fish roe? Roe is biologically similar to caviar but not culinarily similar. Caviar is typically only produced by sturgeon, but roe comes from other types of fish.

Still, caviar can often be referred to as caviar roe, since roe is often the universal name for extracted fish eggs. The reason salmon roe isn’t usually called caviar is mainly branding, but there are other reasons to consider, too.

Caviar is typically only produced by sturgeon, as their eggs tend to have a rather unique taste and texture when compared to other kinds of fish. This results in a much higher demand for their eggs because of their taste and texture that you’ll struggle to find in the eggs of other fish.

The specific thing about fish eggs is that they have to be harvested from the fish before they’re spawned. Fish have a relatively different reproductive system when compared to us, as the females lay eggs that will then be fertilized by a male fish that comes along. However, you don’t want to eat fertilized fish eggs.

When eggs like caviar are fertilized, the flavor and the texture of the food will suffer. Since caviar and roe already have relatively delicate flavors of their own, any alteration to the taste can drastically alter your experience, typically diminishing it to the point that it’s not even worth eating.

As if the taste being ruined wasn’t bad enough, fertilization will also disrupt the quality of the roe or caviar’s texture, and that’s one of the main reasons why caviar is eaten before it reaches the fertilization stage. The delicately crunchy texture that you feel when you bite down on a bead of caviar is one of the most rewarding feelings you’ll ever experience.

There are many ways to source the roe or caviar from the fish, and salmon roe was used to pioneer no-kill methods that are now used to get caviar out of sturgeon without killing them; this is used to reduce the endangered sturgeon population and ensure caviar is still on the market. The process is known as either milking or massaging, and it’s about what you’d expect from the name.

Fish harvesters take a sturgeon or salmon that is laden with eggs and massage the eggs out of them before the animal can spawn them, diminishing the quality of the eggs. This is relatively painless for the animal and it ensures that it can stick around for another spawning season.

But, does it help the caviar vs salmon roe debate? In many ways, it removes the debate aspect completely, bringing the two to a tie, which isn’t bad. Sturgeon fish roe will still be rarer and tastier, but it’ll be extracted in ways that don’t endanger the species.

Another great difference between salmon roe and caviar is the color. Salmon roe has a brilliantly bright orange color that most people associate with salmon meat. On the other hand, caviar has deeper, rich, black hues that are the hallmarks of one of the world’s most expensive foods.

The bright orange color of salmon roe is typically associated with sushi and Japanese cuisine because of how frequently it is used there. On the other hand, caviar is rarely used in sushi because there are relatively few sturgeon in the waters around the island nation.

But the salmon fish eggs vs caviar comparison doesn’t simply end there. Consumption of caviar roe is usually done without additional ingredients. It’s served in a glass bowl (usually) and eaten with a non-metallic spoon. It can often be eaten with the fingers to remove any flavor contaminants, and it’s kept over a decent amount of ice.

Salmon roe is consumed together with sushi, and it’s often used on rolls to make the flavor punchier. However, it can often be eaten alone, similar to caviar. Still, in the salmon roe vs caviar dilemma, there’s no definitive winner. The salmon roe price is more attainable, whereas caviar roe is simply a luxurious and gourmet food item.