SENA15: Sunburst Trout Farms Jerky & Caviar

To a child, the allure of the wilderness can be a compelling force that remains with them throughout their life. That was certainly the case with Dick Jennings, who was raised in Pittsburgh, but who also spent memorable time as a boy on his grandfather's land in the mountains of western North Carolina. That land was covered with large forests, two streams, and about 100 acres of relatively flat hand that could be used for a variety of agricultural purposes. His fascination with that wilderness was deep in his soul.

After his return from World War II, Jennings felt the clarion call of the wilderness, and he returned to settle his grandfather's land. In 1948, he chose to start the first commercial trout farm in the South, the Jennings Trout Farm. Jennings always was dedicated to raising the trout as naturally as possible. He worked hard for years at this endeavor, and in 1985, he took on his daughter, Sally, and his son-in-law, Steven Eason, which also led to a name change to the Sunburst Trout Company, LLC.

In 2001, more of the family joined the business, namely Wes and Ben, Sally's sons. Wes is now the Director of Sales while Ben is the Chief Financial Officer, and Ben's wife, Anna, also assists with marketing efforts. Finally, in 2011, there was another name change, to Sunburst Trout Farms, which is an homage to Dick;s original dream. Dick is still alive, though the work falls to the rest of his family.

At the Seafood Expo North America (SENA), I stopped by their booth, to learn about some of their history, their current practices, and their newest products. Sunburst continues to be dedicated to raising trout naturally, to being sustainable in all of their practices. For example, they never use hormones, antibiotics or animal by-products in the trout feed. They want to preserve the pristine condition of their land, and produce trout which makes them proud. Currently, they sell about a dozen different products from trout fillets to smoked trout. Their latest marketing efforts, to both restaurants and stores, are directed at two of their newest products, Trout Jerky and Trout Caviar.

The origin of their trout jerky stems from their desire to waste as little as possible. After removing the fillets from a trout, there is still some prime meat remaining on the back bones. They decided to remove that remaining meat and produce a jerky, mixing the trout with local, organic miso tamari and other spices. In addition, this jerky is much less salty than other types of jerky. The mixture is then hot smoked and will remain stable on a shelf for about a year, and doesn't require any refrigeration.

The Trout Jerky is sold in two ounce packages for $6.99, and I was told they would make an excellent bar snack. I tasted the trout jerky and enjoyed both their texture and taste. They are chewy, but without being too hard on your jaw. It is the texture you want in a piece of jerky. The taste is pleasing, with a nice blend of spices, a touch of briny goodness, and isn't overly fishy. You'll realize the jerky isn't beef or pork, but you won't care.

"I'd do anything for caviar and probably did."
--Henry Kissinger

Sunburst has been selling caviar since the 1980s. While cleaning up at the end of the day, Dick Jennings noted that the trout eggs were hard, sticky and difficult to remove. It gave him the inspiration to experiment with using the eggs to create caviar. At the time, his daughter had three children, two who ate food from baby jars and Dick used the empty jars to hold his caviar experiments. One evening, he returned home to find the children had found the jars, and ate from them. Some of the jars they almost ignored after an initial taste, but other jars were nearly empty. Dick decided to use the caviar recipe from the near-empty jar, and that recipe has continued to be use to the present.  

Around 2000, there started to be concerns about the sustainability of beluga sturgeon in the Caspian Sea, and that eventually led to bans on Caspian caviar, and Russia even suspended caviar production for a few years. At that time, alternative sources of caviar were sought and Sunburst garnered much fame for their trout caviar. The freshwater roe are smaller than salmon eggs, and have a mild taste. Sunburst produces three different types of trout caviar, each for about $26/ounce and sold in 2 and 4 ounce jars, though they have a 7 ounce jar for restaurants.

The Original Rainbow Trout Caviar has a mild taste, with briny notes, and a nice firmness to the roe. Tasty and luxurious. The Smoked Rainbow Trout Caviar, which is gently cold smoked using hickory wood, is a pleasing blend of salt and smoke. The smoky flavor is especially dominant on the finish. The third type is the Blood Orange Infused Rainbow Trout Caviar, which is infused with cold pressed Sicilian blood orange oil. With a bright burst of citrus, and a salty touch, this was an easy to enjoy caviar, which would appeal even to people who claim they don't like caviar. It doesn't taste like what you expect from caviar. It actually might work well used in making desserts.

So if you are seeking something different, but which is sustainable and tasty, seek out some Sunburst Trout Jerky or Caviar.

SENA14: Estuario del Plata Caviar

Prior to the Seafood Expo North America, and through the power of social media, I connected online with Facundo Marquez, the General Manager of a new seafood company, Estuario del Plata. I saw the potential for an intriguing story and planned to meet him at the Expo to learn more about his company, a sustainable sturgeon farm in Uruguay. This seemed like an excellent opportunity to get an inside view of a company with plenty of potential.

The family behind Estuario del Plata was previously involved in agriculture but realized that aquaculture is the way of the future so they decided to investigate and research the possibilities. In Uruguay, they knew of Esturiones Del Rio Negro, the Black River Caviar company, which was been successfully raising sturgeon. It was the only sturgeon farm in the Southern Hemisphere, their caviar has received much positive press, and that seemed like an opportunity. Black River Caviar had consulted with a Russian to help create their operation, and it appears that Russian satellite surveys of the geography and watersheds of Uruguay had indicated it was a perfect area to raise sturgeon. Estuario del Plata hired that same Russian to help them with their own plans for a sturgeon farm.

In 2011, they purchased their first sturgeon eggs from the Russians and have three types of sturgeon. Their fish farm is located in San Gregorio de Polanco at the Rincón del Bonete Reservoir on the River Negro. The farm has a potential production capability of 10 tons of caviar and 700 tons of sturgeon meat per year, though they are nowhere near that production level yet. The entire sturgeon’s breeding cycle takes place on this farm, from spawn to final fattening. They also built their own facility to produce fish feed, which is all natural.

The fishery applies state of the art technology, and they believe their operation is sustainable, following the highest standards and best practices. They do not possess any third party certification as to their sustainability but Facundo indicated that was in the process. I can't say whether they are sustainable or not, but it sounds like it has potential, especially considering the status of the other sturgeon farm in Uruguay. However, we must remember that Estuario del Plata is still very new, and even hasn't sold any caviar yet.

Their first caviar harvest should be later this year, and then they will conduct taste tests, hoping to be able to sell some caviar by the end of 2014. Next year, they hope to harvest about 1 ton of caviar and their goal is to have 5-6 tons in the next few years. As they mainly need female sturgeon, they have been selling the males as meat, primarily to Russia and the Baltic states, with a small sampling sent to some New York City restaurants. Facundo noted that as the seasons are opposite in the Southern Hemisphere, that means they will harvest their caviar annually just before the winter holiday season, the perfect time to sell a luxury like caviar.

Facundo remarked that everything has been a challenge, though they have been working closely with Black River. He remains positive though that they can overcome all of the challenges and soon start selling a sustainable and delicious caviar.

Will Uruguay end up as a new hotspot for sturgeon farms and caviar? Are we seeing the origins of such an aquaculture industry in the Southern Hemisphere? I don't know what their caviar will eventually taste like but I will continue to follow the story of Estuario del Plata, to monitor their progress. I wish them much luck in their endeavor.

SENA14: Sustainable Caviar In Florida

"Always do the things you fear the most. Courage is an acquired taste, like caviar."
--Erica Jong

There are about 25 different species of Sturgeon, and the roe of several species is harvested as caviar. They are not the prettiest of fish, but their roe are delicious and highly prized. Caviar has long been considered a luxury, though it is said that in the early 19th century in the U.S., caviar was served as part of a free lunch in saloons, with the hope the saltiness would get people to drink more. Its popularity though eventually led to a great decline in sturgeon populations so that the the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, notes that wild caviar, whether domestic or imported, is to be Avoided. Farmed caviar though, such as Sturgeon in the U.S. is a Good Alternative and White Sturgeon in British Colombia is a Best Choice.

Around 2000, a number of conservation groups united together to petition the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list beluga sturgeon as an endangered species. Four years later, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a special rule to ban the “import, export, re-export, or interstate or foreign commerce involving any beluga sturgeon products that originate from aquaculture operations outside the range countries” without the necessary permit. That proposal would also have banned beluga aquaculture in the U.S. However, representatives of the Florida Sturgeon Production Working Group sought to change that potential ban and they were successful in their efforts.

At the Seafood Expo North America (SENA), I stopped at the Marky’s Group, Inc. booth, which was showcasing their Florida farmed raised caviar. The Marky's Group was founded in 1983 by Mark Zaslavsky and Mark Gelman, immigrants from Ukraine. It began as a small retail store and has blossomed into a mini-empire, with locations in Miami, Panama and Europe, selling over 8,000 gourmet foods.

They eventually founded Sturgeon AquaFarms in 2001, wanting to raise Beluga and Sevruga sturgeon in Florida. for the world market. Though they now sell 15-20 different caviars, they sell several kinds from their own aquaculture operations, which are generally priced from $20 to $80 an ounce. Currently, they grow Beluga, Sevruga, Sterlet and Russian Osetra, all of which is sustainably raised. They are also the only producer of domestic Caspian Sevruga and Caspian Beluga Caviar. For their sturgeon, they only use organic feed, free of hormones and antibiotics. Besides selling caviar, they are committed to the conservation and preservation of sturgeon species.

Their best season for sales of their caviar is obviously November and December, definitely due to the holidays when people are more ready to splurge. And when I asked the best way to enjoy their caviar, I was told that the most romantic way was to spread some on a blini with a litte creme fraiche, and accompany it with Champagne or vodka. And of course, you need to share all that with someone you love.

With around 18 exhibitors carrying caviar at the Expo, it remains a desirable luxury product. And you might not have realized that it is healthy as well. Caviar is full of beneficial Omega-3 fatty acids as well as acetylcholine, which is good for your memory. It is also abundant in Vitamin A, Vitamin D and potassium, which is good for your blood pressure. Who would have thought such a decadent treat could also be good for you?

Could caviar become even more sustainable? That might be a possibility in the future with news of a new technique to extract roe from a sturgeon without killing it. In an intriguing article in Civil Eats, it describes the work of Angela Köhler, marine biologist and eco-toxicologist, who developed and patented a technique to stabilize mature roe and keep the sturgeon alive. This is primarily small scale, and costly, but it bodes well for the future of the caviar industry, offering a potential path to greater sustainability as well as make sturgeon productive for many more years.  

Ah, the wonders of caviar.

"I'd do anything for caviar and probably did."
--Henry Kissinger

International Boston Seafood Show: Food of Interest

"Scallops are expensive, so they should be treated with some class. But then, I suppose that every creature that gives his life for our table should be treated with class."
--Jeff Smith

One of my anticipated pleasures of attending the International Boston Seafood Show is the opportunity to gorge myself on a smorgasbord of seafood, to partake of new products and old, of shellfish to sushi, fried  shrimp to smoked salmon. Exhibitors desire to entice potential purchasers to their booth so many offer samples of their foods. In addition, these exhibitors hope to ignite some positive press for their products. Most of them have been very open to me, sharing information, and I enjoy highlighting those foods which most enticed my palate.

I taste many different items at the show, enjoying the majority of them, but I only choose to mention a small number, those which especially appealed to me. I want to share with my readers the best of the best, some of the most compelling products at the show. With over 1800 exhibitors, I know I did not sample seafood from each and every booth, so I may have missed some exceptional foods. If you attended the Seafood Show, and have your own favorite samples, feel free to tell me about them in the comments.

There is a ton of salmon available for sampling at the show. Some of my favorites came from Spence & Co., Ltd., which primarily is a purveyor of smoked salmon though they currently sell over 80 products. The company was founded by a Alan Spence, a master smoker from Scotland. They produce smoked salmon in a traditional Scottish method, which gives it a more restrained smoky taste. Some of their more unique items, which I did not taste, include smoked salmon from New Zealand, which uses Manuka wood, and salmon from recipes by famed chef Charlie Trotter, such as the Darjeeling Tea & Ginger Cured Salmon.

Last month, the Japanese government placed unagi, the Japanese eel, on the Environment Ministry's Red List, listing it as Endangered. Catches have been at record lows, declining to about 5% of what were caught in the 1960s. Japan is the primary consumer of these eels, eating about 70% of the production.  percent of all eel produced worldwide. The Red List is more an advisory and does not create any legal regulation, so hopefully the government will take notice and actually do something to protect the unagi. To protect the unagi, it would be beneficial to find other sustainable fish which might closely replicate the taste of unagi.

Triad Fisheries, in Alaska, has created one such option, and I was impressed with the result. Their Alaska Sablefish Unagi Style recently won two Symphony of Seafood awards, including #1 2013 Foodservice & People's Choice Seattle. This product is wild Alaskan sablefish, with an unagi marinade, which is precooked and ready to heat and serve. First, I found this fish to be absolutely delicious. It seemed to share some of the texture of the unagi, which is important, and a bit of the taste. It may not be a perfect replication of unagi, but because it is so tasty, and has a similar texture, I think this would be a very good replacement.

Another Alaskan treat was the Aqua Cuisine Seafood Lit'l Sammies Smoked Salmon Cocktail Franks, which also won a Symphony of Seafood award for #1 2013 Smoked. These are made from 100% wild Alaskan Salmon and are all natural, with no artificial ingredients. They are low in fat, high in protein, and free of nitrite and nitrates. They had a nice texture, just a bit looser than a regular hot dog, and you definitely tasted the salmon and mild smokiness. They would make a great alternative for a cocktail party or tail gate party.

Almost hidden in the rear of the show, amidst a number of Korean booths, I stumbled upon HaeMatt Co., Ltd. which produces Korean Myeong-Ran, a roasted laver. You probably are more familiar with laver by its Japanese name, nori, which is often used to wrap sushi. In Korea, roasted lavery is associated with fertility and is often served at weddings. It may also be eaten as an appetizer or snack. This seasoned laver is made from laver, brown rice, pollock roe seasoning, perilla oil and sesame oil. Some chili pepper powder may have been added as well. I enjoyed the seasoned laver, which I found crunchy with a nice depth of seasoning though I did not find it spicy. I could see though how it might be an addictive snack. And you could always add your own hot spices.

Black Diamond Caviar, produced by Warbucks International Seafood, is produced in Louisiana and they make three different types. In general, the caviar costs about $50 for a 3.75 ounce jar. I believe that the caviar I tasted was from the bowfin, known locally as the choupique. It is a freshwater fish, more ancient than sturgeons, from Louisiana and their roe is naturally black. I liked the taste of this caviar, which had a mild brininess, no fishy aftertaste and has a silky smooth texture. A good, sustainable choice.

I love a good mussel, and the type of broth they are prepared in matters a lot. Canadian Cove produces Prince Edward Island Mussels, which are rope grown and sustainable. The mussels are good for your health too as they are low calorie, a good source of lean protein, and have plenty of Omega-3s, iron and Vitamin B12. The mussels were large and plump, cooked in a Sweet Thai broth, and really satisfied me. Fortunately, they also had slices of bread for dunking into the flavorful broth.

The British Columbia Pavilion offered samples of a number of different types of sustainable seafood. In British Colombia, they produce over 100 species of seafood, exporting about 80% and the U.S. receives about 57% of those exports. Salmon accounts for about 40% of all B.C. production. British Colombia is big on food safety, traceability and sustainability.

At the show, their chef was Nathan Fong, a food stylist, journalist, and TV personality, who was born in Vancouver. Next to Nathan, you may recognize Jacqueline Church, the Leather District Gourmet, who assisted Nathan at the show. Nathan spent lots of time preparing various dishes, showcasing the delicious seafood of British Columbia. I stopped by their booth several times to see what the next recipe might be. A luscious sablefish, caviar & scrambled eggs, uni, fried rockfish, and more. Overall, this ended up as the tastiest booth at the entire show, with an excellent variety of delicious seafood, prepared very well.

Salmon on a stick!

One of the treasures from the British Columbia booth was the Northern Divine Caviar. This is the first certified organic caviar in North America, from thirteen year old White Sturgeons. The company began producing caviar in 2011 but became a commercial entity in 2012. The sturgeon was raised in tanks on land and they produce only a few hundred kilos each year. They have been certified by Canadian Organic Aquaculture as well as Global Trust. Currently, they are sold mostly in Canada, though you can find it in the U.S. and they are seeking more distributors. It is pricey, at about $88 for 30 grams, but then caviar has never been an inexpensive luxury. The taste is exquisite, smooth, briny and buttery without any fishy aftertaste. One of the better caviars I have tasted in the last few years. And paired with even scrambled eggs, they make a great dish. Splurge and check out this caviar.

“The sea hath fish for every man.”
--William Camden