What's Bottarga?

After two fairly deep and heavy posts I feel like lightening things up a bit.

I just got back from purhasing my first dried grey mullet roe otherwise known as bottarga. I've only had it a few times but wow is it delicious (cured tuna heart is in the same category).

From Wikipedia...

Botargo, also called bottarga (Italian), poutargue or boutargue (French), botarga (Spanish), batarekh (Arabic) or avgotaraho (Greek αυγοτάραχο) is a Mediterranean delicacy of cured fish roe.

Sometimes called the poor man's caviar, botargo is the roe pouch of tuna or grey mullet, or sometimes swordfish. It is massaged by hand to eliminate air pockets, then dried and cured in sea salt for a few weeks. The result is a dry hard slab, which is coated in beeswax for keeping.

It is usually used sliced thinly or grated.

In Italy, it is best-known in Sicilian and Sardinian cuisine; its culinary properties can be compared to those of dry anchovies, though it is much more expensive. Bottarga is often served with lemon juice as an appetizer or used in pasta dishes. In Lebanon it is served sliced, where each slice is covered with a piece of raw garlic and the whole is immersed in olive oil then eaten with flat bread.

We'll be serving it this evening with some homemade pasta with a mushroom cream sauce...I can't wait!