It was below freezing the other day and as I wandered through the sparse Union Square Farmer’s Market, I noticed all the vendors had their normally refrigerated goods spread out on their tables (it was that cold). The only exception was the flower guy, who had all his flowers in his van with the heater running.
There’s a fish monger that’s always there, but I’ve never actually purchased anything from them because it just didn’t seem right to have fish sitting out in the middle of a sweltering New York summer (even though the fish is technically on ice). The ambient temperature on Friday was cooler than what I have my refrigerator set at, so I figured it would be safe to take a peak. It was late in the day and their selection was limited, but I noticed a shallow bowl filled with gorgeous pinkish orange roe tucked away in the very back of their display. “What IS that?” I inquired.
Unfortunately the girl manning the stall wasn’t able to tell me much beyond the fact that it was flounder roe and it’s price. Curiosity perked, I picked up half a pound and brought it home, getting all excited about all the possibilities… Salt cured…. simmered in soy sauce, maybe even Cioppino (an SF classic)…
Alas, it was getting late and I decided the best way to profile the texture and flavour would be a simple preparation so I went for a quick fry in some hot butter, topping it with some smoked sea salt and a nutty cheese.
Fried up to a crisp brown perfection on the outside and a soft crumbly texture on the inside, I took a bite with great expectations. As it turns out, flounder roe tastes exactly like flounder. I felt a little foolish for being so surprised, but there you have it. The texture was a pleasant surprise though. Despite enduring some burns to the face from the spattering butter, the areas where the roe sac had ruptured bloomed into crisp flowers of brown nutty deliciousness that were punctuated by the bits of cherry wood smoked salt and cheese.
It wasn’t quite the mind-blowing delicacy I’d hoped for, but with a glass of wine, fresh baked boule, cheese and caponata, it made for a humble meal I could imagine being eaten in a small cottage somewhere along the Mediterranean.
Units
Ingredients
- 225 grams flounder roe
- 2 tablespoons cultured unsalted butter
- smoked salt
- ground black pepper
- Pecorino Romano (grated)
- ½ lemon (cut into wedges)
Instructions
- Heat a pan until hot then add the butter. Swirl until the sizzling subsides, then carefully add the roe to the pan (it will splatter hot oil all over the place). As the moist row sac cooks, some of it will pop in the hot oil so stand as far away as you can. Fry until brown and crisp on that side then flip and crisp on the other side.
- Plate, drizzling the brown butter on top and sprinkle with smoked salt, pepper and and the grated cheese. Serve with lemon wedges and bread.
Karen says
You have just described the perfect meal for me. This looks and sounds soooo good!
mary judge says
If you don’t want it to splatter so much, dry is throughly w. a linen towel and leave it out on the counter to air dry.
mary judge says
If you don’t want it to splatter so much, dry is throughly w. a linen towel and leave it out on the counter to air dry.
Moolik says
bought a whole flounder and discovered two huge sacks of roe inside! Thanks for the recipe, we ate the roe for lunch and are saving the fish for dinner.
Ed F. says
I work at a fish market that gets their fresh fish daily from a famous and well known NYC fish market and I spoke to my boss about getting me some flounder roe when he filleted the flounder. I got a decent yield and rushed to make some after seeing your recipe. I pan seared it in butter and olive oil and since I didn’t have smoked salt I added paprika to a salt/pepper mixture and topped the roe with pecorino romano, a squeeze of lemon, and a little EVOO and ate it on bread. It was a great little snack that has a nice texture.
I have a few more at home and I am going to try to cook it in oil/soy sauce and top it with bonito flakes over some brown rice and scallions (might even add some natto on the side)
Marc Matsumoto says
Sounds like a great idea!
Ed F. says
Just made it last night. It was absolutely amazing – only regret was I wish I had more 🙁 I seasoned the roe with garlic salt and pepper, flour/egg battered it and pan seared it in some sweet cream butter/olive oil, drained the oil and added sesame oil, mirin, soy sauce, water, and scallions. Served it over brown rice with the bonito flakes (skipped the natto bc I feel it would take away from the delicate flounder flavor). Your idea paid off as always!
fishkillgore says
Dear Marc and Roe Novices, to avoid splatter slice the skein long ways, season how you like, and pan fry in “browned butter” and olive oil. Down here in the FL Keys and S. FL we have been cooking dolphin (mahi) row for +50 years. Also press down on it with spatula flattening it a little, then turn it after cooking that side. That way you have 2 sides to brown, and it cooks quicker because its not as thick and round to the center. Right now I have 2 large sacks of mahi row in my cooler of ice down stairs (bagged of course), along with 7 lb. of Golden Tilefish fillets. This is the best way to keep your fish fillets, bagged and buried in ice, draining the cooler into ur garden. Even if I have whole gutted fish, bag it, because the ice water will go through the skin and into the flesh. Capt. Rick Killgore, http://www.fish-killgore.com (professionally fishing starting in 1978).
Marc Matsumoto says
Thanks for the tips Capt. Rick!
Andy B says
Glad I read this before trying it. I caught flounder while fishing yesterday and I’ve got roe from two fish that I was expecting to be blown away by. I started getting discouraged by the fact there aren’t many recipes posted on Flounder roe. Once I saw that you were disappointed, I gave up trying, but only until next time. I took home the roe only because I see so many other fishermen packing it up with their filets. Next time I’ll grab a few recipes and see what all the hubbub is about.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Andy, I wrote this about 13 years ago and have since moved to Japan. Here, the roe is left in the fish(though the stomach and other organs are removed) and the whole fish is cut into cross sections and cooked with soy sauce, sake and sugar. It’s a good way to prepare it and it can be delicious. The trick is to get roe that is fully mature. I don’t remember exactly what the roe I wrote about here was like, but I suspect it was not fully mature, which leads to the whole roe sac having a crumbly pasty texture kinda like hard boiled egg yolks. When the roe is fully mature, each individual egg is a distinct sphere and give it a texture that kinda pops when you bite into it.