Can you eat sea urchin, you might ask. Yes you can! We have just tried sea urchin for the first time, which was an interesting experience. Here are our top tips for those who want to try sea urchin too.
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Shop for fish and seafood
If you follow our blog, you know that we often eat seafood. We probably eat seafood six or seven days a week. If you're wondering why, it's because it's delicious and healthy, and because fish always makes you feel comfortably full. We shop at a store called The world of foodwhere you can find food from all over the world, but also a very nice fish counter with good prices.
We always buy quite large quantities, and when we get home we divide them into portions and freeze them. That way it's not so expensive to eat fish often. Yesterday, we bought fresh prawns (95 kr/kg), fresh tuna (119 kr/kg), fresh salmon (119 kr/kg), fresh pike-perch fillet (298 kr/kg), fresh tusk fillet (179 kr/kg) and fresh seabream/dorada (89 kr/kg).
For example, we get a dinner with fresh tuna for two people for SEK 35 together. Of course, we have to add potatoes, vegetables and sauce, but it is still not overly expensive for such a luxurious dinner.
Can you eat sea urchins?
Today we saw sea urchins in the fish counter and became curious. Can you eat sea urchins? Yes, apparently! The sea urchins are already cooked when you buy them in the shop and all you have to do is open them, possibly dripping some lemon on them. The sea urchins can then be eaten as an appetiser or perhaps on a seafood buffet.
We bought two (SEK 37 for both) and took them home for the evening's seafood dinner. I also read a bit, and on Amelia I read, among other things, that "sea urchins are extremely sexy and you should not eat them with someone you do not intend to sleep with". Wow, exciting!
What is a sea urchin?
A sea urchin is a marine animal in the tribe Echinoderms, belonging to the group of invertebrates. There are about 950 different species of sea urchins and they are sometimes called 'hedgehogs of the sea'. The latter is not difficult to understand, perhaps because of all the spines! The spines are a good defence, as many animals find the spines unpleasant to swallow, but some fish still manage to eat the sea urchins, such as triggerfish.
Sea urchins eat small animals, algae, molluscs and various plants. Not all sea urchins are edible, but several are. For example, you can eat Paracentrotus lividus, the black sea bass, which we bought yesterday.
How do you eat sea urchin ... and what does it taste like?
Peter opened the sea urchins by cutting away the bottom with a sharp knife. When you open the sea urchin, you can see the rum bags lying like orange-coloured tongues. These are the ones you eat! You can scrape out the roe with a spoon and eat it as it is, possibly with a drop of lemon. (I read somewhere that you should not "contaminate" the sea urchin with lemon, but it's probably a matter of taste).
The rum is slightly creamy and rich. We found it tasty, while there was a secondary flavour that we found a bit tricky. Maybe we haven't gotten used to it, or we don't yet know the best way to enjoy this delicacy? We understand that sea urchin is considered a delicacy by many and is appreciated by fine chefs. We've also read that the roe can be used in a variety of ways, from sushi to pasta. Although we are not completely sold, we are ready to try again at another time.
Shellfish dinner
We started our seafood dinner with sea urchin, and then continued with fresh prawns and whole crab with courtmaster sauce. Crab is our absolute favourite type of seafood, and if you don't know how to eat it, you can read our post on how to eat crab. eating whole crab - how to do it. We usually eat a lot of seafood in the autumn, but this year it has not been as much as usual. But then of course we enjoyed yesterday's festive dinner even more!
Have you ever tried sea urchins and what did you think?
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Mr Paul Davidsson says:
Actually, yes. In the 80s, while on holiday on the island of Rhodes, I found a wonderful seafood restaurant in the Old Town. After a few visits, I became good friends with the owner and couldn't pass the place without being invited and offered something good. One evening when they had closed and were eating, I was invited as usual and to my surprise there was a bowl of sea urchin on the table.
I asked if it was just decoration but was quickly told to hold out my hand. The owner placed a drill in my hand and I felt it "walk" in my hand. It was alive! The owner looked at me, smiled and split the drill in half. Then he dipped bread in the orange goo and placed it in my mouth. It tasted like sea. Like oysters. A cool experience. He told me that sea urchins were a major source of protein during the German occupation in World War II.
28 October 2018 - 9:02
Helena says:
What an experience! Sounds exciting and interesting .... but scary I must say! That it crawled ... Iofs I eat oysters, which are also alive, but at least they are still 😉 Special experience in any case!
28 October 2018 - 12:11
Gina Vestman says:
In the Philippines we eat sea urchins for many many years now. Funny that the Swedes are starting to eat them. We only eat the black variety.
13 September 2020 - 8:30
anita says:
Hello!!! Now the season is over here in Crete and I have time to read your blog again! Sea urchin. No, you might as well drink seawater and then you don't need the actual consistency. I have tried a few times but no, it's not for me. The Greeks consider it a delicacy.
28 October 2018 - 9:20
Helena says:
At least you have tried! 🙂
28 October 2018 - 12:11
Emma, sun like sun? says:
This was ... interesting. No, I've never eaten sea urchin and am probably doubtful that I will. Belonging to those who eat the claws and tail of crayfish, the under the hood others can eat if they want. Fun that you dare to do it!
I will tell my husband about this. He and his son have found a beach near here and there were lots of sea urchins. We were going to go back there but it hasn't happened. At least I've bought swimming shoes because the stones were sharp and I don't want to step on the thorns.
Ugh, we're really bad at eating fish ... I'll have to try to get better at it.
28 October 2018 - 9:21
Helena says:
Sea urchins are nice, but not so fun to step on ... Sounds wise with bathing shoes! 🙂
28 October 2018 - 12:12
Ama de casa says:
I almost tried (what I think was) sea urchin in France once. But it should (according to the restaurant) be eaten raw. Firstly, they refused to sell us a smaller dose than a portion of 8 pieces and we just wanted to try it. Secondly, it moved when the waiter put one in Anders' hand. It felt a bit silly to split it and start gnawing. Oysters, for example, are also alive, but at least they are still 😉.
Your seafood feast looked delicious! I can really miss the fresh Swedish prawns here.
28 October 2018 - 9:58
Emma, sun like sun? says:
Ama, they aren't fresh but check out Lidl, they have frozen ones that are perfectly OK - in the absence of the "real thing".
Actually, you'd be crazy to sit in Spain with the affordable and enormous seafood supply here and complain that there are no prawns ...
28 October 2018 - 11:37
Ama de casa says:
I saw that they were not fresh, and we can get the frozen ones here too. But it's the fresh ones I crave the most. Then there is a lot of seafood here that is of course as tasty as ever here, but somehow you (okay, me...) long most for what you can NOT get. Wow. Now I became terribly hungry for whitefish roe... 🙂 ðŸ™'
29 October 2018 - 9:45
Helena says:
Haha, almost doesn't really count 😉 But I completely understand you! I also wouldn't have wanted to order a batch of eight to try. Buying one was just right.
28 October 2018 - 12:13
åsa/nalta norland says:
Sea urchin... Thanks but no thanks 😉.
Likes to eat fish, salmon and char, but perch is also a favourite,
but apart from eating prawns, I have difficulty with other aquatic reptiles.
Have you tried beaver repellent? I was watching TV at half past eight and there was a woman who was hunting beavers, she offered the presenter beaver bait in alcohol.
Beaver gill is a yellowish secretion insoluble in water (in its dried form it is a crystalline substance that dissolves in alcohol) with a strong odour that the beaver secretes from a special pair of anal glands, often called gill pouches.
Since this potion contains acetylsalicylic acid, it is not for me, in combination alcohol + acetylsalicylic acid I do not know if I survive, the alcohol will make the reaction faster.
Have a nice Sunday
28 October 2018 - 11:55
Helena says:
No, we've never tried beaver gills ... But we learnt about it when we were on a beaver safari in Lake Grövelsjön a long time ago 🙂. https://www.freedomtravel.se/2010/07/baversafari-utan-baver/
28 October 2018 - 12:16
Åsa says:
Fish seems to be cheaper where you shop than where we live, or at least as expensive. Then you have to consider whether it is farmed or wild-caught as well. Wild caught is much more expensive. And tastier. We haven't eaten sea urchins, but there are plenty of them in the sea here, although perhaps not edible. If they were, people would probably pick them. Here they pick long necks. I'm sure you'd like that!
28 October 2018 - 12:42
Helena says:
This particular shop has really good prices! In many other shops it is more expensive ... Interesting with the long necks! I googled, but have never tried them ... 😉.
29 October 2018 - 7:20
marina says:
Oh, what a wonderful shopping list! I can only agree that fish and seafood are amazingly tasty and even in our house that's what we eat the most. However, I have never tried sea urchin, and even though I don't think it will be a favourite, I was definitely curious, so I will try it if the opportunity arises.
28 October 2018 - 13:54
Helena says:
Sea urchin was not our favourite either, but fun to try! Then it can certainly be different on different occasions, how it is served, etc.
29 October 2018 - 7:21
Lennart says:
Dorada is a favourite!
28 October 2018 - 16:51
Helena says:
We also love seabream, as it is called in the shops in Sweden. We actually ate it for dinner yesterday 🙂
29 October 2018 - 7:21
Maria/ Magnolia Magis says:
I have eaten snails once and never again and frog legs but not sea urchins... Not something that attracts me either I think. I'm a bit sloppy with food...? Exciting that you dared anyway! ??
28 October 2018 - 17:50
Helena says:
I have also eaten snails, but it was not a favourite. I think frog legs tasted pretty good, but it's been a long time since I ate them. For the most part, I like to try (although there are things that I can find a little scary to try ;)).
29 October 2018 - 7:23
Solan says:
We were offered sea urchin by a fisherman in Spain. Ok...but no wow.
Therefore, I will go to your fish shop when we get back home. It sounds tempting ????
28 October 2018 - 18:05
Helena says:
Visit the Food World! Super nice shop with fantastic selection and good prices!
29 October 2018 - 7:24
BP says:
Drool, drool, drool!
Prices in your supermarket are incredibly low compared to my local ICA. Doradan costs about twice as much here.
I have never eaten sea urchin, but I like to test food I don't know, so I would definitely eat the little thing. You can't say that the "inside" of the sea urchin is a delight to the eye, but on the other hand, it is not that of crabs or oysters either;-)
28 October 2018 - 18:10
Helena says:
It is the same for us. Much cheaper at Matvärlden than at our local ICA. So therefore we travel a bit to shop 😉 .
29 October 2018 - 7:24
Britt-Marie Lundgren says:
We enjoy eating snails, mussels and most shellfish with great pleasure + lots of fish, but I think I'll leave sea urchins in the sea.
In Portugal we ate rum sacks, which were supposed to be a real delicacy; it was possible to eat, but the delicacy was difficult to perceive.
28 October 2018 - 18:48
Helena says:
Not everything you try becomes a favourite, but I usually find it interesting to try. And sometimes you find something that you like extra much 🙂.
29 October 2018 - 7:25
Lena - good for the soul says:
Hehe, it is important to choose a dinner party then, so it is not misinterpreted 🙂 .
Nope, never tried, but would love to do it just because.
Hug Lena
04 November 2018 - 10:36