Karasumi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Karasumi (Japanese: カラスミ (鱲子), Romaji: karasumi; Chinese: 烏魚子, Pinyin: wūyúzi) is a specialty of Nagasaki and along with salt-pickled sea urchin roe and Konowata one of the three chinmi of Japan . It is made by desalinating salt pickled mullet roe and drying it by the sunlight. A theory suggests that it got its name from its resemblance to a block of sumi (India ink stick) imported from China (Kara) and used in shodo. Karasumi is a high priced delicacy and it is eaten while drinking sake.
Mullet roe is also eaten in Sardinia, Italy and in Taiwan. The town of Donggang in Taiwan specializes in the delicacy.
