Diver Caught Live Sea Urchin

Respected among the sea's most sublime delicacies, urchins are hand-harvested by deep sea divers with small, precise, but modest equipment. This results in very little unintended catch of other species, while also preventing damage to the ocean floor, altogether making for a far less intrusive and more sustainable operation than is commonplace with other seafoods.

Each round, spiky shell contains only 4 - 5 delicate tongues of edible uni in different shades of orange and golden yellow. Uni has a deep, buttery flavor packed with umami, and luscious texture that melts onto your palate. All of this is layered atop a brisk, invigorating fragrance of the ocean, leading many to describe eating uni as experiencing the very essence of the sea.

Urchins’ spiny shells can make getting to the uni tongues seem like a daunting task, but these tips should help the process go simply and smoothly: 

1. To protect your hands from accidental stings, always wear gloves while you carefully trim off the sharp ends of the spines. The gloves will also prevent your hands from being stained by the urchin's dark exterior ink.
2. Working with its mouth-side-up, use kitchen shears to cut around the opening and remove the top of the shell, revealing the uni suspended alongside the five points of the inner shell.
3. Pour all of the interior fluid into a bowl, catching any tongues that may have fallen loose.
4. Transfer the tongues to a separate bowl of ice cold, salted water. Use tweezers or a spoon to scoop the tongues out of the water one by one, gently rinsing them to remove any excess debris that may have made its way onto the tongues. 

We recommend eating uni immediately, whether on toast with a schmear of butter or tossed into hot pasta to create an emulsified sauce. 

Uni ships live, and should be immediately consumed for optimal freshness. The Uni will be held under proper refrigeration for no more than 48 hours before delivery.

*Please allow extra time for this product to ship, as it is subject to availability from our fishing partners.