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Tarako (Pollock Roe) Persillade
Posted by Chris Lehrer on 9-01-08 with 2 
All recipes by Chris Lehrer
Ingredients
- ¤ 2 Sacs of pollock roe, tarako, available in Asian markets
- ¤ Flour, for dusting
- ¤ 1 Tb of Olive Oil
- ¤ 2 Tb of Butter
- ¤ 2 Baguette Slice, cut longer than the roes
- ¤ 1 Clove of Garlic
- ¤ Pinch of Parsley Leaf
- ¤ 1 Wedges of Lemon
Instructions
Gently pat the roe sacs with a little flour, just barely to coat. Warm
the oil and 1 Tb of the butter in a nonstick pan, and cook the roe over
medium-low heat. After about 2 minutes, turn over very gently with a
spatula, and cook on the other side until just barely browned. Remove
the roe and place on top of the croutons.
Meanwhile, mince the garlic and parsley very fine. As soon as the roe is done, add these with the remaining Tb of butter to the pan over medium-high heat, shaking the pan often to distribute the contents. As soon as it foams, which should take just 10-15 seconds or so, immediately spoon the sauce over the top of the roes. Squeeze a little lemon on top and serve immediately.
Serves 2
Variations
I live in Japan at the moment, so I make some trivial changes to reflect what I can get fresh and cheap. I use shiso or shungiku in place of the parsley, and I use sudachi or yuzu in place of the lemon. If I were doing Mexican food, I’d use cilantro for the green herb, and lime for the citrus. And so on: just tinker based on what else you’re eating and what’s fresh.
Comments—A Cry For Help!
This is pretty much the classic way to do this dish, and you’ll see versions of much the same recipe in books by people like Jacques Pépin, Paul Bocuse, Julia Child, Pierre Franey, and so on. I use Alaskan pollock, because I can get the roes very cheaply here in Japan, whereas of course the French chefs use other fish from the Atlantic. Now the thing is, when I do this, I find that 50% of the time the roe sac splits open as I cook it. It still tastes wonderful, but it doesn’t look as good. So... does anybody out there know how to avoid this problem, i.e. have some guesses as to what I’m doing wrong? My guess is that they're using much bigger roe sacs, and so I should be cooking much less time, over higher heat to ensure browning, but I'd be interested in any suggestions on this one.
Meanwhile, mince the garlic and parsley very fine. As soon as the roe is done, add these with the remaining Tb of butter to the pan over medium-high heat, shaking the pan often to distribute the contents. As soon as it foams, which should take just 10-15 seconds or so, immediately spoon the sauce over the top of the roes. Squeeze a little lemon on top and serve immediately.
Serves 2
Variations
I live in Japan at the moment, so I make some trivial changes to reflect what I can get fresh and cheap. I use shiso or shungiku in place of the parsley, and I use sudachi or yuzu in place of the lemon. If I were doing Mexican food, I’d use cilantro for the green herb, and lime for the citrus. And so on: just tinker based on what else you’re eating and what’s fresh.
Comments—A Cry For Help!
This is pretty much the classic way to do this dish, and you’ll see versions of much the same recipe in books by people like Jacques Pépin, Paul Bocuse, Julia Child, Pierre Franey, and so on. I use Alaskan pollock, because I can get the roes very cheaply here in Japan, whereas of course the French chefs use other fish from the Atlantic. Now the thing is, when I do this, I find that 50% of the time the roe sac splits open as I cook it. It still tastes wonderful, but it doesn’t look as good. So... does anybody out there know how to avoid this problem, i.e. have some guesses as to what I’m doing wrong? My guess is that they're using much bigger roe sacs, and so I should be cooking much less time, over higher heat to ensure browning, but I'd be interested in any suggestions on this one.
Comments (2) · Post a New Comment
dan · have any photos?
Chris Lehrer · Soon. The ones I have suck so hard you wouldn't believe it.
