Caviaroli- Elevate Home Cooking
Ever since the Godfather of molecular gastronomy (Ferran Adria) changed the culinary world years ago, I’ve been a fan of this sector of gourmet cuisine in certain doses. The genius and technical skills it takes to create masterpieces of molecular gastronomy that don’t feel totally pretentious and lacking in spirit is outstanding.
Those of us who no longer cook in professional kitchens or never have, are relegated to home kitchen gadgets and our individual creativity. Without certain professional level gadgets though, we simply cannot recreate most of the insanely brilliant dishes that come out of the likes of Adria and Grant Achatz.
There are however, key ingredients all of us have access to, that can help elevate good dishes made at home to spectacular creations. In past years, I’ve lauded ingredients like specialty salts, high end balsamic vinegars and pure coconut water to add to your home repertoire. These days, my obsession has shifted to Caviaroli.
As described on Caviaroli’s website, “Caviaroli is fine Spanish olive oil that is encapsulated to mimic the delicate refinement of caviar.” The creators of Caviaroli worked together for several years with the director of the Alicia Foundation in Spain to research and develop the line of Caviaroli, which later went on to be served at Adria’s world famous El Bulli restaurant.
Caviaroli comes packaged in small glass jars. They are varieties of olive oil- some pure, some flavored, encapsulated to achieve the appearance and texture of caviar. When you place a few of these tiny “bubbles” on your tongue and gently press them against the roof of your mouth, you’ll experience a sensual burst of exquisite flavors spreading across your palate.
How does Caviaroli work exactly? Here’s the scientific explanation: “The product is produced by using a new technique which surrounds extra virgin olive oil drops with a thin layer of water containing sodium alginate, a gum extracted from the cell walls of brown algae. The drops are then immersed in a calcium bath, resulting in a fine gelatin capsule around the oil drop to form the caviar. With this patented method, the olive oil inside the sphere remains 100% pure. The caviar membrane is thin and easily bursts in the mouth releasing the wonderful aromas within.”
Flavors include Rosemary, Sesame, Chili, Basil and Arbequina. These delicious bursts of sophisticated flavors can take your everyday bruschetta to a whole new level of “wow” with just a touch of Rosemary Caviaroli. You can make a simple dish like a Caprese Salad and by adding Basil Caviaroli you’ll add a level of refinement usually reserved for fine dining restaurants.
For those of you ambitious home cooks who want to enjoy a semblance of fine dining for yourselves or show off your culinary skills without procuring highly expensive molecular gastronomy gadgets that you don’t even know how to use, indulge in Caviaroli for a simple, quick path to sophisticated home cooking.
I recently created a simple Edamame Bruschetta with Rosemary Caviaroli (pictured directly below.)