I had this amazing dish for the first time about a year ago from this unsuspecting place that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, Cafe Hiro. Being a HUGE uni (sea urchin) fan myself I was so excited to see something like this on the menu. This isn’t just a dish for people who love the umami goodness of uni. My boyfriend, who normally gags at the sight of the stuff, was LOVING it! The subtle sweetness combined with hints of fresh ocean salt….SO GOOD. I’ve made my own version of this dish many times since, because it’s just that good. I know, I know, you get it so I’ll stop now. Enjoy!
xx Jenny
Uni Spaghetti
Serves 3 to 4
Ingredients:
1 lb thin spaghetti
¾ cup fresh sea urchin
3 tablespoons heavy cream
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
salt and pepper to taste
garnish:
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted
2 tablespoons nori, julienne
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Add a generous amount of salt to the water and drop in the pasta. Stir.
3. Once al dente, drain, toss in a small amount of olive oil and set aside.
4. In a food processor, puree the sea urchin and cream together until smooth.
5. Strain the mixture and whisk in the unsalted butter. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Pour the sauce into a large pan and bring to a gentle simmer.
7. Add the pasta and toss together.
8. Top with the pine nuts and nori and serve warm.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
This is fabulous. You are quite possibly the only blog I have seen to feature this dish. I can’t wait to try it.
You ladies put together a fabulous blog! Thank you.
Will definitely get to try this, sea urchin with spaghetti sounds delicious
I saw a similar recipe in a recent Food & Wine and wanted to try it so badly! But I couldn’t find any uni anywhere – might have to look harder because this definitely has my mouth watering =)
Hi Peggy! Do you live by a Japanese or Korean market? Or an Asian seafood market? I usually pick mine up from those kinds of markets. They’re almost always in stock, super fresh product and usually fairly inexpensive. If that doesn’t work and you’re really determined you can see if your local Japanese restaurant/sushi house will tell you where they get their uni from and if the distributor is local. Good luck!
I’ve had this at restaurants. So wonderfully decadent tasting! You’ve inspired me to take a trip to my fave Japanese market to buy my own uni to make this at home now.