Nutritional Value of Sea Urchin Roe (Strongylocentrotidae)-Study of Composition and Storage Conditions

Although the roe of sea urchins inhabiting the Far Eastern seas possesses many healing properties and may be used as a dietary product, a reduction and deterioration in its nutritional quality during storage occurs. Therefore, in order to make sea urchin products widely accessible to the world population, it is very important to have appropriate technology to keep the roe from spoiling. To store sea urchin roe for a long time, methods of pre-processing sea urchin gonads before freezing were tested. In terms of preserving organoleptic properties and nutritional quality, the most adequate procedure consists of a short period (20 or 30 s) of heat (boiling water) treatment of sea urchin roe after removal from the shell. This procedure results in an inactivation of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolytic processes of lipids and proteins during storage. After blanching and cooling, the roe was packed, frozen and kept at a temperature of -18 & DEG;C and -25 & DEG;C. The quality of sea urchin roe did not change during storage at the temperature of -18 & DEG;C for 6 months, and at the temperature of -25 & DEG;C for 10 months.

Automated summary

Although sea urchin roe from the Far Eastern seas has many healing properties and can be used as a dietary product, its nutritional quality deteriorates during storage. To maintain its quality, it is necessary to undergo heat treatment, followed by freezing and storage at a constant temperature.