Sea urchins: Murmansk's prized Russian delicacy

At first glance, a sea urchin looks somewhat frightening and inedible. It is a prickly ball the size of a palm, with no eyes or ears, that barely moves. But hidden inside is a product for which gourmands are willing to pay considerable money. We visited a processing facility in Murmansk where sea urchins are delivered straight from the Barents Sea and learned how divers harvest them, why they are processed within a maximum of two days, and what is actually called sea urchin roe.

From the seabed to the workshop in under two days

Today the sea urchin is not just a rare northern delicacy but also a product with a reputation as a healthy seafood. Its gonads, called roe in cooking, contain easily digestible protein, omega-3 fatty acids, iodine, vitamins and minerals. These components make the sea urchin especially appealing to seafood enthusiasts: it is valued not only for its delicate flavor with a slight sweetness and salty aftertaste, but also for its nutritional value.

Everything begins in the Barents Sea. Divers harvest the green sea urchin. If the site is close to shore, they work from small boats. If the fishing ground is farther out, they use vessels.

Underwater, the urchins are collected by hand. They cling firmly to rocks, so divers use special tools resembling a small spatula or rake. The gathered animals are placed in mesh bags. When a bag fills up, it is floated to the surface using a buoy or air, and the catch is then brought aboard the vessel.

The sea urchins are then transported to the facility in special refrigerated trucks. The company has very little time for processing — the live raw material can be stored for no more than two days.

That is why we were greeted by live sea urchins in the cold storage room. They can be carefully picked up, examined, and you can even feel the spines slowly moving.

“Just don’t squeeze them too hard. They are not poisonous, but the sting will be unpleasant,” the tour guide warned.

To the touch, the urchin is heavier than it looks. Its spines are constantly, almost imperceptibly moving, even though the animal itself appears completely motionless.

No eyes, but five jaws

There are about 800 species of sea urchins worldwide. About thirty are found in Russian seas, and two species are commercially significant in the Barents Sea. The Murmansk facility works with the green sea urchin.

Despite its unusual appearance, it is a rather interesting creature.

It has no eyes, ears, or conventional sensory organs. The urchin moves using hundreds of tiny tube feet and spines, which are driven by a hydraulic system: water flows in, pressure changes, and the spines begin to move.

On the underside is a mouthpart with five strong teeth. Biologists call it “Aristotle’s lantern.” It is with this structure that the urchin scrapes food off rocks and holds onto a surface.

The animal reaches commercial age at about its third year of life. The catch typically includes specimens around five centimeters (about 2 inches) in diameter, although individual animals can be considerably larger.

What is commonly called sea urchin roe is actually its sex glands, or gonads. These are considered a delicacy and are used in cooking.

Another feature is that it is almost impossible to tell a male from a female by appearance. Both have roe inside the shell.

The urchin accumulates the most roe in winter and early spring (from November to April–May). This is linked to preparation for spawning, which usually begins in late spring or summer.

A northern product sent around the world

Although the sea urchin is harvested in the cold waters of the Barents Sea, most of the interest in it today is far outside the region. The Murmansk region is developing exports of live sea urchins and products made from their roe.

Freeze-dried, chilled and frozen roe is supplied in large wholesale quantities to restaurants in Moscow and St. Petersburg and is also exported to Asia, where demand for this superfood is quite high.

How much it costs to try sea urchin

For most Russians, sea urchin remains an exotic treat. It is hard to buy in an ordinary store, and in restaurants it most often appears on the menus of establishments specializing in seafood and Arctic cuisine.

In large Russian cities, the average price per sea urchin in a restaurant is usually around 250–350 rubles ($3–4). In pricier establishments, the cost can be higher — especially for a live urchin, serving with additional ingredients, or tasting sets. In Murmansk, a fresh urchin can be sampled for under 200 rubles (under $2).

At the same time, the product itself remains expensive not only because of its taste, but also because of the difficulty of harvesting: each specimen must be found on the seabed, brought up by hand, delivered alive, and carefully processed.

Opening a sea urchin is not as easy as it looks

The most unusual part of the tour was the chance to cut open a sea urchin ourselves.

First, the shell is cracked open with a special knife. After that, the famous Aristotle’s lantern becomes clearly visible — five interconnected teeth.

Then comes the most delicate work.

The gonads are attached to the inside of the shell, while the internal organs are not. That is why it is important not to scoop out the contents with a spoon, but to carefully pry each lobe with a knife along the shell wall. If done incorrectly, the contents mix together and the delicacy loses its marketable appearance.

All operations are carried out in water, which reduces damage and helps the product keep its shape.

After extraction, the contents are rinsed and packaged. The facility produces chilled roe without preservatives, as well as frozen products, pâtés and other delicacies.

Chilled roe cannot be stored for long. The facility recommends eating it within one or two days at a temperature near zero degrees Celsius (32°F). For longer storage, freezing is used.

Live urchins are also transported quite simply. After packing, they are layered with ice packs — often just plastic bottles of frozen water. That is enough to maintain the required temperature during air transport.

For most Russians, sea urchin is still an exotic item, although in recent years it has become increasingly common in restaurants in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other large cities. Yet the journey of this delicacy begins here, in the North, in the cold waters of the Barents Sea, where divers collect the spiny inhabitants of the seafloor literally by hand.