Sea Urchin

Sea urchins are spiny, globe-shaped marine invertebrates found on rocky and sandy seafloors worldwide, and the part eaten as food is their gonads, commonly called roe or, in Japanese cuisine, uni. Uni has a soft, custard-like texture and a rich, briny, faintly sweet flavor that varies with the species and the waters it comes from, and it is most prized served raw as sushi or sashimi, though it also appears in pasta sauces and as a garnish. Japan is the largest market for sea urchin as food, though it is also eaten in Mediterranean, Chilean and other coastal culinary traditions.