Fresh sea urchin, Mexican crema, and Calabrian chili join forces in this quick and creamy pasta.

Creamy Sea Urchin (Uni) Pasta Recipe

(80 grams) Mexican-style crema, or crème fraîche

(300 grams) dried long pasta,

Kosher salt

(15 milliliters) extra-virgin olive oil,

garlic, finely minced

shallot,

(5 milliliters) Calabrian hot chili spread (see note)

black pepper

chives,

Set aside 4 tongues of sea urchin to use as garnish. Combine remaining sea urchin and crema using a blender, immersion blender, food processor, or mini chopper. Blend until completely smooth. Set aside.

Place pasta in a 12-inch skillet or a saucepan and cover with water. Season with salt. Set over high heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Cook until pasta is just shy of al dente and retains a small chalky core.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic and shallot and cook, stirring constantly, until softened but not browned (lower heat if the aromatics threaten to brown), about 2 minutes. Add Calabrian chili spread and stir until homogeneous. Add sake or wine and cook until liquid is reduced down to less than 2 tablespoons, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat and set aside until pasta is cooked.

When pasta is cooked, use tongs to transfer the noodles directly from the boiling water to the pan with the garlic/oil mixture. Scrape uni purée into pan and add a few ounces of starchy pasta-cooking water. Set pan over high heat and cook, stirring and swirling constantly, until the sauce comes together and develops a creamy consistency and the pasta is fully cooked, about 1 minute. Add more pasta water as necessary to thin the sauce if it over-thickens. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Divide pasta between warmed serving bowls, drizzle each portion with more extra-virgin olive oil, garnish each with a whole sea urchin tongue, sprinkle with minced chives, and serve.

A simple, rich pasta that highlights one of my favorite ingredients: uni, also known as sea urchin. This dish is even better when you make your own fresh pasta to go with it!

Uni Pasta Recipe (Creamy Homemade Pasta w/ Sea Urchin)

lb dried spaghetti or angel hair pasta (OR...)

~3 nests homemade pasta

salt (for boiling pasta)

tbsp neutral oil

garlic (pressed

heavy cream

tray uni (approximately 20 pieces)

salt (as needed, to taste)

Boil water in a medium sized pot on high, add enough salt so it tastes like the sea

Add the pasta to the water, let the water get back to a boil then drop the heat to about medium, so you maintain a low boil. Fresh pasta takes around 2-3 minutes, dried pasta will take longer. Just taste a noodle every 30 seconds or so and remove slightly before you think it&#x27;s ready, since it will keep cooking from residual heat. Drain and do not rinse. Set the pasta aside and prepare to use it immediately.

Put a medium to large pan on medium heat and let it warm up a bit. Add the oil and garlic, and lightly brown the garlic for a minute or so.

Once you&#x27;re ok with the garlic not browning any further, pour in the cream and let it simmer for a few minutes to warn and reduce a bit to thicken.

Add all the uni you like, reserving about four of your best looking pieces to top the bowl at the end. I added about two large scoops of uni. You can adjust this based on how much pasta or cream you add too.

Add the pasta into the pan, and let it warm up a bit. Toss to coat a few times. Taste and season with more salt if needed.

Serve into two medium bowls, or one large bowl for sharing. Top with the remaining uni and serve.

Have you wondered, &quot;What does uni taste like? or how to eat live sea urchin? Here&#x27;s how to eat uni sea urchins a few different ways. Uni is a delicacy enjoyed in Japanese cuisine and Mediterranean, in different ways. Santa Barbara Sea Urchin is very popular in my hometown and all along the Pacific coast.

How to Eat Uni Sea Urchin

purple sea urchin (Uni)

fresh lemon or lime wedge

hot sauce

1. You may want to use gloves to...

1. You may want to use gloves to protect your hands from the sea urchin's spines. Turn your live sea urchin upside down so that its mouth is facing up. Use kitchen shears to cut around and remove the mouth.

Use your shears to cut the sea urchin...

Use your shears to cut the sea urchin in half. Alternatively, you can use two spoons back-to-back to crack it right open.

Let the water pour out of the urchin....

Let the water pour out of the urchin. You will notice a black goop inside, which is partially digested sea urchin food. Use a wooden skewer or chopstick to clean this out so that just the orange "meat" remains in the shell.

Use a spoon to carefully lift the uni...

Use a spoon to carefully lift the uni from the shell. Add a squeeze of lemon and/or hot sauce to enjoy fresh and raw uni right out of the shell.

Alternatively, add pieces of raw fresh uni to...

Alternatively, add pieces of raw fresh uni to small pieces of sushi rice to make uni sushi and serve right away with soy sauce. See notes for more serving suggestions for eating sea urchin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REhLHpdLCE0

Welcome back to How to Make It! On today's episode, chef Katie Pickens is at Maruhide in California, one of the country's top sea urchin processors. Once in, Katie learns how uni is de-shelled, cleaned and sorted.

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