Châtaigne de Mer

Châtaigne de Mer the French word which literally translated "chestnut of the sea" actually refers to sea urchin in Southern France. Its exterior part if thorny, and has to be opened like mussels or oyster to see the edible part which is the orange colored meat or roe inside the thorny shell. It is a must to eat Châtaigne de Mer while alive and fresh from the sea. Châtaigne is pronounced "shah-tah-nyuh". In my mother's home province (Marinduque) in the Philippines which is basically a small island in Luzon surrounded by the sea, sea urchins are rampant, especially during low tides, but I have never seen anyone pick them or fish them for eating. People pick up seashells, but never this thorny sea urchin. Now I am wondering if the locals ever eat them. On my next vacation, perhaps, I can ask the old people if ever they have these sea urchins as food. châtaigne de mer Sea urchins, with thanks to Carballeira, a Galician restaurant in Barcelona Latin: Paracentrotus lividus Gender: f Language: French Ethnicity: French Most frequent country: France Most frequent region: Southern France Better known as: oursin See places: French food and cuisine