Easy
Italian
Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
Anchovy, caper, olive, chilli. A pantry sauce that tastes like it took far longer than it did.
Ingredient
Anchovy
Salt-cured little fish that dissolve into a sauce and leave savouriness rather than fishiness behind. Used this way they are a seasoning, not an ingredient — most people who say they dislike anchovies have eaten them in a puttanesca without noticing.
- Sourcing
- Salt-packed in a tin are the best and need rinsing and filleting; oil-packed in a jar are the practical everyday choice. Cheap flat fillets in a small tin are usually mushy.
- Varieties
- Oil-packed fillets, Salt-packed whole, Anchovy paste, White anchovies (boquerones)
- Quality cues
- Firm fillets with a clear reddish-brown colour. Grey, broken or mushy fillets have been over-cured or badly stored.
- Substitutions
- Fish sauce, Anchovy paste, White miso
- Storage
- Once open, keep submerged in oil in the fridge. Salt-packed tins need the salt topped up and resealed.
- Shelf life
- Unopened years; opened about 2 months refrigerated under oil
Nutrition
Per 100 g
- Calories
- 131 kcal
- Protein
- 20.4 g
- Fat
- 4.8 g
- Carbs
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
- Sugars
- 0 g
- Sodium
- 104 mg
From USDA FoodData Central (#174182). Raw, edible portion.
Cook with it
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