Easy
Italian
Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
Anchovy, caper, olive, chilli. A pantry sauce that tastes like it took far longer than it did.
Ingredient
Caper
The unopened flower bud of a Mediterranean shrub, preserved in salt or brine. Salt-packed capers taste of caper; brined ones taste substantially of vinegar, which is a real difference in a dish where they are the main seasoning.
- Sourcing
- Buy salt-packed if you can and rinse them well. Small nonpareil capers are more prized than large ones; caperberries are the fruit, not the bud, and are for eating whole.
- Varieties
- Nonpareil, Capote, Salt-packed, Caperberries
- Quality cues
- Firm, tight buds of even size. Mushy capers or a cloudy brine mean age.
- Substitutions
- Green olives, chopped, Caperberries, Chopped gherkin
- Storage
- Brined capers keep in the fridge submerged in their liquid; salt-packed keep in the cupboard.
- Shelf life
- Salt-packed years; brined about 1 year refrigerated once opened
Nutrition
Per 100 g
- Calories
- 23 kcal
- Protein
- 2.4 g
- Fat
- 0.9 g
- Carbs
- 4.9 g
- Fibre
- 3.2 g
- Sugars
- 0.4 g
- Sodium
- 2348 mg
From USDA FoodData Central (#172238). Raw, edible portion.
Cook with it
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