The incredible, edible anchovy
Author and chefs praise much maligned briny fish for perking up variety of dishes
The world might rightly be divided into those who detest anchovies and those who adore them.
Count cookbook author Alison Roman — she of the viral sensation #TheStew and the bestselling “Dining In” — in the latter camp. She is decidedly unapologetic about her love of the slim, salt-cured fish.
“They are meaty, briny, salty, and perfect in every way in nearly any application: in marinades, in salads, in sauces, in stews, and maybe most especially, on their own for snack time,” Roman writes in her new cookbook, “Nothing Fancy: Unfussy Food for Having People Over.”
“I’d happily eat anchovies out of a jar or just smeared onto soft, buttered bread or crunchy, garlic toast,” she writes, adding that one of her favorite anchovy preparations is simple and direct — skewered on a toothpick with spicy pickled peppers or olives.
That direct punch of fish flavor is what anchovy fans adore about the umami bombs. They’re provocatively briny and intensely funky.
But it is those very qualities that also repel. Antianchoviests dislike the oily, outsize, unfriendly taste of so tiny a fish. High in omega-3 fatty acids, anchovies are a fatty fish much like mackerel. Salt cured and packed in olive oil, they take on intense flavor that causes the great divide.
Chefs prize anchovies as a not-so-secret weapon for escalating flavor.
At Coltivare restaurant in the Heights, chef Ryan Pera uses them in a dish of mussels that have been tossed in a paste of anchovies, garlic and shallots. They also go into an herb-packed salsa verde that is spooned over grilled cabbage. They even factor into a lamb/beef/pork Bolognese sauce, adding a nuanced layer of flavor.
Pera said he knows that some people are hesitant about eating the sometimes hairy-looking fishy fillets. “But to me, they’re fantastic, and they only make food better. In the Bolognese, they add a backnote that you might say, ‘What is that? What is that flavor?’ ” Pera said. “I know some people are wary of them, but I don’t hide them.”
Philippe Verpiand of Brasserie du Parc wouldn’t think of making a Caesar salad without anchovies. They’re in the dressing and also placed atop the finished greens at his downtown restaurant.
“Some people never try it,” Verpiand said. “But if you try it, you’ll like it.”
Sasha Grumman, executive chef of Rosalie Italian Soul, was raised in a family of Sicilian heritage who were all big fans of anchovies. When it came to pizza and salads, Grumman’s family did not skimp on anchovies. “We called them extrachovies,” she said.
At Rosalie, she uses anchovies in and on the Caesar salad as well as bread crumbs toasted with anchovy oil. Those crumbs are a finishing garnish for a pasta dish, lending complexity, dimension and texture. She’s working on an anchovy toast that may find its way onto the downtown restaurant’s menu when business returns to normal. On Tuesday restaurants in Harris County were ordered to limit service to takeout and delivery in an effort to slow the spreading of coronavirus.
Luis Roger, executive chef of MAD and BCN Taste & Tradition restaurants, said inferior anchovies — those cheap tins of oversalted fish — are what give the noble anchovy a bad name. ““The good anchovies are the ones that are more expensive and super delicate on the palate,” he said.
In Roger’s world of upscale Spanish cuisine, anchovies are consumed fresh, sautéed or deep fried. They’re also pickled. Those fresh, pickled anchovies can be found as a starter at BCN and mounded on Pan de Cristal, a ciabatta-type bread.
“We have a well-educated, well-traveled crowd. They know anchovies,” he said. “And those ones who haven’t had them, once they try them they say, ‘Luis, this is terrific.’ ”
Roger’s pickled anchovies are definitely not the norm. Those commonly found in the supermarket are sold in tins and have been brined and packed in salt. They sell for less than $2. But betterquality tinned anchovies and more luxurious oil-packed anchovies in glass jars can sell for $6 to $20.
Anchovy lovers will tell you they’re worth every penny.
If you want to try bringing anchovies into your dinner repertoire, try these recipes.