A is for..........

Anchovy. 
One of those ingredients that you either love or you hate. 
When I grew up, I was definitely in the latter group. To me, they were tiny little packets of salty, fishy nastiness that seemed to appear on my pizza. One of my earliest memories of the food is being given a slice of pizza that was overpowered by the smell of anchovy. Like so many before me, I was put off before I even tucked in.

Fast Forward 20 years, and my whole conception of the anchovy was turned on its head. I was working as the Head Chef of Beaujolais in Bath - a classic French Bistro that delighted patrons of the city for over 30 years, under the ownership of JP. Now this is a man who has a genuine love for food, and had shown that over the years in his restaurant. I remember one occasion  where he and I were involved in a discussion about using anchovies in some form on the menu. Being quite set in my ways, I was determined that these little brown devils were not going to make their way onto my menu! Not only did I not want to be serving an ingredient that I particularly disliked, but felt sure that the clientele would not take to it either.

Well, it turns out that what I had been fed as a child, was only one form of the anchovy you can buy. I had been brought up on Salted Anchovies - which more often than not, come from a tin. The grainy and gritty saltiness that I remember so well, often comes from over processing and prolonged storage. Luckily, JP introduced me to Marinated Anchovies. These kind are lightly pickled, often flavoured with garlic and herbs, then kept in oil. They were a whole different ‘kettle of fish’. No longer did I get the overwhelming fishy flavor but instead, I was treated to a pleasant saltiness that didn’t leave me gasping for water. They had the texture of a small fish, which was rather pleasing. I was blown away! I couldn’t get enough of these anchovies. They became a great accompaniment to Caeser Salads, added extra depth of flavour to fish stew and made me actually want to eat Pissaladière!

This opportunity also allowed me to develop an understanding for the salted anchovies. I discovered that they weren’t all processed as badly as the ones I experienced when I was younger. Over the years,  I have found that salted anchovies could go well with dishes like Roast Lamb. And the possibilities for working with fresh anchovies are endless . . . But maybe I should save that for another time!

There are a few points in my career where I have felt like it was a Eureka moment. That day a few years ago, changed a part of the structure of my cooking DNA. I now feel blessed that I can use such an amazing and varied ingredient in my cooking.

I won't leave you with a recipe this time but when I get to “B” then I can promise you something that you can cook at home with little effort and lots of flavour!

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