My husband thinks he didn’t start tolerating anchovies – he doesn’t yet put them in the “like” category – until he had a really good one on a pizza in Sicily in February of 2008. The fact is, he’s been eating them, and dare I say liking them, since he met me in 1992. He just doesn’t know it. Well, I guess he does now.
I love the salty little guys on any pizza, on top of Caesar salads and occasionally smeared on crusty bread right out of the tin. But for many of the other eaters in my house, anchovies must be administered a bit more stealthily. Anchovies are the secret ingredient in many of the sautés, sauces and vinaigrettes I make week in, week out. I didn’t think this one up on my own, folks. This is a classic chefy technique for adding umami (that earthy, salty, meaty undertone of food) to a dish because they balance out flavors and add saltiness to dishes across all Mediterranean cuisines.
