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The Great Cuttlefish
A Seamaster of Disguise…well, not the one I’ve just cooked!
Managed to get hold of some cuttlefish for the restaurant today, I use a lot of squid so this makes a bit of a change, albeit a small one. I love this type of seafood, texturally it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but it more than makes up for it with its versatality to the global chef.
In their natural habitat they are quite something to look at, their colours, which change with the scenery are as remarkable as a defence system as they are to look at. If this doesn’t work whilst they are feeding on small fish and crustaceons then they have an ink sac which emits jet black ink James Bond style into the path of hungry sharks and other predators.
Anyway, three kilos of it proved pretty hapless at disguise because it’s in my fridge all cleaned up and ready to go. I just need to decide what I’m going to do with them.
The best cuttlefish are the young, small ones which can be flash fried, the larger adult ones require longer, slower cooking. The ink sac should be removed carefully, puncture it before you are ready and you will have some cleaning up to do. Don’t waste it though, like squid ink it is invaluable as the colouring agent in sauce and/or risotto ‘nero’ when its deep black colour gives a stunning gloss to a sauce or rice dish.
Most of the head can be used, take the central ‘cuttlebone’ out and make a set of earings for a Christmas gift, remove the outer layer of skin and any remaining membrane and you are left with a piece of shiny white flesh. These can be frozen to help tenderize or scored with a sharp knife in a criss-cross pattern which also adds to presentation in the finished dish.
I shall probbly do something Italian with half of it and either Greek or Asian with the other half. Will keep you posted.
Miles,
Amazing! I have heard of the fish but no idea what to do with it. You say that you ‘managed to get hold of some’, so I presume that it is not easy to get and therefore relatively expensive too.
I hope that you will have customers who will appreciate it. Looking forward to hearing what you will do with it. My inkpen is ready
November 16, 2007 @ 5:15 pm
Elsie,
No I don’t get chance to use it much, I still prefer squid if truth be told.
Miles
November 16, 2007 @ 10:01 pm
Miles,
Fabulous photo if a little disconcerting…. are those eyes? Let us know what you decide to create.
Cid
November 16, 2007 @ 10:41 pm
Cid,
Never mind the eyes, you should try pulling its entrails out and cleaning them when the ink sac has burst. Later that afternoon as the smell on my hands had yet to subside I realised why I was single!
Miles
November 17, 2007 @ 7:33 am
Miles,
Do I take it you will be needing an extra large pot of salt scrub before entering the local disco scene
?
Cid
November 17, 2007 @ 9:30 am
Cid,
Even your fabulous salt scrub wouldn’t cover that smell up! I simply avoid any contact with the outside world until the smell has subsided, about three days!
Miles
November 18, 2007 @ 12:10 am
Elsie,
What we need is exotic bait and Miles appears to have three and is making a mess of preparing them…. do you think he would miss one if we used it to lure a snipe?
Cid
November 18, 2007 @ 11:36 am
Cid,
I think he would be glad to be rid of it. now. However, care needs to be taken whilst handling this smelly fish. Do you have a trained dog or cat that could sneak in and do the deed?
November 19, 2007 @ 10:59 am
Elsie,
This reminds me of bank robbers and ink all over the money…. if the cuttlefish takes a dislike to our furtive plan then forensic’s finger of suspicion will point to us
I will wait for Miles to do a lot of steaming in the kitchen so visibility is poor … then we could strike with our new improved long arm grapplers (as yet not in the Lakeland’s catalogue but that could seal our fortune!).
Cid
November 19, 2007 @ 12:53 pm
Cid,
? The snipe have a lot to answer for. Not sure that they are worth the effort, mind you, turkeys may be in short supply this Christmas.
Where will it all end
November 19, 2007 @ 4:45 pm
Elsie,
I’m inclined to agree. Let’s not lose sight of the long arm grapplers though, who knows how handy they may prove to be
Cid
November 19, 2007 @ 6:05 pm