Looking for anchovy sauce recipe with intense anchovy flavor

February 19, 2023 10:16 AM

I want to recreate some pasta I got from a restaurant. The pasta was coated in a clear, smooth sauce that tasted intensely of anchovies and nothing else. My attempts so far have not had anything near the richness or complexity of flavor of that sauce.

I'm familiar with using anchovies as an extra note in sauces and other dishes, and know that they "melt" when heated in oil. But when I tried to make them the starring flavor, the results were surprisingly bland and one-dimensional. I'm looking for a reliable recipe or general advice on technique. Thanks!

posted by aws17576 to Food & Drink (9 answers total)

Maybe they fermented the anchovies? Fermenting adds flavor.

The easiest thing to do would be to contact the restaurant and ask.
posted by aniola at 10:24 AM on February 19, 2023

Could the sauce have been made with Colatura di Alici, rather than directly from anchovies? I'd pick up a bottle and see if you like it.
posted by pipeski at 10:26 AM on February 19, 2023 [7 favorites]

I'd try fancier anchovies (there are lots, often imported and often packed in jars rather than cans), and I'd try soaking them in milk or water before using, which reduces their saltiness and lets you use more of them without making the food unpalatable.

But I strongly suspect there were ingredients other than oil and anchovies, even if you didn't consciously taste them. (Something that only tasted like anchovies would be a bit one-dimensional.) If I was just guessing at random, I'd try things like butter, wine, and reduced stock -- common sauce flavors that are rich but not super distinctive, and that you can add to lots of foods without changing their character.
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:09 PM on February 19, 2023 [2 favorites]

Are you sure there was no garlic? Perhaps bagna cauda as a pasta sauce?
posted by Rhedyn at 12:10 PM on February 19, 2023 [3 favorites]

I do an anchovy sauce that uses an egg yolk+pasta water as a base for the pasta, that might give you some of the texture you want if you fry up the anchovies in olive oil and mix them in, and it shouldn't add a strong flavor.

(The actual recipe also includes fish sauce and hot sauce and a couple other things you don't want to be tasting, though the fish sauce might be worth a try if you're trying to bring that flavor out.)
posted by jameaterblues at 12:30 PM on February 19, 2023

There is a classic "sauce" that is with anchovies, garlic and red pepper flakes. Here is an example. Can the restaurant have made a variation of this? BTW, I might squeeze a bit of lemon juice into the dish, just before serving. Lemon enhances the other flavors.
posted by mumimor at 7:05 AM on February 20, 2023

Korean food uses a lot of anchovy; I'd consider experimenting with Korean ingredients. Dried anchovy is easily findable in most US Asian grocery stores. I often use anchovy stock powder to boost flavors but it's mostly salt and "flavor enhancer", actual anchovy is a small component. Asian fish sauce is also usually mostly anchovy although the fermented flavor feels pretty far off Italian if you're using a lot of it. A little bit might give you a boost. Red Boat is a good brand in the US.

Back on the European side anchovy paste is a way to get a lot of dense anchovy flavor easily. Also contains salt and oil.

I feel like "clear sauce" is a clue though; every anchovy preparation I've ever seen is dark brown. Is it really clear, like water? That must be some sort of unusual extract.
posted by Nelson at 8:00 AM on February 20, 2023

Response by poster: Thanks for all the suggestions so far! Nelson, the sauce did have a gold/brown tint; I just meant that it wasn't opaque.
posted by aws17576 at 12:22 PM on February 20, 2023 [1 favorite]

Not opaque does make me think of anchovy stock or fish sauce rather than whole anchovies. When you dissolve anchovies in oil you tend to get a paste, or oil with soft little opaque flecks or clumps, rather than a uniform clear liquid.

Depending on how much the clear sauce clings to the pasta, there may also be some kind of emulsion going on — maybe just an oily sauce thinned with pasta water, maybe there's also some cheese (in Italian cooking it's common to hold sauces together with shredded hard cheese like Parmesan in a way that doesn't come across as a Cheese Sauce, just as a richer and thicker version of the other ingredients), maybe a reduced broth or other watery ingredient, etc.
posted by nebulawindphone at 7:08 AM on February 21, 2023