Fish Monday!

Yesterday's experiment was Linguine with Tuna Sauce with a side of Scalded Fingers (because I am a foolish, foolish blog creature).

It was, as far as I could tell, a fairly straightforward revision of the classic vitello tonnato (veal with tuna sauce) into a veal-less pasta dish.  It was interesting, especially for this cookbook, in that it used hardly any fresh ingredients.

The basic plan was as follows-- fry minced garlic in olive oil briefly (I burned it a bit, but it didn't end up mattering too much).  Add some chopped up anchovy fillets, and fry a bit longer.  Add a small can of premium tuna in oil.  Add pureed canned tomatoes.  Add a little cayenne or red pepper flakes.  Simmer.  Make a pot of linguine.  Reserve some of the pasta water when it's done (this is how I scalded myself a bit-- always wait until the pasta has stopped boiling before dipping out a cupful, kids!).  Add the pasta and a big whack of parsley to the sauce, and mix for a bit.  Add some pasta water if the sauce has reduced too much.  Serve.

The anchovies basically dissolve, and just add a salty, slightly fishy background.  The tuna breaks up, and becomes more of a condiment than an feature-- this is really a tuna-flavored pasta dish, not a tuna dish served over pasta.

It was pretty tasty, but it felt a little bit one-note.  Next time, I may try adding some basil or something with the parsley (the cookbook suggests some capers as a possible addition, but I dunno) to add another layer.