July 23rd
2006
I did it. It took me quite some time (like 30-some years) to overcome my personal issue of Mageiricophobia: Preparing a whole fish! I know, I know, they're not the biggest of their kind, but hey, I dealt with a complete army. Starred at by some dozen pair of eyes, I had to gut them and couldn't help but think about Barbara's apposite essay: Meat Comes from Animals: Deal with It, or Eat Vegetables (it has to be one of the longest blog entries I have ever read, start to finish).
In the past I would have gracefully declined if I had been offered Anchovies, especially on pizza. Today I'm so-so friends with the overly salty tasting canned version, yet I don't have to have them on a regular basis - in a sauce that's a bit of a different story. However, fresh and self cured anchovies don't have much in common with their salty friends. Preserved in olive oil, the tender and juicy filets make a delectable dish.
Although the below directions are simple and certainly don't require a degree in surgery, it is a tedious process and necessitates a certain amount of patience. Anyway, if you're into marinated anchovies or think you are, the effort is well worth it! There is no easy way to describe this, so get ready for some more or less graphic description. We've tried to clean them in several ways, this is the one that worked best for us:
Wash and clean the anchovies. Remove their heads by using your thumb and index finger, then turn the anchovies belly side up and slide your thumb along their backbones and discards the innards. Remove the backbone (with the tail) and the tiny bone, or whatever it is, that's hiding 'behind' the backbone. Rinse briefly and set them aside skin side down on a paper towel.
Add anchovies to a flat dish and squeeze the lemon juice with the sherry vinegar over the fish, sprinkle with two to three pinches of salt. Allow to marinate for about 30-40 minutes until the flesh is white and no longer translucent. Very gently rinse the fish one last time, pad dry.
Note: Alternatively, you can soak the filets in only sherry vinegar, a mixture of half vinegar and half water or just lemon juice. The vinegar will add more acidity, but also soften any remaining little bones - if you cleaned the anchovies well, no need to worry!
Now layer anchovies in a clean flat dish alternating with chilies, minced garlic, herbs and spices. Add enough olive oil to fully cover the filets, marinate overnight and keep chilled until ready to serve. We loved them both as tapa or served on Crostini (on top of a toasted baguette slice).
The little delicacies made a perfect cold starter during the current heat wave and they'll be back on our table within the next week. Btw, I was pretty surprised to find out that it's not as simple as going to a fishmonger and buy fresh anchovies to prepare Boquerones. The fishmongers I talked to only sell them once or twice a week. We got ours at Poseideon, right next to the Viktualienmarket, where they usually sell the little ones Tuesdays and Fridays.
Marinated Boquerones
Recipe source: inspired by our friend Kristin's version
Prep time: 30-45min., infusing: 24 hours
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Ingredients (serves 6 to 8 as an appetizer):
500g fresh anchovies
juice of one lemon
5 tbsp of sherry vinegar
1-2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1-2 red chili, thinly sliced
fresh parsley and thyme, finely chopped
coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil extra vergine
You know you are a good food photographer when you can make oily fish look so beautiful! Now, I happen to like oily fish, but I think this would get anyone over their fears! Perfect!
Since I've visited Spain, I'm in love with these little fish! Never thought about preparing them myself, thanks for (again!) being an inspiration!
I've always been afraid to gut fish, so I can relate to what you wrote! But then, the outcome looks very tempting, if I can get my hands on fresh anchovies I'll give it a try! Right now I feel brave ;)
these look absolutely delicious! I would have never thought of making my own, but am tempted now... my Mum shares your phobia, probably stemming from an incident in my childhood where she was getting ready to give us a bath and discovered to her dismay that my father had filled the bathtub with live eels... I thought it was fun, but she was not amused ;-)
i fell in love with sardines and anchovies both on a recent trip to the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia. They prepared them much like these, and I've been wanting to try making them here in New York, but I just haven't found a good source for either tiny fish.
This is making me think I should try harder however!
Beautiful! I read about your blog in the Chicago Tribune and I'm really glad I checked it out. Will have to try some of your tempting recipes soon!
Hi, I'm from Alicante (Spain)
Your recipe it's fantastic.
If you visited Spain ask for the tapa named "Boquerones en vinagre" or "Agritos", it's a recipe very similar to yours.
;)
That looks lovely, I wish I had been there:)
Oh, I LOVE boquerones! I've only had them storebought, but I can well imagine how delicious and sweet they might be when prepared like this, from fresh. And I love the addition of chiles. Beautiful, Nicky!
They look so delicious! I'm not a big fish eater, but I want to try these :) Thanks for sharing the recipe.
beautiful post..I'm a big fan of oily fish especially anchovies...can't wait to give them a go
Beautiful. This is very nice catch of texture and taste in a few pictures. I love this fish. I will keep this recipe handy! merci.
I love them, they´re the best thing ever. Yours look beautiful. I´ve never made my own, as I can have them everywhere. But now I´m tempted!
I am sooo impressed. I am a huge fan of boquerones but have never attempted to make them myself. Armed with this recipe, however.... thank you!
Your post brought back memories of my last holiday to Spain. Thank you! If I can hunt down some fresh anchovies, I'd love to try your recipe very soon!
Hello there :)
I am Greek and the daughter of a fishmonger, so I have a tip for you. Buy a bigger quantity. These stay good for up to a forthnight, if you do a bit of a longer prep. You got to cover them in coarse sea salt for 2 hrs, till all their juices come out. Then rinse them well, prepare your marinade and let them stand in the lemon/vinegar, or just lemon or just vinegar in the refrigerator for 24 hrs.
Then use any herbs or spices you want, and add sunflower oil till you cover them up. Dont discard the lemon or vinegar marinade. The sunflower oil wont thicken in the low temp of the fridge. Then, when you serve them, just picke them of the container, squeeze fresh juice, and add your olive oil.
Your site is incredible, but then you don't need me to tell you this ;)
Boquerones en vinagre is one of my favorite Spanish tapas! I love them to death but I have never dreamed of making them myself! Wonderful, wonderful work you have done here...making my tummy grumble ;)
Wow, hab eure tolle Seite grade entdeckt! Und schon hab ich Hunger! Auch ich hab eine ausgeprägte Abneigung gegen Sardellen, deshalb bin ich sehr neugierig, ob ich mich mit dieser Zubereitungsart anfreunden kann.
Oh! Be still my heart, er... tummy! Fantastic as usual!
Forget buying them already made, I have just got to make this! I read an old article on nymetro.com and just had to giggle about the part where Mario Batali's ideal meal is to have alici marinate on a slow boat to Amalfi. Such an innocent thing, but oh so delicious!
Johanna, Fish in a bathtub, that's hilarious! Maybe some tiny goldfish wouldn't have scared your mum as much - eels remind me more of snakes than actual fish!
Josep, Friends of ours just returned from Spain and were raving about your country and its food. It has been too long since we last visited, something tells me that this will change soon!
Molly, It's funny, even with the almost unbearable temperatures here in Germany currently, I can't stop adding chiles to almost everything we cook. It added a nice spicy tang to the fish!
Argyro, Thanks for the useful tips! Since we just discovered fresh anchovies for us, we'll give your recommendations a try, for sure. I'd love to have somebody in my own family providing little secrets about proper preparation of fish...
I cannot believe there is a word for whole-fish-prep phobia!? Cool:) Not too keen on tiny fish myself, but your boquerones look so refreshing and tasty, that I'd probably eat some. Too bad I live so far:)
Very nice pictures and good style for dividing them!
1 Year ago I made 2 kilos of these little delicacy for a catering job. First we tried a few techniques, but we came back to the regular, as of you.
I wish our kitchen had looked aproximate like yours after the "battle"!
Sherry Vinegar and lemon marination will manageably give the anchovies a good acidic bath, in case you are not using white wine vinegar.
Some regions use ginger in the vinegar mixture for marination and it is also sprinkled with chopped hot peppers.
However, with different regions the recipe of boquerones vary. Whatever the recipe might be I thank you for giving your readers one of the most healthy appetizers from Spain
Pille, Sadly the word stands for cooking-phobia in general, not only fish - but wouldn't it make sense to have a specific expression just for it ? ;) Anyhow, if you would have lived around the corner, I'd have bravely gutted them and shared some with you!
Esther, Thanks for the nice feedback! We're glad ourselves, that we finally gave them a try, they're a definite winner on every tapas plate.
The filleted white anchovy picture was pure and beautiful
you've got a wonderful eye
your pictures look dorable, thnks for sharing the recipe, too!
i have seen these in various bodegas in spain, but never tried them, which i regret now. congrats on the time feature!
I tried Boquerones en vinagre in Spain a few weeks ago, and I knew I had to make them myself. It was a taste sensation, the highlight of my holiday! I've been looking for a decent recipe ever since I got back, and now I've found a couple. I'm going straight to the fishmongers!
Also, if you like Boguerones, you could try Rollmops, which is a Scandinvian dish quite similar to Boquerones, but made with Herrings!
Boquerones are just one more example of how delicious raw fish can be.
Have you ever tried cebiche? Or Matjesfilets? These are other great examples.
i have a question...i tried this recipe last night and this morning when I looked in the fridge - they weren't white? what could I have done wrong? i used white wine vinegar,salt and a little garlic... could it need more than 8 hours? any advice would be appreciated...thanks so much... luv your blog!
EDIT NICKY: Hi Anne! Hmm, I don't have a clue. We had them two weeks ago and it usually doesn't take longer than 30 minutes until the flesh loses its translucent appearance and turns white. I don't know, if it would make any difference, but I never marinate them in the fridge, I just keep the bowl on the counter for 30 to 45 minutes before proceeding with the next steps...
I recently made some boquerones using frozen anchovies, maybe not as good as fresh but still excellent, and available. I got them from Makro a local wholesale supplier in England, and just a few quid for a large bag. They also sell sardines which I love to bbq with some coarse sea salt chucked on after gutting(use a fold in half mesh holder so you can turn all at once or they fall to bits!) Steve
The only time I've had boquerones was in Spain - in friend's home and in several Tapas bars. They are so delicate and oh, so good.