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Sicilian tuna tartare – tartare di tonno
What better way to celebrate the tuna season than with one of my favourite dishes, Sicilian tuna tartare. Unlike the indulgence, length and fervour of spaghetti with cuttlefish ink sauce, today’s offering is almost Buddhist in its simplicity, not that Buddhists probably get through boatloads of raw tuna. Expect it would wreak havoc with their karma. Not with mine, I’m glad to report. To say this is old-school Sicilian would be a lie. A modern classic maybe, insofar as that actually means anything. It only started popping up on menus here about five or ten years ago, although now any decent fish restaurant will offer it. Strangely, though, it’s not…
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Spaghetti with cuttlefish ink – spaghetti al nero
There are foods that we inevitably associate with certain people. If anyone mentions pasta with ragù, for example, I always think of my son, George, who must be one of the world’s leading experts on the dish by now, considering his vast hands-on experience in the field. And lemon meringue pie always brings to mind my sister. I’m not even sure why, although it might just be because her lemon meringue pie is so damn good. And when I see spaghetti with cuttlefish ink sauce on a menu, I can’t help but remember my old friend Nigel. I miss many things about him, but his penchant for spraying me with…