Delicious Australia – (06)June 2019

Searchdelicious.com.aufor

‘chargrilled garlic and chilli cuttlefish’

ILLUSTRATION

ALICE CLEARY

BUYINGBuywhole,withdouble

skinstillon,orgetyourfishmongerto

skinit foryou.Lookforshimmering,

wetfleshanda cleanseaaroma.

STORINGStorewholefornomore

than 24 hoursona driptrayovericein

anairtightcontainer.Oncecleaned,

useimmediately,orwraptightin

freezerfilmandstorein thevegetable

crisper.Usewithin 24 hours.

COOKINGRaw,sauteed,steamed,

poached,grilled,fried,braised.

CATCHINGMETHOD

Prawntrawl.

SUBSTITUTIONSSquid.

ACCOMPANIMENTSChilli,

thyme, butter, parsley, garlic, basil.

Thecuttlefish’s

loveforfeastingon

preyin shallowish,

weedywarm

watersgivesthe

mollusca creamy,

rich flavour.

CUTTLEFISH

I’VENEVERHADa pet
budgie.A friendhadfive
andtheircageswere
strewnwithhalf-eaten
cuttlebones.Moreshell
thanbone,they’regreatto
nibbleon,apparently.Askanybudgie.
Now,I don’tknowaboutyou,but I think
I’llsticktothecuttlefishitself.
Cousinsofsquid,andcloselyrelatedto
octopus,cuttlefisharecephalopods,with
a prominentheadandtentacles(orlegs)
protrudingfroma primitivemolluscanfoot.
Cuttlefish,however,lookdifferentto
theirrelatives,withreddish-brownskinand
whitemarkings,andeightsmallandtwo
largertentacles.They’reprolificproducers
ofink,too,which,accordingtoJohn
SusmanofFishtales,hasa much nuttier
tastethansquidink.
“Withoutthethinbodyandlonglegs
ofthesquid,thecuttlefish,withitsround
bodyandsmalllegs,hasoftenbeenseen
asinferior,”saysSusman.“Butit’scome
intoitsownoverthepastdecade – moving
frombaittocentreofplate.
“Cuttlefishis thepreferredbait(over
squid)forthesavvyKingGeorgewhiting
fisherman.Clearly,theKGWis a fishof
styleandtaste,appreciatingthemore
completemouthfeel– fromtheinitialcrisp
bitetothecreamytexture and slightly
livelier flavour.”

Itmightbethesquid’suglycousin,butwhenit comestotaste,

cuttlefish is the star of the family,writesAnthonyHuckstep.

FoundthroughoutSouthernAustralia,

cuttlefisharefast-breedingandfast-

growing,givingthemstellarsustainability

ratings.Commonlysoldaround15-25cm,

theybehavesimilartosquidin thekitchen,

butthereareslightdifferencestoconsider.

“Iprefercuttlefishtosquidforsashimi,”

saysSusman.Togetthebest,mosttender

outcome,headvisesyoudouble-skinthe

hoodsofcuttlefish.“Thereis a second

layerwhichis finetoeat,butif yougently

peelit off,theraw-eatingexperienceis

magnified.“(Askyourfishmonger to do

thisif youfindit tricky.)

“Fresh,rawcuttlefishhasa texture

andtastesuperiortosquid,”Susman

continues.Witha lighteggwhiteand

green-melonaroma,a texturethat’s

tender,anda flavourthatboastsmildmilky

notesanda freshcreamfinish,theyare

stunningraw,butcanholdtheirownin

a deep-friedsalt-and-pepperplay,too.

Whencooked,Susmanlovesthem

shavedthinandsimplytossedthrougha

hotwokwithoil,butter,garlic,parsleyand

lemonjuice.“It’soneofthebesteating

experiencesyoucanhave,”hesays.

delicious.com.au/food-files

Formoretipsonbuyingand

storing fresh seafood.

@huckstergram @anthuckstep

CATCH OF THE DAY.

36 delicious.com.au