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March 29, 2007
 
Spaghetti col Tonno
by SIMONA
CARINI
As you drive towards Trinidad
harbor you can't miss the sign for Katy's Smokehouse, and on
my first visit to Humboldt County nine years ago, I didn't. Nowadays
a pleasant two-mile walk along shady Stagecoach Road brings me
from our house to town, and I have become a regular customer
at Katy's. Initially I would buy fresh fish and small pieces
of their legendary smoked salmon. Then one day, acting on impulse,
I added to my purchases a can of their Very Fancy Hand Packed
Albacore to make spaghetti col tonno (with tuna sauce).
It is a dish my mother makes frequently on Fridays
for lunch and always on Christmas Eve for dinner, because those
are days when, according to ancient rules, Catholics are supposed
to abstain from meat. Dinner on Christmas Eve, like meals on
other major religious holidays, has an established and immutable
menu. Every Dec. 24, supper at my parents' starts with spaghetti
col tonno, continues with marinated tiny fish (pescetti)
and marinated eel served with orange slices seasoned with a thread
of olive oil, and concludes with cauliflower florets battered
and deep fried (frittelli). I have no idea what the marinated
fish or eel taste like, having from the very beginning of my
life refused to put them in my mouth. Everything else on the
menu is really good, especially the spaghetti.
Katy's Very Fancy Albacore is packed with a little
sea salt and lots of tender loving care: no oil, no water, no
chemicals of any kind. While roasting in the can, the sashimi-grade
tuna acquires a light caramel color and releases some juice and
oil. The tuna bathes in this natural liquid medium until the
can opener brings it back to the light of day. After purchasing
a sample of such wonder, I told my mother about my plan of using
it to make tuna sauce for spaghetti.
As a teenager and young woman I was not very interested
in cooking -- the fact that my mother was extremely territorial
in her kitchen did not help. Contrary to popular belief, a passion
for cooking is not a genetic trait of all Italian people: Although
I was born and raised in Italy, I learned to cook after moving
to California 14 years ago. I am not sure what inexplicable impulse
prompts me to let my mother know about my cooking plans, when
I know very well what the result will be. My mother is more comfortable
using negatives, so to teach me how to do something she lists
all the things I am not supposed to do. I will spare you the
intimate details of our conversation and give you the translation
into positive English statements of her recipe.
Spaghetti col tonno is a flavorful dish
and is quick and easy to make -- provided you have the ingredients
handy. Almost all of them can be stored long-term in your pantry
(a note on the exception to this rule will follow). Hence, the
only planning needed is remembering to replenish your supplies
after each use.
While a big pot with water is happily getting to
boiling point, I pour half a tablespoon of olive oil in a small
pan over very low heat. I add three peeled cloves of garlic and
let the oil absorb the garlic's flavor for a couple of minutes.
The cloves will darken in color, but must not become dark brown
(aka, burnt). If that happens I recommend to start again from
scratch. I add a half tablespoon of anchovy paste and stir it
into the oil, but that is optional.
At this point my mother opens a bottle of her homemade
tomato sauce. I have decided that in my youth I spent enough
time pureeing tomatoes with a hand-powered food mill to last
me a lifetime, so, instead, I use a 15-oz can of organic tomato
sauce. I add it to the oil, warm the sauce slowly and let it
simmer, covered, for five minutes. In the meantime I open the
can of Katy's albacore. My nostrils encounter a succulent smell
of deep sea -- clean, intense and fresh. I pour the tuna in a
small bowl and, following the instructions printed on the label,
I flake the fish with a fork and mix to stir the juices back
in, then add it to the simmering tomatoes. I stir well, then
cover the pan and let the sauce cook over low heat for another
10 minutes.
 By
this time the water has reached a rolling boil. I toss in the
spaghetti (usually De Cecco, the brand my mother has always used,
which is available in local grocery stores) and cook it for the
amount of time printed on the package. When the sauce is ready,
I add 1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley, turn off the heat, mix
well and cover again. "Don't cook the parsley!" says
my mother's voice, indelibly recorded in my brain and able to
play itself at the appropriate moment. I drain the spaghetti
and pour it in a big bowl, then toss it with the sauce, remove
the garlic cloves (obeying my mother's peremptory "Don't
leave the garlic in!") and serve immediately.
I realize that fresh parsley is not exactly an
item that can be stored long-term in the pantry. However, if
you can have only one fresh herb at hand, that should be parsley.
It is not hard to grow. Italians often use the expression "like
parsley" to describe something or someone that tends to
be always present, because parsley is an almost ubiquitous ingredient
of savory dishes. Hence, having it is a precious asset. The dried
parsley sold in bulk at the Co-op has an intense smell that bodes
well for its use. It could serve as a substitute. I personally
practice parsley freezing, which extends the life of a fresh
bunch and, a not unpleasant side effect, makes the chopping extremely
easy.
My spaghetti col tonno can compete with
my mother's version: While she uses a tomato sauce I cannot equal
(unless I decide to go back to my food mill-powering days), Katy's
Albacore provides an intensity of flavor to my sauce that is
unlike anything my mother can produce with tuna packed in oil,
which, let us not forget, comes also packed with a non-trivial
amount of extra calories. A No Salt Added version has recently
been added to Katy's line of products to satisfy customers with
low-sodium dietary requirements. And to allay concerns about
mercury content, the albacore has been tested for the presence
of the metal and the reassuring results (just 0.09 ppm) are displayed
on the store counter, while the label states "Low Mercury."
After my first rendition of the dish, I described
the recipe to Judy Lake, the gracious owner of Katy's Smokehouse.
Later on she told me she had tried the recipe and also shared
it with customers asking for ideas on how to use the albacore
besides the traditional tuna salad. Recently she announced that
their product had been featured on The Today Show. It
was judged the best in its category, and it was used for a food
preparation demonstration during the program. Well, am I not
lucky? Just think about all those people watching TV and dreaming
(probably salivating) about Katy's Albacore, while I can get
it any time I wish by simply walking a couple of miles along
a pretty Humboldt County road. Lucky indeed!
Katy's Smokehouse is at 740 Edwards Street, in
Trinidad, and it is open daily 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Call them at
677-0151 or go to www.katyssmokehouse.com for more information.
Katy's Albacore is sold also at both Co-op stores and at Eureka
Natural Foods.
Simona Carini is a native of Italy who splits
her time between Trinidad and Berkeley.
 Coming up
The Arcata McKinleyville High School Orchestra
presents its 11th annual Gala Dinner and Concert, Une Soirée
Dans la Vallée de Loire, a seven-course feast
with dishes from France's Loire River Valley centering on Poulet
Poele a L'Estragon (chicken in tarragon crème sauce).
Soloists and small ensembles drawn from the orchestra provide
dinner music. The entire ArMack Orchestra plays for a post-dinner
concert under the baton of Maestra Carol Jacobson. That's Saturday,
March 31, at 5:30 p.m. at the Arcata Community Center. Tickets
are $30. Call 839-8829, 442-7250 or 839-4565 for reservations.
The next winemaker dinner at Hotel Carter's
Restaurant 301 is on Thursday, April 5, featuring wines from
Trentadue Winery in Alexander Valley presented by winemaker Miroslav
Tcholakov. Call 444-8062 for reservations and details.
And don't forget, this Thursday, March 29, from
5-8 p.m., is Eureka Main Street's Jazz Fest kick-off fundraiser
A Taste Of Main Street, with samples from 25 local food
businesses, jazz in various venues and general conviviality,
all for $25. Call 442-9054 to see if there are still tickets
available.
your
Talk of the Table comments, recipes and ideas to Bob Doran.
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