Sri Lankan cuttlefish curry

If you’ve got leftover cuttlefish in the fridge or freezer needing attending to, this is a fantastic dish to deal with it. When I was in Sri Lanka this was sometimes curiously referred to as ‘devilled’ cuttlefish, although the cuttlefish is not minced or chopped up finely. Perhaps it is a reference to its chilli heat, for even when the restaurant made it milder for my white man’s palate, was still blazing hot.

Today’s Tiffin

I made a nice beef dish using the traditional Mughal technique of dum pukht (slow-cooking meat in its own juices in a firmly enclosed vessel, with just yoghurt and ground chillies) although of course I made mine in the oven, rather than in a fire, and the lid was secured with tinfoil rather than a coiled rope of dough.  The British who replaced the Mughals as the rulers of north India, took to dum dishes with great gusto, although they referred to it as ”dumb-poked” meat!  My dum gosht came out splendidly, with the meat so tender I could cut the larger chunks with the edge of a spoon.  Although generally such a dish is best taken with mounds of freshly grilled chapattis or fried poori, for convenience I made a simple mushroom pullao (simplicity itself when you have a rice cooker) and saag aloo.

Today’s Tiffin

I have been taking my own lunch to work every day this year.  This saves me either buying lunch from a store somewhere (generally too salty, too greasy and always too expensive) or eating the bland, over-salted and cold food at the canteen; this also allows me to torment, with various aromas and spices, those of my colleagues foolish enough to buy revolting convenience store bento or the abomination of instant ramen in our communal kitchen area.  Indian food always seems right to me as a packed lunch, as it is easily transportable and generally not harmed by reheating. 

Anyway, today I had Hyderabadi murgh methi (a taste I never tire of) and a Delhi-style potato dish (no onions or garlic, but lots of ginger and chilli).  The Thermos-type metal pot held plain basmati rice.  I could have easily used some lime pickle or even a poori on the side, but today was not my day.

スミイカ料理

太田船長流の「肝煮」。ゲソ・肝のまわりのにく・切り落とし入っています。これはいいつまみでした。

洋辛子たっぷりの辛子酢味噌和え。

ミミの天ぷら。スミイカにはもちろん耳がありません、いわゆるえんぺらですね。

三日間熟成したスミイカの刺身。あっというまになくなりました。

First fishing trip of 2009

Despite the chilling wind and rather choppy water, I snagged a bag of tasty cuttlefish and generally enjoyed my first trip out on the seas for the New Year. Luckily for the trip I had made up a Thermos flask of piping hot Irish coffee (only about a quarter of it whiskey) which, in combination with my thermal longjohns, managed to stave off the cold.

Thank you Captain Ota of the Asanagi-maru (Kanazawa Hakkei, Kanagawa).

2009年 初釣り

行ってきました、秋から気になっていたスミイカ釣り。

富士山はきれいだった。

あさなぎ丸さんいつもありがとうございます（あしたぐらいまで、私の写真もHPにのっています）。

謹賀新年

今年もよろしくお願いします。

うちはハゼだしハゼ入りのお雑煮でした。

Happy New Year

Wishing you all tight lines, big catches and safe journeys at sea for 2009.