For the first time in our long, though admittedly long-distance, relationship (ie he’s never heard of me), I find Tim Dowling on the wrong side of history (‘The trout lasagne is very good!’ How I recreated six classic beef dishes – with oily fish, 23 April). His attempts to replace meat with tinned fish in their diet and its effect on his relationship with his wife were, as always, entertaining, but I just don’t think he’s trying hard enough.
Tinned fish has formed the backbone of our diet for years: it’s delicious, nutritious and cheaper than it ought to be, and we should be extolling rather than mocking it. Pasta con le sarde? A tin of sardines in oil makes that a store-cupboard staple. Late-night supper after a gig (my husband) or the theatre (me)? A baked potato with a tin of pilchards in tomato sauce and a salad make it the work of a moment. Adding umami to a cream sauce? Garlic and a tin of anchovies does the trick, with the leftovers used the next day in avocado mashed on toast. Let’s redress the balance with an equivalent article – or a whole issue of Feast – on the joys of tinned fish.
Virginia Orrey
Cowes, Isle of Wight
