Capers

These little Mediterranean flower buds – sometimes tiny, sometimes fat and squashy – are an acquired taste, but do persevere. Capers add a lively piquancy to all kinds of dishes, especially sauces and fish. Nobody likes their first alcoholic drink, but we’ve all experienced how soon that catches on, and it’s the same with capers. You can buy them either preserved in salt (which I prefer) or in vinegar. Either way you need to place them in a sieve and rinse them under cold water first. Capers in vinegar will keep well once opened, provided the vinegar covers them completely. If it doesn’t you’ll need to do some topping up.