Nora Ephron (may you rest in peace), you lied to me.
I was young and learning to cook, and in your 1983 novel Heartburn, you completely misled me about capers.
Long before I knew I was going to be a food writer, Ephron’s heroine, Rachel Samstat, was a cookbook writer who recounts an assignment to develop recipes using capers:
“It was weeks of tossing capers into just about everything but milkshakes before I came to terms with the fact that nobody really likes capers no matter what you do with them. Some people pretend to like capers, but the truth is that any dish that tastes good with capers in it tastes even better with capers not in it.”
I was young and impressionable. I believed her.
I still keep a paperback copy of Heartburn in my kitchen because the book has so much wisdom, including a fabulous rendition of Potatoes Anna. And for 38 years, I’ve mostly skipped those test-tube-size bottles of capers.
Then, this year, I bought a really big jar of capers at Costco: a 32-ounce jar (that’s 2 pounds of capers!) for $6.59. I bought the capers because even though I’m older and wiser, I’m still impressionable. I saw an online story claiming the giant jar of capers they sell at Costco was a great deal, the world was going into quarantine, and we all needed cooking help.
And now I’ve finally learned that a lot of dishes taste better with capers:
- Homemade tartar sauce: The jarred stuff is fine in a pinch. But homemade tartar sauce? The best. Just take mayo and dress it up with capers, relish, shallots, distilled white vinegar, and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Fish sticks, calamari, shrimp burgers, and even air-fryer frozen shrimp will be better with it.
- Roasted cauliflower: Cut a whole head into eight equal wedges, with the core and florets intact. Make a pan sauce of butter and drained capers, and whisk in a spoonful of Dijon mustard. In fact, drizzle that on any grilled fish steaks, roasted salmon, or crab cakes that float through your life. I’ll have what she’s having.
- Tuna salad: I work at home—I can indulge my love of oil-packed tuna for lunch any day. Yes, you can stir capers into mayo-based tuna. Or, go mayo-less and add olive oil, chopped eggs, sliced radishes, lemon juice, and some of those capers. You, too, can live like you’re on the Amalfi coast.
- Bagels: The highest calling for a bagel isn’t a schmear of cream cheese and lox. It’s those plus capers and red onion.
- Fried capers: OK, that’s not a dish, but it is when capers really show their stuff. Drain and rinse a cup of capers, toss them in a skillet of olive oil, and fry them until they get darker and some of them open into tiny little flowers. You’ll have salty, crispy taste bombs to sprinkle on deviled eggs, Nicoise salad, or potato salad. You can combine fried capers with anchovies and garlic for a killer pasta. You could even use the cooled oil in a vinaigrette.
Heartburn ends with Rachel Samstat’s perfect vinaigrette. Making it with caper oil might be the perfect revenge.
Which Capers Won Our Taste Test?
Capers are one of the test kitchen’s favorite stealthy ingredients. Both salty and lightly acidic, these small buds make the butter and lemon sing in chicken piccata and highlight the nutty, sweet garlic flavor in pasta puttanesca. Which brand was our favorite?
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