Preparation

• Consider 2 ink sacs [thus 2 cuttlefish] for 1 1/4 cups of tomato sauce for 2 servings of cuttlefish ink sauce.

• Prepare a generous amount of tomato sauce.
  For the detailed step-by-step procedure you can read the full recipe by clicking the following link: homemade tomato sauce without sugar or oil in cooking.

  Alternatively, use strained tomato puree.
  Canned tomatoes, passatas and ready sauces often contain added sugars and other ingredients that can raise blood sugar; always read the label.

  

• On YouTube you can find a very clear video on cleaning cuttlefish which describes in detail how to recover the ink sac.

  Wash the cuttlefish under running water and pat dry with kitchen paper towels.
  Remove the eyes and the beak and extract the bone.
  Rinse again.
  Proceed to remove the viscera.
  After extracting the bone, part of the mantle [the cuttlefish sac] remains open:
  – cut the skin that covered the bone to open the internal cavity that contains the viscera;
  – gently extract the viscera, if necessary help yourself with a small knife: eggs, milt and the ink sac in a single block and then separately livers and gills.
  The eggs and the milt of the cuttlefish are a real delicacy.
  The livers are also edible.
  The gills should be discarded.
  Locate the ink sac and carefully separate it whole so as not to lose its contents.
  The walls are very thin and break easily so keep a small glass or bowl at hand in case you urgently need to recover the contents.
  After removing the viscera, check that there are no residues inside the mantle.
  Skin the cuttlefish: consider that the skin is edible so it is not a necessary operation:
  – peel off the skin by pulling it along the mantle from one side and the other.
  Thoroughly wash the sac externally and internally, and the tentacles under running water.
  Pat dry with kitchen paper.
  The cuttlefish is clean and ready for cooking, whole or portioned.

  If you find the cleaning operations too complicated, when purchasing, ask your trusted fishmonger to clean the mollusks and to extract the ink sacs [or bladders] whole.

  

• The ink sac can be stored but not frozen on its own because it tends to aggregate into crystals.

  Solution
  Freeze the cuttlefish ink directly in the tomato sauce.

  Pour the tomato sauce into a bowl or a freezer container.
  Gently pinch the ink sac and let the contents fall into the tomato sauce, stir and put it in the freezer.

  Your cuttlefish ink frozen in tomato sauce is ready.

  Just thaw it before use and complete the preparation with the cuttlefish.

• Cuttlefish ink sauce is prepared by thawing the cuttlefish ink in the tomato sauce and adding the cuttlefish.

  Thaw cuttlefish ink and tomato by moving it to the refrigerator the night before.

  The cuttlefish can be those frozen together with the ink or different cuttlefish.
  Wash the cuttlefish under running water.
  Pat dry with kitchen paper.
  Cut the bodies and tentacles into chunks.

  In a pan briefly heat:
  – garlic powder;
  and deglaze with a shot of white wine (about 1.5 fl oz).
  Add the cuttlefish, including eggs and milt, to the pan and brown for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  Add a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper.
  Add the cuttlefish ink and tomato.
  Stir well to combine.
  Cover with a lid [preferably glass], bring to a boil, lower the heat and cook for a few minutes until the sauce reduces as needed.

  Your cuttlefish ink sauce is ready to dress the pasta.

  Enjoy your meal!

  Note
  Obviously, by diluting the cuttlefish ink in the tomato sauce the color may appear more red and less black but the flavor remains equally intense.