Real Sepia (Cuttlefish) Ink

[wednesday_mac]

If anyone out there would like to experiment with real sepia (cuttlefish) ink which was used in ancient Rome, it's easy to obtain. This ink is dark brown, almost black. Some say it's lightfast and permanent: other sources say it fades in direct light but I don't know many inks that don't. I don't think it will eat through paper, it's not acidic... is it?

 

Just hie ye down to your local fishmonger's and ask for Sepia Ink or Cuttlefish Ink. They should have it in stock, as it's used in recipes. In the States, the cost is about $5 for 2 sacks of ink.

 

1 part ink to 1000 parts water will give you an opaque ink. Dilute it for a transparent ink that you can layer for darker/lighter effects.

 

Do NOT put this ink into a FP. it's suitable for a dip pen/nib or glass pen only.

[FredRydr]

Just hie ye down to your local fishmonger's and ask for Sepia Ink or Cuttlefish Ink.

Cool!

 

Now, how did someone in landlocked Arizona cotton on to this?

 

Fred

 

[jd50ae]

Just hie ye down to your local fishmonger's and ask for Sepia Ink or Cuttlefish Ink.

Cool!

 

Now, how did someone in landlocked Arizona cotton on to this?

 

Fred

 

What, they don't eat fish in Arizona?

[dcwaites]

When I was a marine technician, we once caught a few extra squid.

They were cut up (open the mantle and flatten it, don't turn it into calimari rings, fried in butter, a little pepper (add salt to taste when finished cooking) with the ink.

Almost as nice as giant clam muscle sliced thin and 'cooked' by soaking in lemon juice for 20 minutes. (We only did this with young clams that we had grown ourselves.)

 

We also had a few 'pet' cuttlefish. These guys are smart! They would recognise us as we went past their tank and come up to the surface to beg for food.

 

Given all the things that must be in cuttlefish ink, are there any better recipes than just diluting it with water? I would think that it would go off fairly quickly. What did the monks do?

 

 

[KingJoe]

We also had a few 'pet' cuttlefish. These guys are smart! They would recognise us as we went past their tank and come up to the surface to beg for food.

 

Rather attractive, too! Especially when they get to changing colors.

 

My birds sure like the leftovers, too!

 

~~King

[BirdValiant]

Do NOT put this ink into a FP. it's suitable for a dip pen/nib or glass pen only.

 

Are quill pens no longer allowed?

[tcheuchter]

Do NOT put this ink into a FP. it's suitable for a dip pen/nib or glass pen only.

Is the advice not to put it into a FP from personal experience? Cheap pen experiment?

 

[Pariah Zero]

What I want to know is what sepia tastes like, given it's used as a food ingredient.

[Chris]

Horrible!

I've tried it, but then I'm not a fan of squid, octopus, cuttlefish or any other mollusc - including any of those with their shells on the outside.

But, to those who do like squiddlies to eat, "skid in your ink" as I saw once on a menu, is delcious if not overcooked.

 

Each to his own,

Chris

[Goodwhiskers]

What I want to know is what sepia tastes like, given it's used as a food ingredient.

Once a few years ago at a Trader Joe's market, I bought a bag of noodles that had squid ink as an ingredient. After I cooked them, they looked purplish-brown. I enjoyed eating them, but I still don't eat them often (only as an occasional treat). The flavor was subtler than I expected. This item wasn't stocked regularly, and I haven't thought about it in a while.

 

Back to using this ink to write with:

I imagine it would impart its aroma to any fountain pen parts that can absorb odors. It's a nice smell if you like to eat molluscs and you're hungry, but not at other moments. If left longer than a day in a fountain pen, it might even rot and stink.