Stanley Tucci Recalls Dinner with Harry Styles When He Made This Cod Recipe and They Talked 'About Books and Love'

Whether he’s cooking for his family or celebrity friends, Stanley Tucci regularly turns to this cod recipe.

In his new book, the Oscar nominee presents cod alla Livornese, a fish dish cooked in tomatoes, olives and capers. What I ate in one year. (He also shares it with PEOPLE below.) In his memoir, he wrote about eating it on several occasions, including serving it to Harry Styles one night in September.

Tucci remembers the British singer cycling to dinner at Tucci’s house in London with his wife, Felicity Blunt. Long time no see, Tucci wrote. It was “just the three of us”.

Styles has wrapped up his sold-out tour and “took a well-deserved break,” Tucci wrote.

Harry Styles and Stanley Tucci in 2023. Samir Hussein/WireImage

To accommodate the Grammy Award winner’s pescatarian diet, Tucci created a “easy-to-make” leek and zucchini risotto, carrot salad and tomato fish dish.

Tucci recalled that the group “drank tequila and wine, and Harry brought one of the best single malt whiskeys I’ve ever tasted.” The conversation was different, according to the father of five. “We talked a lot about books and love. Harry is a voracious reader,” Tucci wrote. “He is a considerate and kind guy.”

Tucci’s cod dish was years in the making.

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“I first had cod alla Livornese in a little restaurant in Little Italy in New York about 40 years ago, and it was perfect. I’ve been trying to match it ever since,” The devil wears Prada the actor tells PEOPLE.

“It’s delicate, it covers a lot of bases in terms of flavor, it’s very healthy and it’s easy to make,” he adds. But if you’re looking for shortcuts to make it even easier, she suggests looking in the freezer and cupboard.

“Fresh is always better, but you can absolutely use thawed frozen fish,” says Tucci. “You can also use whole canned tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes.”

Cod with tomatoes, olives and capers by Stanley Tucci.

Greg Dupree

Cod with tomatoes, olives and capers by Stanley Tucci

4 (6 oz.) skinless cod fillets

1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for topping

1 small head of yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, halved

18 small cherry tomatoes or pomodorini, chopped

6 leaves of fresh basil, torn

1½ cups of dry white wine

12 black or green olives (or a mixture of both)

1½ tablespoons of capers, rinse

1. Lightly season the cod with ½ teaspoon of salt; put aside.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring often, until tender, about 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes, basil and the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes break down and a thick sauce forms, 4 to 5 minutes.

3. Increase heat to medium; add wine and return to high heat. Cook, stirring constantly, to burn off some of the alcohol, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium; add olives and capers. Add the cod to the center of the pan, spooning the tomato mixture over the fillets. Cover and cook until fish is opaque and warm in the center, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat. Spoon the sauce over the cod. Drizzle with olive oil; serve immediately.

Serves: 4 Active time: 25 minutes Total time: 35 minutes

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Source: HIS Education