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Sicilian Stuffed Sardines (Sarde a Beccafico)

This simple Italian dish speaks to the Sicily region’s Moorish history and wild landscape. This recipe from The Cook Up with Adam Liaw shows off how to bring a simple sardine to life in a beautiful dish.

Recipe by: The Cook Up with Adam Liaw

Sicilian Stuffed Sardines (Sarde a Beccafico)

Ingredients

  • 100 g breadcrumbs
  • 1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped
  • 2 oranges, (zest 2 oranges, juice ½ an orange, slice remaining 1 ½ oranges)
  • 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
  • 50 g pine nuts
  • 50 g raisins, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes
  • pinch saffron, soaking in 1 tbsp warm water
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 wild fennel (or use small regular), sliced with fronds reserved
  • 16 butterflied sardine fillets
  • 16 bay leaves
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • toothpicks, soaked in water for 30 minutes

Directions

  1. 01

    Pre-heat oven to 180˚C. Drain raisins and chop in half.

  2. 02

    Add breadcrumbs, parsley, orange zest and garlic in a food processor. Blitz until combined. Tip contents into a bowl and stir through pine nuts, raisins, saffron, salt and pepper. Mix through orange juice.

  3. 03

    Arrange fennel in a layer at the bottom of baking dish and drizzle with olive oil.

  4. 04

    Lay sardine fillets skin side down and add a teaspoon of breadcrumb mixture to the top. Roll up and secure with a toothpick, making sure the tail sticks out and adding more mixture into the sides so they’re nice and full.

  5. 05

    Arrange stuffed sardines over fennel. Scatter remaining breadcrumb mixture over the top, intersperse with orange slices and bay leaves, drizzle with olive oil and season.

  6. 06

    Bake for 15 minutes or until the sardines are cooked and the crumbs begins to turn golden.

  7. 07

    To serve, garnish with fennel fronds.