Name: Pasta con le Sarde (Sicilian Pasta with Sardines)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 400 g bucatini or spaghetti; 500 g fresh sardines, filleted; 1 bunch wild fennel; 1 onion, finely chopped; 50 g pine nuts; 50 g raisins, soaked in warm water; 4 anchovy fillets; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 80 g toasted coarse breadcrumbs (muddica); 80 ml olive oil, salt

Instructions

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1Simmer the fennel in salted water 10 minutes; chop it and keep the water to cook the pasta.

2Soften the onion in olive oil; add the anchovies and stir until they melt, 2 minutes.

3Add the tomato paste, pine nuts, drained raisins and chopped fennel; cook 5 minutes into a thick sauce.

4Add the sardine fillets and break them gently into the sauce; cook 2–3 minutes only.

5Boil the bucatini in the fennel water until al dente; reserve a cup of the water.

6Toss the pasta with the sauce and a splash of pasta water over heat, 1 minute.

7Serve with a generous layer of toasted breadcrumbs on top — the sweet-salt crunch that defines the dish.

Pasta con le Sarde (Sicilian Pasta with Sardines)

Ingredients

Instructions

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