SicilianItalian
Pasta con le Sarde
by Casa Pappagallo · 705K subscribers on YouTube
A traditional Sicilian pasta dish with sardines, wild fennel, raisins, pine nuts, saffron, and crispy breadcrumbs. The flavors of the Mediterranean come together in a quick and aromatic sauce.
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- easy
Ingredients
12 items- Olive OilFor toasting breadcrumbs and sautéing
- BreadcrumbsCrispy breadcrumbs for topping
- OnionFinely chopped
- Fennel FrondsWild fennel, chopped
- Anchovy FilletsAnchovy fillets, to melt into the oil
- Tomato PasteTomato paste
- RaisinsRaisins
- Pine NutsPine nuts
- SaffronSaffron
- SardinesFresh sardines, cleaned, whole or broken
- SpaghettiPasta, cooked al dente
- SaltTo taste, but be cautious due to anchovies
Method
- Toast the breadcrumbs in olive oil until golden and crispy, being careful not to burn them. Set aside.
- Finely chop the onion and wild fennel together.
- In a pan, heat olive oil and sauté the onion and fennel mixture.
- Add the anchovy fillets and let them melt into the oil.
- Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and add wild fennel to infuse flavor. After a few minutes, remove the fennel.
- To the pan, add tomato paste, raisins, and pine nuts. Add a ladle of the fennel-infused water to help dissolve the tomato paste.
- Add the saffron and stir until dissolved.
- Reduce the heat to low and let the flavors meld.
- Season the fennel-infused water with salt and cook the pasta until al dente.
- About 5 minutes before the pasta is done, add the cleaned sardines (whole or broken) to the sauce.
- When the pasta is ready, transfer it directly into the sauce and toss well. If the sauce is too dry, add some more fennel-infused water.
- Serve the pasta topped with the crispy breadcrumbs.
Casa Pappagallo
Home cook705K subscribers on YouTube163.1M total channel viewsCasa Pappagallo, casa nostra! Proprio così, vi apro le porte di casa mia per condividere con tutti voi ricette, i miei esperimenti di produzione agroalimentare e tanto altro.
