Courtsey of Epicurious.com
SICILIAN-STYLE PASTA WITH SARDINES
Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 45 min
1 large fennel bulb (sometimes called anise; 1 1/4 lb), any fronds chopped and stalks trimmed flush with bulb and discarded
1/8 teaspoon crumbled saffron threads
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, crushed
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 (3 3/4- to 4 3/8-oz) cans sardines in oil, drained
1 lb perciatelli or spaghetti
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/3 cup dry bread crumbs, toasted and tossed with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil and salt to taste
Finely chop fennel bulb. Combine saffron, raisins, and wine in a bowl.
Cook onion, fennel bulb, and seeds in oil with salt to taste in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until fennel is tender, about 15 minutes.
Add wine mixture and half of sardines, breaking sardines up with a fork, and simmer 1 minute.
While sauce is cooking, cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente, then drain in a colander.
Toss hot pasta in a bowl with fennel sauce, remaining sardines, fennel fronds, pine nuts, and salt and pepper to taste. Add bread crumbs and toss again.
Makes 4 main-course servings.
Gourmet
March 2002
The Last Touch
These are cooks comments
Ronnie & Tracy (
[email protected] ) from Cambridge, MA on 03/01/03
This recipe was a pleasant suprise! I used fresh sardines instead of canned, and sauteed them in bread crumbs beforehand as the base for the sauce. Before being fully cooked, I removed them, separated the meat to re-add to the pan later. Also--let the sauce go longer than 15 minutes to further develop the complexity of the sauce. I let it go more like 25. I also highly recommend using three cloves of garlic and some fresh ground dried red chili, and included capers in the final toos.
A Cook from Sydney Aussie on 08/02/02
This is a REAL Siciian recipe you wont find in any restaurants. Haven't had it since I was about 11 years old when my Gran made it. Pasta Fenocchia (or something like that). I used Sardines in spring water (less heavy) and mashed the whole lot up. I added a bit of cayenne. I also thought maybe a squeeze of lemon before serving might lift it. A very exotic and yummy dish
A Cook from Austin, TX on 07/31/02
I have to admit I doctored this up a bit. I cooked fresh tomatoes with the onion and fennel, skipped the wine/saffron/raisin mix, and added parsley, red pepper flakes and garlic. I tossed the sauce with gemelli pasta and enjoyed it!
A Cook from London, UK on 03/19/02
I thought this was a wonderful combination of flavors. I thought the amount of sardines was just right. You have to mash them up good. I used spaghetti, but i didn't think the sauce coated the pasta well so next time i'd use a different type of pasta perhaps a shell that would collect all the good bits in it.
A Cook from Philadelphia, PA on 03/04/02
This dish received mixed reviews. The fishy flavor was a little overwhelming with all those sardines, but the fennel/raisin/saffron combination was interesting.
