Palermo-Style Pasta con le Sarde

⏱ 45 min · Serves 4

Sicily on a plate: fresh sardines melting into a sweet-savoury tangle of wild fennel, saffron, plump sultanas and pine nuts, all clinging to bucatini and finished with toasted breadcrumbs. Salty, sweet, herby and utterly addictive.

Per serving: 790 kcal · 38.0g protein · 92.0g carbs · 30.0g fat

Ingredients

• 400g bucatini or perciatelli
• 400g fresh sardines, filleted and boned (about 8-10 fish)
• 1 large fennel bulb with fronds (or 100g wild fennel tops)
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 6 anchovy fillets in oil
• 50g sultanas, soaked in warm water 10 min
• 40g pine nuts
• 1 good pinch saffron threads, soaked in 3 tbsp warm water
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 80g coarse breadcrumbs
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 lemon, to serve

Method

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to the boil. Trim the fennel, reserving all fronds. Boil the fronds (or wild fennel) for 5 minutes, scoop out, squeeze dry and chop finely. Keep the fennel-scented water for the pasta.
2. Finely chop the fennel bulb. Toast the breadcrumbs in 2 tbsp olive oil in a dry frying pan over medium heat until deep golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Tip onto a plate and season lightly.
3. Heat 4 tbsp olive oil in a wide pan. Soften the onion and chopped fennel bulb gently for 10 minutes until sweet and translucent.
4. Add the anchovies and stir until they dissolve. Stir in the tomato purée, pine nuts, drained sultanas, chopped fennel fronds and the saffron with its soaking water. Cook 2 minutes.
5. Cut half the sardines into rough pieces and stir into the pan; let them break down into the sauce over 5 minutes. Season with pepper.
6. Lay the remaining sardine fillets on top, cover and cook gently 4 minutes so they steam and stay in pieces. Loosen with a ladle of the fennel water if dry.
7. Cook the bucatini in the fennel water until al dente. Drain, reserving a mugful of water.
8. Toss the pasta through the sauce with a splash of cooking water, being careful not to smash the whole fillets. Serve topped with the toasted breadcrumbs and a squeeze of lemon.