Spaghetti alla Montalbano
Italian cuisine has a thousand resources, but in the first courses we are true masters: declined in the various regional versions, with specialties exported and copied all over the world, the first courses are our flagship, the highlight of the menu, that for which millions of people would really go crazy. They can be based on any ingredient (from meat to fish, from vegetables to fruit), but are mainly made with pasta or rice. But not just any type of pasta or rice: each dish has its own format and must be seasoned appropriately. Of course, some variations on the theme are possible, the dish is tasty all the same, but it doesn't follow the original recipe!
Many first courses are based on fresh pasta, many types of which are regional specialties: we have orecchiette of Apulian derivation, tagliatelle or tortellini, of Emilian tradition, strozzapreti, from the regions of Central Italy and each brings with it a story, that of the region that gave them birth. Often a first course can easily become a single dish, due to the presence of all the nutrients and the abundance of ingredients: this is the case of lasagna alla Bolognese or polenta, often also served as a side dish.
A pasta-based first course is always a guarantee. First of all, it is part of the tradition and is a cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet. Pasta, with its innumerable variations of varieties and recipes, really lends itself to infinite menus. Fresh or dried, egg or whole meal, pasta dishes satisfy young and old. And all the guests. Furthermore, a plate of pasta with vegetables and proteins also becomes a single healthy and quick dish for a last-minute lunch.
You don't always have to spend a lot of time in the kitchen to prepare something delicious and nutritious. Let's see how to proceed to prepare the original recipe of pasta with Sicilian sardines and enhance the flavor of fennel, one of the favorite recipes of the famous Commissioner Montalbano.
Spaghetti with sardines
People 4Ingredients
320 g of spaghetti500 gr sardines 350 g wild fennel320 gr semolina pasta (durum wheat)100g breadcrumbs70g almond grains40 gr raisins 30g pine nuts3 anchovies1 onion1 saffron sachet 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oilsalt to taste
Pasta with sardines or pasta ''cu li Sardi'' is a traditional Sicilian first. The meat of the sardine is quite fatty and therefore it is a must to consume it fresh.
Preparation1) Clean 350 g of wild fennel, boil it in a pot with boiling salted water, drain it with a slotted spoon and keep the cooking water aside.
2) Chop 1 onion and fry it with 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 3 salted anchovies, filleted and desalted. Add 30 g of pine nuts, 40 g of raisins softened in water, drained and squeezed and 1 sachet of saffron dissolved in a ladle of hot water. Remove from heat and set aside.
3) Clean 500 g of fresh sardines, open them like a book and remove the bone, leaving them together on the side of the back. Keep some aside and flavor those left with a drizzle of oil; Drain them and, in the same pan, brown the shredded fennel with the sardines kept aside and dilute them with a fork.
4) Boil 320 g of spaghetti or other durum wheat semolina pasta in the fennel cooking water, drain al dente and season with the pine nut sauce and browned fennel.
5) Transfer everything to a baking dish, add 70 g of ground almonds, 100 g of crumbled and toasted breadcrumbs, pepper and finish with the sardines. Pass the pasta with the sardines in a hot oven for 5 minutes.
So, be careful when buying sardines: the body must be firm, the tail well erect, the skin intact and the gills red.
Italian cuisine has a thousand resources, but in the first courses we are true masters: declined in the various regional versions, with specialties exported and copied all over the world, the first courses are our flagship, the highlight of the menu, that for which millions of people would really go crazy. They can be based on any ingredient (from meat to fish, from vegetables to fruit), but are mainly made with pasta or rice. But not just any type of pasta or rice: each dish has its own format and must be seasoned appropriately. Of course, some variations on the theme are possible, the dish is tasty all the same, but it doesn't follow the original recipe!
Many first courses are based on fresh pasta, many types of which are regional specialties: we have orecchiette of Apulian derivation, tagliatelle or tortellini, of Emilian tradition, strozzapreti, from the regions of Central Italy and each brings with it a story, that of the region that gave them birth. Often a first course can easily become a single dish, due to the presence of all the nutrients and the abundance of ingredients: this is the case of lasagna alla Bolognese or polenta, often also served as a side dish.
A pasta-based first course is always a guarantee. First of all, it is part of the tradition and is a cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet. Pasta, with its innumerable variations of varieties and recipes, really lends itself to infinite menus. Fresh or dried, egg or whole meal, pasta dishes satisfy young and old. And all the guests. Furthermore, a plate of pasta with vegetables and proteins also becomes a single healthy and quick dish for a last-minute lunch.
You don't always have to spend a lot of time in the kitchen to prepare something delicious and nutritious. Let's see how to proceed to prepare the original recipe of pasta with Sicilian sardines and enhance the flavor of fennel, one of the favorite recipes of the famous Commissioner Montalbano.
Spaghetti with sardines
People 4
Ingredients
320 g of spaghetti
500 gr sardines
350 g wild fennel
320 gr semolina pasta (durum wheat)
100g breadcrumbs
70g almond grains
40 gr raisins
30g pine nuts
3 anchovies
1 onion
1 saffron sachet
4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste
Pasta with sardines or pasta ''cu li Sardi'' is a traditional Sicilian first. The meat of the sardine is quite fatty and therefore it is a must to consume it fresh.
Preparation
1) Clean 350 g of wild fennel, boil it in a pot with boiling salted water, drain it with a slotted spoon and keep the cooking water aside.
2) Chop 1 onion and fry it with 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 3 salted anchovies, filleted and desalted. Add 30 g of pine nuts, 40 g of raisins softened in water, drained and squeezed and 1 sachet of saffron dissolved in a ladle of hot water. Remove from heat and set aside.
3) Clean 500 g of fresh sardines, open them like a book and remove the bone, leaving them together on the side of the back. Keep some aside and flavor those left with a drizzle of oil; Drain them and, in the same pan, brown the shredded fennel with the sardines kept aside and dilute them with a fork.
4) Boil 320 g of spaghetti or other durum wheat semolina pasta in the fennel cooking water, drain al dente and season with the pine nut sauce and browned fennel.
5) Transfer everything to a baking dish, add 70 g of ground almonds, 100 g of crumbled and toasted breadcrumbs, pepper and finish with the sardines. Pass the pasta with the sardines in a hot oven for 5 minutes.
So, be careful when buying sardines: the body must be firm, the tail well erect, the skin intact and the gills red.
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