Pasta con le Sarde (Sicilian Sardine, Fennel and Pine Nut Pasta)

Sardines are one of the few ingredients that feel like a straight line between my two grandmothers’ worlds and this one. We grew up grilling them whole over charcoal the Portuguese way, and it was not until years later, reading about Sicily, that I realized an entire other Mediterranean tradition had built a completely different, equally beloved dish around the very same little fish.

Pasta con le sarde is a Palermo classic: fresh sardines cooked down with wild fennel, pine nuts, and golden raisins, brightened with a pinch of saffron, and tossed with pasta that has been cooked in the same fennel-scented water. Toasted breadcrumbs stand in for cheese here, which is unusual for Italian pasta but exactly right with fish.

If wild fennel fronds are not in your grocery store’s rotation, they rarely are here, a regular fennel bulb plus a handful of fresh dill gets you most of the way there, and good tinned sardines are a genuinely respectable substitute for fresh. If you love what sardines can do in a dish, do not miss our own Sardinhas Assadas (recipe on the site) for the completely different, charcoal-smoky side of the same fish.

Pasta con le Sarde Recipe

Prep time: 25 minutes · Cook time: 35 minutes · Total: 1 hour · Servings: 4 · Calories: ~560 per serving

Ingredients

• 1 large or 2 small wild fennel bulbs with fronds, or 1 fennel bulb plus 1 cup fresh dill (see Notes)
• 1/3 cup olive oil, plus more for serving
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 lb fresh sardines, cleaned, butterflied and boned, or 2 cans (4.4 oz each) good-quality sardines in olive oil (see Notes)
• 2 anchovy fillets
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 1/3 cup golden raisins, soaked in warm water 10 minutes and drained
• Pinch of saffron threads, steeped in 2 tbsp warm water
• 1 lb bucatini or spaghetti
• 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs, toasted golden in a dry pan
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Trim the fennel and reserve the fronds. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, blanch the fennel bulb (and dill if using) 5 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon and chop finely, reserving the cooking water for the pasta.
2. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat, saute the onion until soft, then add the anchovy fillets and mash them into the oil until dissolved.
3. Add half the sardines, breaking them up as they cook, 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Stir in the chopped fennel, pine nuts, drained raisins, and saffron water. Season with salt and pepper and simmer gently 10 minutes, adding a splash of the reserved fennel water if it looks dry.
5. Cook the pasta in the reserved fennel-scented water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain.
6. Toss the pasta with the sauce, adding pasta water as needed to loosen, then gently fold in the remaining whole or halved sardines so they stay somewhat intact.
7. Divide among plates and top generously with the toasted breadcrumbs, the traditional stand-in for cheese with fish pasta, and a drizzle of olive oil.
8. Serve right away while the breadcrumbs are still crisp.

Recipe Notes

• Wild fennel fronds are the real backbone of this dish in Sicily; if you cannot find them, a bulb of regular fennel plus a good handful of fresh dill approximates that anise-and-herb flavor.
• Fresh sardines can be special-ordered from a fishmonger or found frozen at Asian or Italian markets; good tinned sardines in olive oil, skin and bones removed if you prefer, are a genuinely respectable substitute and what many Sicilian families use today.
• Never grate cheese over this dish. The toasted breadcrumbs, sometimes called poor man’s cheese, are tradition, and they add the textural crunch cheese would otherwise provide.
• The sauce, without the pasta, can be made a day ahead and gently reheated before tossing with freshly cooked pasta.