Stuffed Sardine Rolls
When I bought these sardines the price each was £0.22 (0.33 $) and they were quite chunky fish too. I said to the fishmonger: "My meal is going to be cheaper than a cup of coffee!". He grinned but said nothing, it was not remotely interested, it was Monday morning you understand.
He took that for granted but I felt good to buy something so cheap and so good for you. My children are fond of sardines as they often have them in Italy.
They looked beautiful, really fresh; in fact they were caught just a few hours earlier. And that is the fish you want to eat.
I decided to clean the sardines and butterfly them myself to get some practice as I often buy them already cleaned to save time. Obviously if you can get your fishmonger to do it for you that's great, you can save time. If not I have put together a little tutorial which I hope can help.
I have stuffed the sardines, rolled them up and cooked them in the oven. If you cannot find sardines, sprats would be a good alternative.
This is a tasty dish which can make a good starter or if you serve it with cous-cous or rice and salad it can be a very tasty and nutritious meal.
- Prep Time : 25 minutes
- Cook Time : 15 minutes
Ingredients
- fresh sardines or sprats - 16
- parsley - a small bunch
- garlic - 1 clove
- breadcrumbs - 2 tbsp + extra to sprinkle
- egg - 1
- olive oil
- grated parmesan cheese - 2 tbsp
- salt and pepper
- capers - 1 tbsp
- bay leaves - 16
- lemon - 1
Instructions
Clean and gut your sardines, remove the head and butterfly them. Here is how:
-Remove the head by slicing down behind each of its gills with a sharp knife.
-With a pair of scissors or a knife, cut along the belly from head to tail. Remove the guts. Rinse the belly of the fish under the tap.
-Press the fish down firmly with your thumb all the way along to the tail, flattening it down onto the board.
-Lift the backbone away from the flesh
-Remove any fine bones with some tweezers and with a knife neat the edges too.
If your sardines are big you might want to slice the fillets into two.
Wash and chop the parsley with the garlic and the capers. Put them in a bowl, add the egg, the Parmesan cheese, two tbsp of breadcrumbs, 2 tbsp of olive oil salt and pepper and mix well. The mixture should be moist, if not add a little water to it.
Spread some mixture on each butterflied sardine pressing well.
Roll them up.
Seal with a toothpick and a bay leaf.
Place them on a oiled baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, lemon juice and sprinkle with breadcrumbs; bake at 180C or 356F for 15 minutes or until they look slightly golden in colour.
Serve with salad, couscous or rice.
I am entering this to "Cooking with Herbs" hosted by Karen.
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Ooh, stuffed sardines or anchovies are a firm favourite here. Our traditional filling is identical except for capers which we don’t include. The filled sardines (not rolled up) are then fried in olive oil until golden – heavenly but calorific! I’m definitely going to try this oven-baked version. Ciao!
Dear Alida, This sounds wonderful!!! I would enjoy this recipe. xo Catherine
Dear Alida,
A wonderful and healthy dish. I eat sardines, but not a favorite but I will eat them. I love your filling, all the flavor…My parents love sardines so I will share this recipe with my mom. Easy to prepare especially if the fishmonger filets them. That is a great price and they do look so pretty all rolled up with the bay leaves. I have to try this…Thanks for sharing…dear friend. Have a wonderful rest of the week..keep warm..
Dottie 🙂
Thank you Dottie!
can
not wait to try, they look sooooooooooooooo good
Thank you Rosemary!
Adoro il pesce azzurro, lo consumo spesso, fa bene alla salute ed è molto gustoso, senza tener conto del costo economico. Il tuo piatto di sardine è molto invitante, mi piace molto! Un abbraccio!
Sounds wonderful, must try! Have eaten many sardines in my life, but never stuffed. They look so pretty and yummie!!! Thanks for sharing. From Italy lots of love!
Thank you Carla. I had a look at your website, it looks beautiful where you are and I love your farm.
Well done for growing organic fruit and vegetables. I am passionate about organic food, I wish we were living nearer! I would buy all your products 🙂
I have never had a stuffed sardine roll…they are so fresh and delicious, Alida.
I haven’t had stuffed sardines in years, Alida. My father use to make them the same exact way but never with the bay leaf. What an aromatic idea! You are so fortunate to be able to get fresh sardines. We rarely get them here. I must keep a keen eye for them. Thanks for the refresher on preparing them. I use to clean sardines all the time when I was a child. However, it has been a while:)
Thank you so much for sharing, Alida…
Mmm.. tuna stuffed tomatoes sound great! I love any type of fish 😉