'PASTA CHI SARDI' Pasta recipe coming from Palermo province, made with fresh sardines, pine nuts and wild fennel. Across the region it is possible to find several variations to this recipe; for example, in Catania province fresh anchovies are used instead of sardines, but it is always fresh green fish from our sea to be used. It is the same for the wild fennel, that can be easily found in Sicilian countryside from March to September.
The origin of the recipe: This recipe is the result of the crossing between the Sicilian and the Arabic traditions; it seems that an Arab General during the invasion of Sicily, struggling with feeding his army asked a chef for help. This Chef, mixing elements of the Arabic cooking art as raisin and saffron with local ingredients as sardines and wild fennel, created a colourful and tasty recipe, passed down from housewives from one generation to another up to nowadays.
Fresh sardines and wild fennel are often difficult to find out of Sicily, but if with a bit of luck and commitment you manage to find them, you will create for sure a great dish!
500 gr of bucatini pasta; 600 gr of fresh sardines; 800 gr of wild fennel; 50 gr of raisin; 50 gr of pea nuts; 1 saffron bag; 1 or 2 onions; 3 salted anchovies (or 100 gr of anchovies fillets in oil); bread crumbs, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.
Wash the wild fennel, remove the harder stalks and boil in abundant salted water; drain accurately, chop the fennel up and keep aside the cooking water.
Fry up the sliced onion in a pan and add the anchovies reducing them to a mush.
Clean the sardines, remove head and tail, open them and bone them. Chop them up and fry them in the pan together with the onions and anchovies. Add the fennel, add salt and simmer for approximately 10 minutes. Add raisin, pine nuts and saffron.
Cook pasta in the cooking water previously used for fennel; drain the pasta ‘al dente’ and add to the dressing, mixing it well. Sprinkle toasted bread crumbs all over pasta and let it rest for approximately 10 minutes before serving.
Wine pairings: Etna Bianco DOC, as Carricante IGT Planeta , Archineri DOC Pietradolce or Etna DOC Graci
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