Sardine

Sardines are small and abundant and have a short life cycle, making them one of the most sustainable fish out there. They’re low in mercury and other toxins that build up in larger fish. Plus, the method used to fish them produces very little bycatch and has minimal environmental impact. Best of all, they are quick-cooking, versatile, and tasty! They can hold up to the bold flavors of the accompanying sauce. This is finger food at its best, perfect for outdoor cooking—and eating. If you have any seasoned fruit wood or grapevines, add to the coals or use to build the fire—the flavor will take you directly to the Mediterranean. If it’s not grilling season, you can make this indoors in a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet instead.

If beautifully fresh sardines are not available, substitute mackerel, fresh anchovies, or thinly sliced tuna.

Sardines are not sold fresh as often as they might—or should—be. But when they are, and they’re in good shape (make sure they don’t look tired and old), they’re worth grabbing. Fresh anchovies or smelts make a good substitute, again as long as they’re gleaming. All of these little fish may be sold gutted, but if yours are whole, simply make a slit along the belly of each and, under running water, run your finger along the inside cavity to remove the innards. (You can eat them with their guts too, as many Europeans do; they’re delicious that way.) Though I usually “grill” these in the broiler, they can also be cooked over a fire, using a fish basket, just until browned on each side. You can also fry sardines; treat them as you would Fritto Misto (page 94), and serve them with any light tomato sauce, like Fast, Fresh Tomato Sauce (page 606).

In Sweden these little fish “sandwiches” are made with Baltic herring, but you can make them with any small fish from which you can remove the backbone, such as smelts, anchovies, and sardines (the names of all of these fish are confused anyway—many true herring and anchovies are called sardines and vice versa). To bone these fish, grasp the head and pull straight down; most of the innards will come out along with it; use your thumb to open the fish up from the front, then grasp the backbone and remove. You’ll be left with two tiny fillets joined by the skin. Plan to make eight of these—four sandwiches—for each serving if you make them as a main course.

This is a recipe from the Sardine Factory in Monterey, California. My longtime friends Ted Balestreri and Chef Bert Cutino smoke fresh sardines for this dish, but smoked canned sardines are delicious as well. However, I enjoy regular canned sardines packed in olive oil in this dish as well.

Fried fish steeped in saor, a tangy marinade of onions and vinegar, is enjoyed in all the regions around the northern Adriatic, in the Veneto, Friuli, and Istria. Many fish are suitable for this preparation, including mackerel, monkfish, young trout, even fillet of sole, but I especially love fresh sardines. When I was young and we had fried sardines for dinner, the leftover fried fish went into a crock of saor. It would keep for days and become even more delicious. With this recipe, you can assemble the dish and serve the sardines a few hours later. But if you let them marinate (in the refrigerator) for 1, 2, or even 3 days, the results will be worth the wait.

This is a dish to transport you to the Italian Riviera—the freshest sardines, simply grilled, splashed with lemon, briny olives, and the sweet anise flavor of the season’s first fennel. This is also finger food, so get out a big stack of napkins and don’t eat them with those who are excessively dainty. They don’t deserve them anyway. It would play into the whole relaxed-by-the-sea thing if you have your fishmonger scale and clean the sardines.

If you were Venetian, and therefore Catholic, and were forbidden to eat meat on Fridays, you might choose instead a delicious whole wheat pasta tossed with rich sardines and fennel for your supper. Aren’t you lucky, then, that even if you are a Swedish Lutheran, you can happily take part in this lovely ritual? Bigoli is yummy fresh, but it can also be found dried in Italian markets. Although you could substitute other types of pasta, the depth of flavor of the whole wheat really holds up to the intensity of the fish.

If you simply can’t get past the idea that sardines are oily and fishy, let this crudo change your mind. The key to this dish is using sweet celery hearts—the tender, yellow, innermost bits of the head. You might think of this as the part of the celery that goes in the compost pile, but the truth is that the small yellow leaves have incredible flavor, and the pale stalks add texture without strings. As with all crudos, use your very best olive oil.

When my Catalan friend Pep made me fideos, the Spanish dish that’s much like a paella but with pasta instead of rice, the first thing I thought was: delicious. The second: What a great thing to make for one. You don’t have to boil the pasta, the whole dish can be made in a single skillet, and you can scale it down easily. I like to make it with sardines because they last so long in my cupboard or refrigerator, they’re considered one of the more eco-friendly fish in the world, and they give the pasta a salty, funky taste I love. This makes a hearty meal for one, but you can easily stretch it to serve two with a salad or another vegetable and bread on the side.

The notion of canned sardines in pastry may seem distasteful, but millions of Southeast Asians consider karipap sardin to be delightful soul food. Any fishy intensity is mitigated by a simple combination of supporting ingredients, including ketchup, lime, and fresh chile. Chopped hard-cooked egg adds richness to this quintessential curry puff filling. For small cans of sardines (5 1/2 ounces, which is about the size of a regular can of tomato paste), head to a Chinese, Southeast Asian, or Latino market. Many Asian cooks prefer Ligo brand. Canned sardines sold at supermarkets come in larger portions, so just use part of the can. This filling is also good on toast.

An open-faced sandwich that cries out for a glass of cold lemonade or beer.

The point of a fritto misto is to enjoy the flavors and textures of a variety of fish. You can vary the roster of fish according to what is in the market and increase or decrease the amount according to the number of guests you’re cooking for.

I love this prepared in individual baking dishes, as described in the note below. But I know most people don’t have six such dishes, so I’m offering the recipe prepared in a single large baking dish—I don’t want you to miss out on the wonderful flavor of fresh anchovies just because you don’t have small baking dishes. If you serve the anchovies from a large round dish, cut them into wedges, like a cake. Don’t be alarmed if the “slices” crumble a little; that is the nature of the dish. You can easily prepare this recipe for two people: decrease the amount of anchovies by two-thirds to 1/2 pound, but cut the remaining ingredients in half.

This is quite a lot of work, as fishmongers don’t usually bother to scale sardines, but it makes a very tasty mezze.

This hors d’oeuvre is straight from the tapas bars of southern Spain. A few of these with a glass of sangría and I’m in heaven. It’s important to have your local fish guy fillet the sardines for you and save yourself the hassle. Spanish paprika is truly an underrated spice—it has a very satisfying smoky flavor that intensifies the taste of the roasted peppers. I have been experimenting with it in everything lately because I love its depth.

I'm a huge fan of small fish such as anchovies, baiting, and, of course, sardines. Unfortunately, when many Americans think of sardines, they picture tiny fish drowned in oil, or some other saucy mixture, packed side by side in a small, flat can. But fresh sardines are a wonderful fish, nothing like their canned counterparts. Typically 5 to 6 inches in length, their flesh has a quite delicate flavor. If you can find them, sardines imported from Portugal have the best flavor. Because of their small size, it is easiest to leave on the skin of sardines—it also imparts a great flavor. That said, remember that it is extremely important to wash the sardines very well, rinsing off all their scales under cold water. Scoring the skin will allow the fish to more easily soak up the flavorful marinade. Don't marinade the sardines for any longer than 2 hours or they will become mushy and pasty. Just enjoy them as soon as they're done marinating, with a silky dollop of crème fraîche or sour cream.

Fresh sardines are widely available in California, but can be more difficult to find in the rest of the country. If fresh sardines are not available in your area, you can make a terrific spread with canned sardines.