Sarde a beccafico

Sarde a beccafico is a traditional Sicilian dish that combines flavors of the sea with those of the land in a delicious union. Here’s how to prepare them the Italian way:

Ingredients

• 500 g fresh sardines
• Breadcrumbs
• Raisins
• Pine nuts
• Chopped parsley
• Lemon juice
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Bay leaves

The quantity of breadcrumbs, raisins, pine nuts, and parsley can vary according to taste. Generally, about 100 g of breadcrumbs, and a handful each for raisins and pine nuts is used.

Preparation

1. Clean the sardines by gutting them and removing their central bone, opening them like a book and keeping the two halves attached.
2. Prepare the stuffing by mixing in a bowl the breadcrumbs, raisins previously soaked in warm water and squeezed out, pine nuts, chopped parsley, salt, pepper, and a drizzle of oil to obtain a mixture that is not too dry.
3. Place a bit of the stuffing on each sardine, then roll them up starting from the head to the tail.
4. In a baking dish, create a bed with a few bay leaves and arrange the stuffed sardines next to each other with the closure facing down.
5. Drizzle the sardines with lemon juice and a stream of extra virgin olive oil, then lightly salt.
6. Bake the sarde a beccafico in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Serve hot or at room temperature, according to preference.

Trivia

The name “a beccafico” comes from the method of cooking small birds called beccaficos, which were prepared in a similar way with an aromatic stuffing. It is said that beccaficos fed on figs, which made their meat particularly sweet and delicious. Sarde a beccafico is an imitation of this preparation, but using fish readily available in Sicily. The combination of sweet and salty ingredients makes this dish a perfect example of Sicilian cuisine, which often plays with contrasts of flavors.