Pasta with Swordfish, Zucchini Flowers, and Bottarga

Here is a recipe for a delicious pasta with swordfish, zucchini flowers, and bottarga, which combines flavors of the sea and the land in a tasty and refined balance. It is a colorful and flavorful dish that brings the taste of Mediterranean Italian cuisine to the table.

Ingredients

• 320 g of pasta (like linguine or spaghetti)
• 200 g of fresh swordfish
• 8 zucchini flowers
• 40 g of mullet bottarga
• 1 clove of garlic
• Extra virgin olive oil (to taste)
• Salt and black pepper (to taste)
• A sprig of fresh parsley
• Lemon juice (optional, to marinate the swordfish)

Preparation

1. Start by cutting the swordfish into cubes and, if you like, marinate it for a few minutes with some lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
2. Clean the zucchini flowers, removing the inner stamens, and cut them into strips.
3. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, where you will cook the pasta al dente, following the time indicated on the package.
4. In the meantime, warm a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil with a clove of garlic in a frying pan. Add the swordfish cubes and sauté them briefly over high heat.
5. Remove the garlic clove and add the zucchini flowers to the pan with the swordfish. Sauté everything together for a couple of minutes.
6. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and toss it in the pan with the swordfish and zucchini flowers. Toss it with the other ingredients to blend the flavors.
7. Plate the pasta and finish each serving with a generous grating of mullet bottarga.
8. Add a raw drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkling of chopped parsley, and, if desired, a pinch of freshly ground black pepper.

Curiosity

Swordfish is highly prized in the regions of Southern Italy, especially in Sicily where it is fished and cooked in various ways. The zucchini flowers add a note of delicacy and color to the dish. Bottarga, a cured fish roe sausage that is salted and dried, is a typical product of Sardinia, but also popular in other Italian coastal regions such as Sicily. It is appreciated for its intense sea flavor which helps to enhance the flavors of mainly fish-based dishes.