Pasta con le sarde

How it is made

Quantities are for 6 people. The steps are in the order you do them.

1. clean the fresh sardines by removing the head, the tail and the backbone, then wash and dry them
2. soak the sultanas in warm water
3. cut the fennel, removing only the tough parts of the stalks, and boil it in plenty of salted water for about twenty minutes
4. lift it out with a slotted spoon and keep the water, because you will cook the pasta in it; then chop it finely
5. slice the onion into strips and fry it gently in a pan with plenty of oil
6. add the salted sardines, cleaned of salt and bones, and let them melt into the onion
7. add the fennel, half of the fresh sardines, the pine nuts and the squeezed sultanas, season with salt and pepper and cook over a low heat for a quarter of an hour, stirring
8. in another pan fry the remaining fresh sardines in a little oil and salt them
9. cook the bucatini in the fennel water, drain them al dente and mix them with the sauce
10. put the fried sardines on top, leave to rest for a few minutes and serve, with the toasted breadcrumbs if you like