Sardine Ripiene Alla Pugliese

Sardine Ripiene Alla Pugliese

A classic Pugliese dish of butterflied sardines stuffed with a savory egg, cheese, and parsley filling, baked until golden and juicy.

Prep

20 min

Cook

20 min

Total

40 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •12 whole fresh sardines, butterflied, heads and bones removed (ask your fishmonger or do it yourself)
• •40 g (1½ oz) breadcrumbs, dry, fine
• •40 g (1½ oz) Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
• •2 whole large eggs, lightly beaten
• •2 cloves garlic, minced
• •20 g (¾ oz) fresh parsley, finely chopped
• •3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for greasing
• •1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed, plus lemon wedges for serving
• •0 to taste (to taste) salt and black pepper
• •0 optional (optional) chili flakes, a pinch, for heat

Steps

1. 1 Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Grease a baking dish with a little olive oil.
2. 2 Prepare the sardines: if not already butterflied, remove heads, gut, and carefully open each fish flat, removing the backbone. Rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
3. 3 Make the stuffing: in a bowl, combine breadcrumbs, grated cheese, minced garlic, chopped parsley, beaten eggs, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Mix until well combined; the mixture should be moist but hold together.
4. 4 Lay the sardines skin-side down on a work surface. Place a heaped teaspoon of stuffing on each fillet, then roll up from head to tail (or fold in half) and secure with a toothpick.
5. 5 Arrange the stuffed sardines in the prepared baking dish. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the lemon juice.
6. 6 Bake for 15–20 minutes, until the stuffing is golden and the fish is cooked through. To test doneness, insert a fork into the thickest part of a sardine; the flesh should flake easily and be opaque (internal temperature should reach at least 63°C / 145°F).
7. 7 Serve immediately, hot, with extra lemon wedges on the side.