Equipment
* optional
Ingredients
Sardines
- 12 fresh whole sardines, gutted and scaled
- 30 ml olive oil
- 5 g sea salt flakes
Salad Base
- 4 little gem lettuce, quartered lengthwise
- 150 g samphire, rinsed and woody ends trimmed
Red Wine Vinaigrette
- 30 ml red wine vinegar
- 90 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 shallot, finely minced
- 5 g dijon mustard
- black pepper
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Prepare the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, combine the minced shallot and red wine vinegar with a pinch of salt. Let stand for 10 minutes to macerate and soften the shallot's bite.
Whisk in the Dijon mustard, then slowly stream in the extra virgin olive oil while whisking constantly to form a stable emulsion. Season with black pepper.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Blanch the samphire for 30 seconds, then immediately drain and plunge into ice water. Drain thoroughly and pat dry. This retains the crunch while removing excess salinity.
Preheat your grill or grill pan to high heat (approx. 230°C/450°F). Pat the sardines thoroughly dry with paper towels—moisture is the enemy of crisp skin.
Brush the sardines generously with olive oil and season with sea salt. Place on the hot grill. Grill for 2-3 minutes per side until the skin is blistered and charred, and the flesh pulls away easily from the bone.
In a large bowl, toss the quartered gem lettuce and blanched samphire with two-thirds of the vinaigrette.
Arrange the salad on a platter. Top with the hot grilled sardines. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the warm fish. Serve immediately.
Chef's Notes
- Samphire is naturally very salty (it is a sea vegetable). Taste your ingredients before adding any extra salt to the salad or dressing.
- When buying sardines, look for bright, clear eyes and shiny skin. If the eyes are cloudy, the fish is not fresh.
- Small sardine bones are generally soft enough to eat after grilling, but the central spine can be lifted out easily once cooked if preferred.
- If using a charcoal grill, adding a few fennel fronds to the coals just before cooking adds a beautiful anise smoke that complements the fish.
Storage
Refrigerator: 1 day — Leftover fish is best eaten cold; reheating dries out the flesh.
Reheating: Not recommended
