Sicily
Pasta con le Sarde
Pasta con le Sarde, 3 ways
A Sicilian seafood pasta combining fresh sardines, fennel, raisins, pine nuts and saffron. Toasted breadcrumbs on top stand in for cheese as the "poor man's cheese." The forks are whether saffron and white wine are used, and whether the fennel's cooking water is used directly as the pasta water.
Official videos by Tomomi Ogura
A representative video and official arrangements with different ingredients or pasta. Check the original videos for the method.
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Vincenzo's PlateItalian-born, Sydney-based YouTube channel Source verified
Colored with tomato paste; breadcrumbs toasted separately and finished on top
- Toasts the breadcrumbs entirely separately from the sauce, sprinkling them on only at the very end -- a two-layer construction
- Steeps the saffron in water a full day ahead as an advance-prep step
- Adds tomato paste for color and savoriness -- a move not seen in the other schools
References: [1]
Pasta GrammarA husband-and-wife channel: Eva, from Calabria, Italy, and Harper, from the US Source verified
No wine, no tomato -- a stripped-down version; pasta is finished right in the sauce
- Presents 'Pasta con le Sarde a Mare,' a sardine-free variant, and spells out its changes (saffron added directly without dissolving in water, 4 anchovy fillets, 15g tomato paste and 120ml white wine added)
- Pulls the pasta early and finishes cooking it directly in the sauce
- Adds the pine nuts raw, cooking them in the sauce rather than toasting them first (unlike the other schools)
- A stripped-down construction that uses no garlic, tomato, or wine
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In the chef’s words
- The name of this alternate recipe means something along the lines of "pasta with sardines still in the sea." It uses the same basic technique and ingredients as the original (with a few small but important tweaks) but omits the sardines entirely. source
- Cook as directed, but for 2 to 3 minutes less than the recommended "al dente" cook time. source
References: [1]
Source is a recipe page (no video)
Serious Eats (Daniel Gritzer)US food media outlet; recipe by Editorial Director Daniel Gritzer Source verified
White wine warms the raisins and saffron; fennel seed goes into the breadcrumbs too
- Warms the raisins and saffron in white wine to draw out their flavor -- the only one of the three schools to use wine
- Adds ground fennel seed into the toasted breadcrumbs, a double use of fennel
- Garnishes the finished dish with whole, unchopped fennel fronds
- Frames the recipe explicitly around its 'heavy Arab influence'
View the original recipe Load this style
In the chef’s words
- Heavily influenced by the Arabs that ruled Sicily more than a thousand years ago, pasta con le sarde (pasta with sardines) features long bucatini or spaghetti in a slick, luscious sauce made from onions, fennel, raisins, pine nuts, anchovies, sardines, and saffron source
- If at any point the pasta becomes too dry, add additional pasta cooking water in 1/4-cup increments, and toss to loosen and moisten source
References: [1]
Compared on 9 axes
Figures are transcribed as written in each video or recipe page
| AXIS | Vincenzo's Plate | Pasta Grammar | Serious Eats (Daniel Gritzer) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pasta, portion, cooking | Spaghetti, 300g | Bucatini, 200g, serves 2; pulled 2-3 minutes early and finished in the pan | Bucatini or spaghetti, 450g, serves 4 |
| Salt in the pasta water | 1 tbsp rock salt in the fennel cooking water | Fennel water salted well (no exact amount given) | A large pot of water salted well (no exact amount given) |
| Sardine prep and cooking | 200g fresh sardines, cooked in the sauce under 2 minutes | 12 fresh sardines, hand-butterflied, cooked in the sauce for 2 minutes | 5 fresh sardines (about 3/4 lb, 340g), filleted and cut into 1-inch pieces, cooked about 2 minutes at the end |
| Anchovy handling | 5 anchovies melted into the oil until they disappear | 2 fillets melted into red onion over medium-low | 4 oil-packed fillets cooked with the onion and fennel for 8 minutes to dissolve |
| Onion/fennel bulb base | 1/2 red onion + 2 crushed cloves garlic + 1 tbsp tomato paste | 1/4 red onion + anchovies, no garlic | 1 cup minced onion + 1 cup fennel bulb in 45ml EVOO for 8 minutes |
| Raisins and pine nuts | 30g sultanas, 30g pine nuts (toasted separately with no oil) | 40g raisins (plumped in water), 30g pine nuts (added raw, cooked in the sauce) | 45g raisins (steeped in white wine), 35g pine nuts (pre-toasted) |
| Saffron | Steeped in water since the day before, added in two batches | A pinch dissolved in 30ml water and added | A small amount (optional), dissolved in the white wine and added |
| White wine | None | None | 120ml dry white wine used to warm and flavor the raisins and saffron |
| Finishing breadcrumbs | 5 tbsp breadcrumbs toasted in 2 tbsp EVOO, generously sprinkled at the end | 65g breadcrumbs toasted in 30ml olive oil, generously spooned on at the end | 35g breadcrumbs lightly toasted in 22ml EVOO with 1/2 tsp ground fennel seed, added at the end |
| Source check | Source verified | Source verified | Source verified |
Vincenzo's Plate Colored with tomato paste; breadcrumbs toasted separately and finished on top
- Pasta, portion, cooking
- Spaghetti, 300g
- Salt in the pasta water
- 1 tbsp rock salt in the fennel cooking water
- Sardine prep and cooking
- 200g fresh sardines, cooked in the sauce under 2 minutes
- Anchovy handling
- 5 anchovies melted into the oil until they disappear
- Onion/fennel bulb base
- 1/2 red onion + 2 crushed cloves garlic + 1 tbsp tomato paste
- Raisins and pine nuts
- 30g sultanas, 30g pine nuts (toasted separately with no oil)
- Saffron
- Steeped in water since the day before, added in two batches
- White wine
- None
- Finishing breadcrumbs
- 5 tbsp breadcrumbs toasted in 2 tbsp EVOO, generously sprinkled at the end
- Source
- Source verified
Pasta Grammar No wine, no tomato -- a stripped-down version; pasta is finished right in the sauce
- Pasta, portion, cooking
- Bucatini, 200g, serves 2; pulled 2-3 minutes early and finished in the pan
- Salt in the pasta water
- Fennel water salted well (no exact amount given)
- Sardine prep and cooking
- 12 fresh sardines, hand-butterflied, cooked in the sauce for 2 minutes
- Anchovy handling
- 2 fillets melted into red onion over medium-low
- Onion/fennel bulb base
- 1/4 red onion + anchovies, no garlic
- Raisins and pine nuts
- 40g raisins (plumped in water), 30g pine nuts (added raw, cooked in the sauce)
- Saffron
- A pinch dissolved in 30ml water and added
- White wine
- None
- Finishing breadcrumbs
- 65g breadcrumbs toasted in 30ml olive oil, generously spooned on at the end
- Source
- Source verified
Serious Eats (Daniel Gritzer) White wine warms the raisins and saffron; fennel seed goes into the breadcrumbs too
- Pasta, portion, cooking
- Bucatini or spaghetti, 450g, serves 4
- Salt in the pasta water
- A large pot of water salted well (no exact amount given)
- Sardine prep and cooking
- 5 fresh sardines (about 3/4 lb, 340g), filleted and cut into 1-inch pieces, cooked about 2 minutes at the end
- Anchovy handling
- 4 oil-packed fillets cooked with the onion and fennel for 8 minutes to dissolve
- Onion/fennel bulb base
- 1 cup minced onion + 1 cup fennel bulb in 45ml EVOO for 8 minutes
- Raisins and pine nuts
- 45g raisins (steeped in white wine), 35g pine nuts (pre-toasted)
- Saffron
- A small amount (optional), dissolved in the white wine and added
- White wine
- 120ml dry white wine used to warm and flavor the raisins and saffron
- Finishing breadcrumbs
- 35g breadcrumbs lightly toasted in 22ml EVOO with 1/2 tsp ground fennel seed, added at the end
- Source
- Source verified
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1 
Pasta & boiling Brand, thickness, salt, water volume, cooking time
Pasta & boiling Brand, thickness, salt, water volume, cooking time 2 Base Fat and the main ingredient: rendering, infusing
3 
Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water
Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water 4 
Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating
Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating The map of schools: where the heat is managed
For Pasta con le Sarde, the fork in the road is how you emulsify and heat
Toss over direct heat
The pan stays on the flame and your hands manage the temperature. Fast, but it takes feel.
Indirect heat
Bain-marie, steam, double boiler or a hand blender. Repeatable, at the cost of one extra step.
- No styles here
Off the heat
Emulsify after killing the flame, or in a bowl with only the pasta’s residual heat. Hard to get wrong.
- No styles here
What to serve after this
In an Italian meal the primo (pasta) is followed by a secondo (main course)
Caponata siciliana
Caponata siciliana
A Sicilian dish of fried eggplant simmered in a sweet-and-sour agrodolce sauce with celery, onion, olives and capers. Today it is served as a contorno or antipasto, and it is registered as a traditional agri-food product (P.A.T.) of the Sicily region.
Pairs with: Pasta alla Norma / Pasta con le Sarde / Pesto alla trapanese
Also from Palermo. The pine nuts and raisins in the agrodolce of pasta con le sarde echo the technique of caponata's own sweet-and-sour sauce.
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