Spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro

Spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro delivers everything amazing about the Italian coastline all on one plate. Simple ingredients. This classic sardine spaghetti relies on honest ingredients, gentle cooking, and perfect balance. It cooks quickly, tastes deeply of the sea, and brings a true sense of coastal Italy into your kitchen, wherever you are in the world.

I first tried this sardine pasta dish in a fantastic restaurant in the old town of Grado in Italy’s north eastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Grado sits on a long peninsula that juts out into the northern Adriatic. They have been cooking sardines here for eternity. And it shows in the local cuisine. In fact, despite its simplicity and humble ingredients, spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro was one of the standout dishes of the trip. An added bonus was that the kids couldn’t eat enough of it!

But what came as a real surprise was that you can recreate spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro at home. From stock ingredients. And it tastes as good as any restaurant in Grado. We have been cooking it regularly ever since.

Just sauté onions, garlic and parsley gently in extra virgin olive oil, then infuse with anchovies, tomatoes and white wine to create a sticky tomato sauce that clings to spaghetti. Gently stir in some sardines and you have a perfect summer ocean meal that will not disappoint.

For me there are three key steps that make this dish work. Firstly, is using good quality tinned sardines. I use EVA wild caught tinned sardines, which really are good. Secondly is to use whole anchovy fillets which really help give a taste of the sea. And thirdly, make sure the pasta water is salted really well, as this really enhances the ocean flavour of the spaghetti.

How to Make spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro

• Cook Spaghetti: first cook spaghetti for 2 minutes less than the packet instructions and reserve a ladleful of pasta water.
• Sauté root vegetables and aromatics: Sauté the onion garlic, and parsley in the extra virgin olive oil until soft (but not browned). Then add the anchovy filets, tomato paste, wine and cherry tomatoes
• Return spaghetti to the pan: Add the cooked spaghetti and combine well, using the pasta water to loosen if needed. Stir until well coated and heated through.
• Add sardines: Add the sardines and break up gently and season.
• Garnish and serve: Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Buon appetito! 🇮🇹

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Spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro

Servings 4

Spaghetti con sardine e pomodoro is a delicious sardine pasta recipe, cooked with cherry tomatoes and spaghetti which come together to give you a taste of the Adriatic Sea.

Ingredients

• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 tbsp parsley (finely chopped)
• 2-3 anchovy filets (chopped)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 250 grams cherry tomatoes (halved)
• 75 ml white wine
• 300 grams dried spaghetti
• 4x 115 gram tins of sardines
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• parsley to garnish

Instructions 

• Cook spaghetti for 2 minutes less than the packet instructions and reserve a ladleful of pasta water.
• Sauté the onion garlic, and parsley in the extra virgin olive oil until soft (but not browned).
• Add the anchovy filets, break up in the pan with a wooden spoon, and cook over a gentle heat for two minutes.
• Add tomato paste and wine and cook out for 1-2 minutes .
• Add the cherry tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, making sure the skins don’t come off.
• Add the cooked spaghetti and combine well, using the pasta water to loosen if needed. Stir until well coated and heated through.
• Add the sardines and break up gently and season.
• Garnish with parsley.