Crumbed Sardines with Pecorino and Eggplant Purée;

Name: Crumbed Sardines with Pecorino and Eggplant Purée (Sardine con Pecorino Sardo e Salsa di Melanzane)
Yield: Serves 6 as a first course
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: plain flour, for coating sardines; salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 1 tablespoon finely sliced flat-leaf parsley leaves; 1 clove garlic, peeled; juice of 1 lemon, strained; extra virgin olive oil, for dressing rocket and frying sardines; 100 g wild rocket, washed and dried; 150 g young Pecorino Sardo, freshly grated; 3 large eggplants (aubergines); 3 eggs, lightly beaten; 3 cups (210 g) fine fresh breadcrumbs; 18 small butterflied sardines; 90 ml extra virgin olive oil; juice of ½ lemon, strained

Sardine con Pecorino Sardo e Salsa di Melanzane

Preparation info

Serves
6
as a first course

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

A Sardinian Cookbook

By Giovanni Pilu and Roberta Muir

Published 2012

About

It’s tempting to speculate that the name of these small fish is related to the island of Sardinia, though this cannot be proven. Regardless, they are abundant throughout the Mediterranean and are popular in Sardinian cooking. Some eggplants are seedless, but if the ones you’re using have visible seeds, scoop them out with a teaspoon to make sure you get a smooth purée.