Sardines are very affordable and nutritious and tastier than a lot of people realise.
Crunch Toastie / Sardine Sarnie
Some people prefer this toastie cold rather than hot. In which case you can make a sardine sarnie with cold toast or bread and the sardine mash.
Ingredients
1 tin sardines
finely chopped onion/spring onion, red pepper, sweetcorn (optional but they provide the crunch!)
good squirt of ketchup and/or baked beans (up to half a tin)
sliced bread
Method
1. Open the tin and tip sardines into a bowl. Mash up well (including the bones which add calcium and you don’t feel their texture when they are mashed up).
2. Stir in the chopped veg (and baked beans if you’re using them). Squirt in some ketchup. Stir well.
3. Spread on one slice of bread. Put the second slice on top and place in a sandwich toaster bag and toast in your toaster or in an air fryer.
4. When bread is golden remove from toaster bag. Cut up into the size pieces you want. (We use scissors to cut but a sharp knife will also do).
Sardine Pasta / Noodle Dishes
Sardines make a tasty sauce for any kind of pasta or noodle dish.
Sardine Pasta Bake
Ingredients:
- 200gm pasta like fusilli or penne
- 1 can of Sardines in Tomato Sauce or oil
- 200g /1 cup marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese (optional)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs tossed in oil & flavouring (eg mixed herbs, garlic powder)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil & 1 tspn mixed herbs
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
- Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and set aside.
- Prepare the Sauce: Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic until soft. Stir in marinara sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Mash the sardines, and add them to the sauce with the mixed herbs. Mix well.
- Assemble the Bake: Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Combine the cooked pasta with the sardine sauce. Transfer to a baking dish and top with breadcrumbs or mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Bake: Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top is golden and bubbly. Garnish with fresh basil before serving.
Sardine Loaf
Sardine Loaf – we mashed in some cooked cauliflower to the potato. You can also add finely chopped onion, red pepper and sweet corn if you want some texture. Otherwise it’s like a large fish cake which you slice to serve.
Sardines in Puff Pastry
These tasty nibbles are very easy to make.
Sardine & Sweetcorn Spring Rolls (with filo or puff pastry)
Ingredients
3 tins Sardines
2 small tins Sweetcorn
Mushrooms 100g
2 bunch Spring onion
250ml Tomato Passata 250ml
1 pack Filo or Puff Pastry
Oil 20ml
Seasoning
Method
If you are using puff pastry, remove from the packet and roll out then cut into 6 even
squares, place the filling at the bottom of the pastry but not to the edge, wet the edge with
a little water then fold out to make a parcel, crimp the edge with a fork and bake in the air
fryer at 185c for 15 min
Open the sardines and place the content in a bowl
Finly chop the spring onion and add to the sardines
Open the sweetcorn drain of the liquid and add it to the sardine mix
Finly chop the mushroom and add to the mix
Add the tomato passata to the mix but just enough to bind together and season
Roll out the filo pastry then cut into four even lengths, brush with the oil then place the
sardine mix at the bottom of each piece of filo pastry, take the bottom of the filo and cover
the mixture, then turn each side in for about 1cm then finish rolling up the filo this should
look like a spring roll.
Place the spring rolls on a wire tray and place into the air fryer for 8 min at 185c until
golden brown, if you don’t have an air fryer place them in the oven at 185c for 15 min or
until golden brown
