8 Sardine Recipes That Will Enrich Your Home Cooking

While high quality sardines are tasty enough to eat straight out of the can, there are more creative dishes one can make with canned sardines. Sardine recipes range from street food to gourmet meals; simple to elaborate. This fish can be used as a pizza topping in Italy or a sardine pie ingredient in Brazil or England. Try out these sardine recipes to enrich your home cooking!

Sardine Fish Cakes

Fish cakes are typically made with cod fish and other white fish, but they can also be made with sardines! It’s also surprisingly easy: spices, breadcrumbs, and mayonnaise (or dijon mustard or plain yogurt) are the heart of this delicious seafood appetizer. Many people also enjoy throwing in some potatoes for an even more satisfying bite. Try this sardine fish cake recipe from ChampagneTastes.com and serve with tartar sauce or spicy mayo.

Pasta con le Sarde (Sicilian Sardine Pasta)

Sicilian cuisine makes frequent use of sardines. One of the most popular sardine pasta dishes in Sicily is Pasta con le Sarde. This Italian recipe calls for bucatini pasta, sardines, anchovies, fennel, and toasted pine nuts, among other ingredients. Traditionally, the finished pasta dish is topped with breadcrumbs instead of grated cheese. Get the details from this SeriousEats.com recipe. Be sure to eat the best Sicilian food the next time you visit Italy! 

Beer-Battered Sardines

Frying food is the most surefire way to enjoy practically anything, and sardines are no different! Follow this easy recipe from Epicurious.com to enjoy homemade, beer-battered sardines for a salty, satisfying crunch. Enjoy it with a glass of your favorite beer!

Marinated Sardines on Toast

This is another simple recipe that requires few ingredients, and is one of the most common ways to enjoy sardines. Marinating sardines is simple: allow the fish to soak in a mixture of white wine vinegar, salt, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and herbs. Once the fish have had enough time to absorb all of that flavor, pair them with toast or crostini for a rich seafood appetizer. Get the precise measurements from this Saveur recipe.

Moroccan Stuffed Sardines

Stuffed, fried sardines are a popular Moroccan street food. The insides of the fish are stuffed with chermoula; a marinade or paste made with olive oil and several herbs and spices. Parsley, garlic, cumin, paprika, and more come together for a warming, savory flavor made even more mouth-watering when the sardines are fried. Get the recipe for chermoula and stuffed sardines from TasteofMaroc.com, and discover other must-eat Mediterranean street foods.

Sardine Pie

Pie is probably not the first idea that comes to mind when thinking of how to eat sardines, but sardine pie is actually popular in several different cultures! A Brazilian sardine pie, for example, includes tomatoes, sweet corn, and peas. On the other hand, an English pie is more whimsical, as the fish heads poke through the pie crust! The English version also includes hard-boiled eggs.

Sardine Salad

Sardine salad is a simple, healthy way to enjoy this nutrient-rich fish. If there is one cardinal rule when it comes to how to eat sardines—and virtually any other seafood—it is that lemon juice is the go-to ingredient. The flavor of lemon juice awakens and brightens the taste of the fish, so a lemon vinaigrette is the ideal seafood salad dressing. Capers, too, are frequently served with fish, which is why you will find them and other familiar ingredients in this Martha Stewart recipe.

Sardines in Spicy Tomato Sauce

Using lemon juice is not the only way to dress or marinate sardines. This fish is often served in a spicy tomato sauce, known in Italian cuisine as fra diavolo sauce. You can buy prepared fra diavolo sauce as well as canned sardines from Supermarket Italy. To make it from scratch, gather tomatoes, onion, red pepper, garlic, and other spices. Sardines in spicy tomato sauce can be served over pasta, over rice, or simply on its own! Check out other traditional Italian seafood dishes.