🐟 Sarde in saor

Name: Sarde in saor
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italy · Venice, Veneto
Ingredients: 500 g fresh sardines, cleaned and butterflied; 3 large onions, thinly sliced; 150 ml white vinegar; 40 g raisins, soaked in warm water; 30 g pine nuts; 3 tbsp olive oil; Salt and pepper

Origin: Italy · Venice, Veneto

232kcal

per serving · 150 g

155kcal

per 100 g

18 gProtein12 g / 100 g

12 gFat8 g / 100 g

12 gCarbs8 g / 100 g

Sarde in saor is a Venetian sweet-and-sour appetiser of fried sardines layered with soft onions cooked in vinegar, raisins and pine nuts. It is left to marinate for a day or more, so the fish absorbs the tangy, slightly sweet dressing. It is served at room temperature as cicchetti in Venetian bars or as a starter.

Diets

✓

No pork

✓

Dairy-freeno milk, cheese, butter or yogurt in a typical recipe

✓

Low-carb8 g carbs per 100 g

✓

High protein12 g protein per 100 g — 31% of the calories

Not vegetarianbecause of: sardines

Not veganbecause of: sardines

Contains glutenno wheat, barley or rye in a typical recipe

Allergens

Contains (in a typical recipe):

⚠ Gluten ⚠ Fish ⚠ Tree nuts

What it is made of

sardinesonionraisinspine nutsvinegar

Recipe

4 servings40 min

Ingredients

500 g fresh sardines, cleaned and butterflied
3 large onions, thinly sliced
150 ml white vinegar
40 g raisins, soaked in warm water
30 g pine nuts
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

Pat the sardines dry and season with salt.
Fry them in 2 tbsp oil for 1–2 minutes per side until golden, then drain.
In the same pan soften the onions in the remaining oil over low heat for 15 minutes without browning.
Add the vinegar, drained raisins and pine nuts and simmer for 3 minutes.
Layer sardines and onion mixture in a dish, cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. Serve at room temperature.

How to make it lighter

Grill or bake the sardines instead of frying to use less oil — 1 tbsp oil ≈ 120 kcal.
Go light on the pine nuts; a small scattering keeps the flavour.
Serve a small portion as a starter with a large green salad.

History

The dish is usually traced to Venetian fishermen and sailors, for whom the vinegar marinade (saor means 'flavour' in Venetian) kept fish edible on long voyages. Raisins and pine nuts are often linked to the city's trade with the eastern Mediterranean. It is traditionally eaten for the Festa del Redentore in July.

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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →