116 GOURMET TRAVELLER
1.2 kgwholesnapperorbream
½ lemon,cutintothickslices
A fewflat-leafparsley
anddillsprigs,plusextra
toserve
1.5 kgcoarseseasalt
5 eggwhites
1 kgfinesalt
Juiceof1-2lemons1 Preheatovento180°Cand
lineanoventraywithbaking
paper.Washfish,patdryand
stuffthecavitywithlemon
slicesandherbs.
2 Addseasaltandeggwhite
toa largefoodprocessorand
pulseuntilcombined.Transfer
mixturetoa bowl, add fine salt
and mix well.20 veryfreshsardines,about
10cminlength,butterflied
(seenote)
50 gm(1/3cup)plainflour
2 eggs
Splashofmilk
70 gm(1 cup)dried
breadcrumbs,preferably
homemade
Extra-virginoliveoil,
forshallow-frying
Lemonwedges,toserve1 Washsardinesandpatdry
withpapertowels.Tipflour
intoa bowl,whiskeggand
milkin a secondbowl,andadd
breadcrumbstoa thirdbowl.
Coatonefilletata timein flour,
thendipin eggwashanddrop
intothebreadcrumbs,making
suresardinesarewellcoated.
Transfer to a plate.PESCEINCROSTADISALE
Salt-crust fish
SERVES 4“Buryinga wholefishinsaltis bothsimpleandslightlynerve-
wracking,”saysBacchia.“Thetechniquehasbeenusedfor
centuriesandallowsthefishtosteamwithinitssaltycase,
impartinga delicateseasoning.Askyourfishmongertoclean
thecavityofthefish,andmakesureit’sascloseaspossible
totherecommendedweight,otherwiseyou’llneedtoadjust
the cooking time. Served with smashed potatoes and greens.”SARDEIMPANADE
Crumbed sardines
SERVES 4“SardinesarethemostlovedfishoftheTriestini,”saysBacchia.
“ThesardinescaughtinthenorthernAdriaticwatersareundera
yearoldandwhite-fleshed.Theyarebestcoatedwithbreadcrumbs
andfrieduntilgolden.I filletthefishbygentlyseparatingthe head,
using my fingers and removing thespine.”Picturedp113.3 Placea 1cm-thicklayerof
saltmixtureontheprepared
trayintheapproximateshape
ofthefish.Layfishontopand
coverwiththerestofthesalt
mixture,packingit againstthe
fish.It’simportantthatthefish
is completelysealedwithin
thecrust.
4 Bakefishfor 35 minutes(the
ruleofthumbis 30minutesfor
every1kgoffish).Removefrom
ovenimmediatelyandallowto
restfor 10 minutes.
5 Crackopenthecrustand
removetheskin.Drizzleover
lemonjuiceandscatterwith
extra herbs to serve.2 Pouroilintoa largeshallow
fryingpanto3mm-5mmdeep
andheatovermedium-high
heat.Whenoilis hot,carefully
add5-7fish(dependingonsize
ofpan)andcookfor1 minuteor
untilbreadcrumbsaregolden,
thenturnandfrytheotherside
forlessthana minute.Remove
sardinesfrompananddrain
onpapertowels.Repeatwith
remainingsardines.
3 Seasonsardinestotaste
withseasaltandservehotwith
lemonwedges.If youwere
in Triestein thesummer,you
wouldprobablyservethe
sardineswitha coldbeer.
NoteYoucanbutterflysardines
yourself,oraskyourfishmonger
for butterflied sardines.