Cuisine – Little fish, big flavour

In my pantry you will always find tins of sardines and anchovies. Both of these delicious little fishes are somewhat maligned, probably due to buying inferior tins that can have a distinctly off-putting fishy smell. But they’re some of the most useful foods to have on hand for a quick snack, or to boost the flavour in savoury dishes.

I only wish that we could find these little treasures from the sea in their fresh state more often. There’s nothing quite like a few sardines, grilled over the coals and drizzled with a little lemon juice and some good olive oil. It’s an absolute must-have if I ever spot that on a menu.

Be careful in selecting sardines. Portugal, Spain, France and few Mediterranean countries have made sardines an art form, with complete shops dedicated to tins of sardines. These tiny fish do not keep very long so the industry grew to capture and preserve throughout the year. Mostly, cheap sardines, packed in spring water or some indeterminate oil, should be avoided. Flavours can be added, especially tomato and the oil should always be olive oil.

A favourite lunch for me while I am working at home is to toast some good sourdough bread, spread generously with butter and then top with tinned sardines, a squeeze of lemon, chopped parsley and freshly ground black pepper. I also like to do that with anchovies but I think that’s a slightly more acquired taste as the little anchovy fillets must be of the highest quality.

Where anchovies really come into their own is to add a flavour layer to cooking. When roasting a leg or shoulder of lamb, or even beef, drape anchovy fillets over the meat. There won’t be any fishiness, just a lovely salty tang. And anchovy butter is easily made by mashing drained anchovies with softened butter and juice of a lemon. Add this to mashed potatoes or pop a small dollop on a poached egg or grilled fish. Yum!

In this simple spinach tart, anchovies bring a new layer of flavour that is quite piquant and tasty.

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Spinach and Anchovy Tart

For the pastry:
150g chilled butter
200g flour
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup iced water

For the filling:
30g unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
300g baby spinach
Freshly ground black pepper
200ml cream
1 egg and 2 egg yolks
12 anchovy fillets

To make the pastry. Chop the butter into small pieces and place in your food processor with the flour and salt. Pulse together until the butter is well incorporated. Slowly add enough water through the food tube with the motor running, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Turn out onto a clean surface and lightly knead to form a ball. Chill the pastry for 30 minutes before rolling out on a floured board to fit a 20cm flan tin or a rectangle 12x30cm.

Bake this case ‘blind’ in a 180°C oven for about 20 minutes. Remove and allow the case to cool.

To make the filling, melt the butter together with the oil in a heavy saucepan, add the spinach leaves and pepper, carefully tossing them until they just wilt.
Whisk the cream and egg and yolks together in a bowl.

Tip the spinach into a food processor and whizz briefly so it is just chopped but not mushy. Add the

chopped spinach to the egg and cream mixture, stir well together then tip into the pastry case. Bake for about 20 minutes at 180°C or until the filling is firm to touch.
Allow to cool slightly before serving with a fresh green salad.

Serves 4 to 6.