Barbecued piri piri sardines with tomato and onion salad
Serves: 4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Photograph by Dan Jones
Barbecued piri piri sardines with tomato and onion salad
Serves: 4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
See more recipes
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
463Kcal
Fat
34gr
Saturates
7gr
Carbs
6gr
Sugars
6gr
Fibre
2gr
Protein
32gr
Salt
1.7gr
Debbie Major
Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
Debbie Major
Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
Ingredients
- 12 ready-to-cook sardines
For the piri piri marinade:
- 2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 red bird eye chilli, finely chopped (optional)
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp red wine vinegar
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp sweet chilli sauce
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
For the tomato and onion salad:
- 4 large vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced
- 200g pomodorino or cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tsp torn oregano leaves
- 1½ tbsp red wine vinegar
- 50ml extra-virgin olive oil
Step by step
Get ahead
Make the marinade up to 1 day ahead; chill. Marinate the sardines up to 30 minutes ahead.
- Put all the marinade ingredients in a small pan and simmer for 3 minutes. Cool and then whiz in a mini food processor into a coarse paste. Brush some marinade on the inside and outside of each fish; set to one side.
- If you are using a charcoal barbecue, light it 30 minutes before you want to start cooking. When it is ready, the coals should be covered in a layer of light grey ash. If you're using a gas barbecue, light it 10 minutes before cooking.
- For the tomato salad, arrange the sliced tomatoes in a shallow bowl, season with a little salt, then scatter over the smaller tomatoes and season these lightly, too. Scatter over the onion and oregano, then sprinkle with the vinegar and oil.
- Barbecue the sardines for 3-4 minutes on each side (using a fish grill makes it easier to turn them and prevents sticking). Brush now and then with more of the marinade, until the skins blister and char slightly, and they are cooked through. Serve with the salad.
