Monday, November 9, 2009

A PASTA SALAD WITH SARDINES IN OIL


I don't want to rant about the weather. Well............maybe I do.

The sun shines in the morning nice and bright. But by at least 12 noon its starts to get cloudy and it drizzles. And 2 hours later it pours like we are being hosed down by the fire department. Everything is grey outside and while its kind of cool in feeling it's certainly not 'cool' a time to be taking photographs.

I scurry with my plate of whatever to my garden/front yard after fumbling with the keys to the grille (we must be careful these days in the city...snatch thieves and baddies can pop up anywhere and at any time) and place my props (which sometimes trail and drop all over behind me in my hurry) and place them as nicely as I can under a slowly closing sky (it's too dark in the house) and then I start snapping in between drizzles before it threatens to pour.


I scurry back inside with me plate and props.......perspiring.....in the humidity, un-click my memory card and snap it in to my comp. I check out the photos and they are all DULL.

I haven't been posting for some time and those are the reasons up there. Dark skies, pouring rain and dull pictures.

And ....hub drags/threatens/lectures/reads out the list of benefits of going to the gym.......every morning (Yes.... I'm like that). So that leaves me with dark, dull, grey afternoons to contemplate the worth of a photography session.

But post I must .....so here's a dish of a noodle salad weaved with sardines, chunks of tomatoes, chopped green chillies, minced red onions and a dressing of mustard seeds, olive oil and lime juice. And a nice crunchy tasty topping of fried breadcrumbs. Nice and quite healthy.

This is a very easy dish to prepare. I would have used local noodles if I had some but pasta was good too. The only reason I prefer local noodles is because they are more tender and I could get the ones made without eggs.

I am sure freshly made pasta is awesome and is no comparison to the dried ones that I use, which I find a little 'tough' if I could use the word. Because I have never tasted freshly made pasta, I have, as a result, always preferred our local noodles for their texture.

Being a fish person I also love the use of sardines in oil in this dish. If I had my way I would have added some bird chilies to give it a bit more of a kick. But what topped it all was the use of the crispy fried breadcrumbs. It added that crunch. Jamie Oliver has some wonderful ideas and these breadcrumbs are one of them!



The recipe.................. for 1 or 2 persons

6 0zs of spaghetti, boiled in salted water with a dash of olive oil till till al dente and drained
1 small red onion, minced
1 green chillie or bird chillies,chopped
a handful of cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
1 small can of sardines in oil (I used 120 gm can), drained

The dressing......

2 T olive oil
1-2 T lime juice
1-2 T mustard seeds (biji sawi), roasted in dry pan and pounded or 1 T whole grain mustard
1 or 2 cloves garlic, pounded or crushed
salt n pepper/chillie flakes

Topping............from Jamie Oliver's book (not to a T though)

A cup of breadcrumbs seasoned with salt and pepper and some herbs if you like..
4 -5 T of olive/vegetable oil

Heat up the oil in a small pan. Drop the breadcrumbs in to the pan, spread it out evenly in a layer and fry till golden brown. Once crisp and brown lift off an d drain on kitchen paper

The Salad...........

Mix all the dressing ingredients with a whisk. Taste and adjust for salt and tangy-ness.

Place boiled and cooked spaghetti in a medium bowl, pour in dressing, followed by the chopped veggies and and sardines. Mix and toss well. Adjust for salt and pepper and tangy-ness again. Top with fried breadcrumbs. Serve cold. YUM.


23 comments:

Federica Simoni said...

buonissimo!! molto invitante!

Quinn said...

Do you top the breadcrumbs on to the pasta when serving? I'm in hurry of time and this one look easy enough
!

Zurin said...

Federica, TQ :))

Quinn, yes top when serving :))so that they will stay crispy.

Angie's Recipes said...

That's a wonderful pasta dish! Looks so good.

Anonymous said...

oh yum yummmm.
altho i've never tried sardins with pasta before..:)

La Table De Nana said...

It does look good...I love sardines in oil now so this just might appear on our table..Hope your skies clear up!!

Anonymous said...

I love sardines, and I think this looks great. I find that the canned sardines back home taste better than they do here though, for some really strange reason. Haha.

And I know what you mean about the weather... I hate the lack of sun here during the colder months. I mean, it's already dark when I get back from work so the only real time I get natural light is during weekends. :(

Ju (The Little Teochew) said...

Tell me about the lousy weather, Zu! I'm with you on the part about bad lighting for photography! A few of my dishes went unblogged because I couldn't get nice pics :((( And it's just not me to post photos which don't do justice to the food (unless I am desperate ... which I think I WILL be, if this drags on). Having said that, lovely dish you made! The colours, the whole idea of using sardines, chilli padi and topping it with breadcrumbs ... beautifully put together. Brava!

Faida said...

Aunty, I am a fish eater and a good supporter of pasta too, but Sardine in a pasta...?.. I will pass this one. wouldnt it smell so fishy?.

Unknown said...

I like every thing, pasta, chili, tomatoes, sardines, it's seems so good !

Zurin said...

Angie, TQ Angie :)

Percicilan, its yummmm :)

Monique, TQ I do hope you'll make it one day ! :)

Breadetbutter, I love the sardines in oil :) Yes bad weather bad photography :(

Ju, TQ, yes weather pretty poor right now...I too have not posted for the dull pics..but right now m desperate :DD

Faida, Thing is I like sardines but only the ones in oil...sardines in tomato sauce I too don't like the smell..too hanyir :)

Chapot, TQ It's pretty good :)

Anonymous said...

Love sardine in oil. can't believe how easy is the recipe. Love the breadcrumbs on top! Add the extra texture.

terri@adailyobsession said...

yummy! i LOVE rainy days but worry about ppl in their huts n now also get annoyed about my dull photos. yes, us silly bloggers, scheduling our time to cook b4 the sun goes out :D bte, fresh pasta is nice but not for all pasta dishes (my opinion) but dry pasta is great too.

will u be in kl 10 n 11 dec bc i'll be there on transit? we can meet up :))

Mari @ Once Upon a Plate said...

I would LOVE this dish, I just know it! I have always liked sardines (and they are especially good for us women. :) )

Thank you for sharing the recipe!

I understand the frustration with the dark, wet skies-- same thing here, exactly.

Your blog is beautiful and your cakes are works of art ~ absolutely exquisite!! Very, very nice.

Zurin said...

Ellie, Tq Hope u try the dish :))

Terri,, Ill email u :))

Mari, tq for the compliments :) I LOVE ur blog...its beautiful. hope u'll try the recipe :))

Anonymous said...

That looks beautiful and so appetising! I can imagine the breadcrumbs would give it such a nice crunch too :D

Nadia said...

daddy does that? LOLOLOLOL i wish someone would do that to me every morning LOLOLOLOL and now i need physical therapy..belom schedule lagi..sigh...

Elin Chia said...

That's my kind of food...one dish meal...mmm sardine in oil...I must try pasta cooked this way. The breadcrumbs on top adds texture to the pasta...nice! Thanks for the recipe.

tracieMoo said...

Hi Zurin. I love the idea of mustard dressing! I love mustard and I always prefer olive oil kind of dressing than tomato puree. The pasta is making me so hungry now..

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

Am I too late to have a chance to try this refreshing pasta? hahaha..

high over happy said...

I love sardines - so great to find another way to use it. it didn't occur to me to use it in a pasta dish.

Divina Pe said...

I love this pasta. I used to make this all the time. I'll this next time with your recipe.

Anonymous said...

That looks wonderful! And I totally sympathise with photographic and lighting issues!

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