Melt-in-Mouth Vine coal fired sardines

Chef Caroline Taylor of the Humane Foodist, created this perfectly light, summer’s recipe for a Teachers Education Personal Development day. She whipped up this simple dish using non other than Fremantle Sardines, sweet red pepper, crunchy shallots and pepper berry. Perfect for those summer lunches.

Ingredients:

8 sardines
1 large red capsicum
2 ripe tomatoes
1/2 red onion
4 cloves local garlic
1 tsp pepperberry
200ml extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup basil
1/4 cup dill
3 tbsps crispy shallots
Salt and pepper to season

Method:

1.Fire up your Webber or fire pit (or you can use your normal stovetop).
2.Once you have coals and an even heat, fire off your red capsicum until it blackens turning continually (for stove top, place capsicum directly onto the flame).
3.When the skin is completely blackened and the flesh is soft, set aside to cool.
4. In a bowl, add pepperberry, 1 tspn sea salt and 2 cloves of fine diced garlic to 100 ml of olive oil and brush sardines all over, set aside to marinade while you sort out the caponata.

For the Caponata:

1. Finely dice the remaining garlic, red onion and fresh herbs place in a bowl, then dice the tomato (1/2 a cm thickness) and add to the mix.
2. Peel off the blackened skin from the capsicum and deseed. Dice to a medium thickness and add to the tomato mix. Season to Taste.
3. Fire up the coals again and once the heat is even, place marinaded sardines onto the grill mesh. (Use a grill pan if using a stove)
4. Cook 2 minutes each side, getting a nice char mark on the skin, the marinade should stop it sticking.
5. To eat, spoon a little of the caponata in an uneven line down the middle of the plate, add the sardines and top with more caponata.
6. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle crispy shallots all over add a wedge of lemon and you’re away!!