Sarde in saor is probably the oldest Venetian dish still cooked in our kitchens. It was born in the lagoon around the 14th century as a preservation method: the Venetian navy, sailing east for months, needed food that would keep. Vinegar, long-cooked onion, raisins and pine nuts — the latter arriving with Levantine trade — formed a marinade that let fried sardines stay good for up to a week. Today we no longer need to preserve; we still make it this way because it is delicious.
Our recipe for four begins with 600 g of very fresh sardines — Chioggia's are the best — cleaned, filleted and lightly floured. They are fried in hot vegetable oil, one minute per side, until barely golden. Meanwhile, in a wide pan, 500 g of thinly sliced white onion is softened slowly with four tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil: it must turn translucent and sweet, never colouring. It takes at least twenty minutes on low heat.
When the onion is ready, deglaze with 200 ml of white wine vinegar and let the alcohol evaporate for two or three minutes. Then add 50 g of raisins soaked in warm water and squeezed dry, and 40 g of pine nuts. Salt, a turn of pepper, and the marinade is ready. In a glass or ceramic dish, alternate the layers: sweet-sour onion, fried sardines, onion, sardines, finishing with onion. Cover with film and refrigerate. From here on, the most important part is waiting.
Sarde in saor is eaten after at least 24 hours, better 48. Time lets the onion and vinegar seep into the fish and soften everything into a single sweet-sour flavour. Serve at room temperature, never cold from the fridge, with a slice of grilled white polenta on the side. Here they arrive as an opening cicchetto, as soon as you sit down with an ombra of Soave Classico: that is how a Venetian dinner has started for a thousand years.
