José Pizarro’s Smoked Sardines with Salmorejo
This cold soup topped with smoky sardines, lemon thyme croutons, and egg slices makes an excellent starter for a hot day.
Introduction
Salmorejo is thick, cold tomato soup that Andalusian people normally eat as a starter during summer when it’s extremely hot. The dish is originally from Córdoba, where in August the temperature can easily reach 42°C (107°F). Here, I serve it with smoked sardines, as we did at Pizarro, where it was a big success, but you could add fruit such as melon or grapes to make it even fresher, if you prefer.
Ingredients
| 12 small or 6 large | sardines, gutted and bones removed |
| handful of | mild-flavoured wood chips or sawdust |
| 2 sprigs of | rosemary |
| 2 heads of | lavender |
| 1 tbsp | fruit vinegar (raspberry, muscatel or apple are good) |
| For the salmorejo | |
|---|---|
| 800g (1lb 12oz) | really ripe tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped |
| 200g (7oz) | stale bread (ciabatta, bread roll, rustic loaf), torn |
| 2 | garlic cloves, crushed |
| 2 tsp | sherry vinegar |
| 75ml (2½fl oz/1⁄3 cup) | extra virgin olive oil |
| sea salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| For the lemon thyme croutons | |
| 100g (3½oz) | stale bread, cubed |
| olive oil, for frying | |
| 3–4 sprigs of | lemon thyme |
| sea salt | |
| To serve | |
| 3 | free-range eggs |
| extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling |
Method
First, clean the sardines. Wash well, then remove the heads, slit the bellies and take out the insides. Then, with a sharp knife and your fingers, pull out the bones. This will leave you with butterflied fillets. Alternatively, you can ask your fishmonger to do this for you. Lay the fish on a board, skin-side up, and allow the skin to dry out a little while you prepare the rest of the dish.
To make the salmorejo, put the tomatoes in a food processor or blender with the bread, garlic, vinegar and olive oil. Season well and blitz, adding a little cold water to loosen. Season again to taste and chill in the fridge.
Cook the eggs for serving in boiling water for 6–7 minutes, then cool under cold water.
To make the croutons, fry the bread in olive oil with the lemon thyme until golden and crisp. Sprinkle with sea salt and drain on some paper towel.
Line a wok with foil and scatter with a few wood chips or some sawdust and the herbs. Press a wire rack over the top of the wood chips/sawdust in the wok, ensuring it fits inside snugly. Place the fish skin-side down on the rack, then cover the top with a lid or more foil, to stop the smoke from escaping. Place over a medium heat and, as soon as plumes of smoke have started to appear, smoke for 10–15 minutes, until cooked through. Sprinkle with the fruit vinegar.
Peel and slice the eggs. Pour the soup into wide bowls and top with the croutons, egg slices, smoked sardine fillets and a good drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil
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