Sardines with cucumber salsa verde salad and garlic mayonnaise
Serves: 6 as a starter
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Mike English
Sardines with cucumber salsa verde salad and garlic mayonnaise
Recipe by Mitch Tonks
Sainsbury’s Cornish sardines come from the port of Newlyn, and are certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). Increase the number of sardines to serve as a main course, and add some crusty bread or new potatoes
Serves: 6 as a starter
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
323Kcal
Fat
30gr
Carbs
2gr
Sugars
2gr
Fibre
1gr
Protein
11gr
Salt
0.4gr
Mitch Tonks
Chef Mitch Tonks co-owns the award-winning Seahorse restaurant in Dartmouth, along with the six-strong Devon chain of Rockfish restaurants. He is also an ambassador with the Marine Stewardship Council [MSC], which sets standards for sustainable fishing.
See more of Mitch Tonks’s recipes
Mitch Tonks
Chef Mitch Tonks co-owns the award-winning Seahorse restaurant in Dartmouth, along with the six-strong Devon chain of Rockfish restaurants. He is also an ambassador with the Marine Stewardship Council [MSC], which sets standards for sustainable fishing.
See more of Mitch Tonks’s recipes
Ingredients
- 12 MSC sardines*, butterfly filleted (ask your fishmonger)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
For the mayonnaise
- 3 whole garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 x 20g pack chives
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 150ml sunflower oil
- juice of 1⁄2 lemon
For the cucumber salsa verde salad
- 1⁄2 cucumber
- 1 green pepper
- 4 spring onions, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp capers, rinsed and chopped
- 6-8 cocktail gherkins, finely chopped
- 4 tbsp chopped mixed herbs (we used tarragon, parsley, mint and chives)
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil juice of 1 lime
Step by step
Get ahead
The mayonnaise keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- First make the mayonnaise. Bring a small pan of water to the boil, add the garlic and simmer for 5 minutes. Reserve a few chives for use in the salsa verde, then add the rest to the pan with the garlic. Blanch for 30 seconds, then drain and refresh in very cold or iced water. Pat dry with kitchen paper.
- Put the egg yolk and mustard in a mixing bowl with a pinch of salt. Using an electric hand whisk, slowly and gradually add the oil while the beaters are running, until emulsified and thickened. Blitz the mayonnaise with the blanched garlic and chives until you have a smooth, green mayonnaise, using a hand blender. Add the lemon juice and seasoning to taste, and thin it down with a little water if it is too thick.
- For the salsa verde, peel and deseed the cucumber and green pepper and dice finely. Mix with all the rest of the salad ingredients, to your taste; try to achieve a nice balance of crunch, salt, pickle and freshness.
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Heat the grill to high. Brush the sardines with olive oil, season with salt and cook under a hot grill skin-side up until bubbling and crisp, about 5-6 minutes. Spread the salsa verde on the plate and sit the sardines on top, with a spoonful of mayonnaise.TipIf you want to take a shortcut, you can use 200g bought mayonnaise rather than making your own, and simply blitz with the blanched garlic, chives and lemon juice.
