Sarde Allinguate | Sweet and sour fried sardines

This “Sarde Allinguate” are another incredible excellence of the Sicilian cuisine. The term “allinguata” comes from the attempt of poor people in the old days to imitate the dishes made for the wealthier classes. The rich lords of the time could afford big banquets and luxurious food with delicious raw materials such as sole; the popular class was content with cheaper foods such as sardines. The way that the sardines are opened, like a book, gave them the feeling of eating a superior quality fish. Even the pickling in vinegar, thanks to the inventiveness of Sicilian housewives is probably due to the need to mask the smell of the fish not exactly fresh.