Some days work takes up all my time; the way we feed is a matter of #lifestyle nowadays. Hopefully, I manage to prepare for these days and stock the fridge with ready-to-eat food that is healthier than what I could get at the deli. I like to have veggie spreads, yogurt, pestos, clean vegetables, pickles, etc. The recipe I'm showing you today is one of my husband's all time favorites: fish marinated in garlic and parsley mojito. This time, I didn't use cataco (Venezuelan horse mackerel), as my husband usually suggests; instead, I chose one of my favorite fishes in the whole world: fresh sardines.

Sardines are a good for our cardiovascular health, skin and bones. Fortunately, they are a staple in my hometown, Cumaná, where we have seen difficult times once too often. If you visit our City Market, you'll find prices around 50 cents x 1 kilo of fresh whole sardines, or 1 dollar x 1 kilo of fresh filleted sardines. I like to buy them whole and fillet them myself because I'm that kind of Cumanesa; I look for the freshest and fix it my way. Below you can see what people here like to call mariposas (butterflies, a whole fillet).

For this dish, the two sides won't stick together; the split into what we call capitas (half a fillet).

I don't always fillet sardines for this dish. Sometimes, I want them to absorb less oil, so I scalp them, remove the tail and head, and take out the innards. The bone stays.

If you keep them whole, they are a little healthier as tehy absorb less oil. But I often prefer to fillet them, as they are easier to eat later...
Also, when I fillet the sardines for this dish, it takes a smaller recipient to keep it in the fridge. I save some space.

INGREDIENTS

When a recipe has only a few ingredients, it usually happens that each of them is key to the result. Besides, the fish, the first essential ingredient here is parsley, parsley that you have washed well and given enough time to dry not thoroughly but enough.

Measures below are approx.

For Sardine Fillets or whole (I used them clean, without head & tail):

• 750 gr clean sardine
• the juice of a couple of lemons to rub the fillets (6 tablespoons approx.--our lemons are small)
• 1 tablespoon salt to rub the fillets

Parsley and Garlic Mojito:

• 150 gr fresh parsley
• 4 tablespoons freshly crushed garlic
• 25 ml white vinegar
• 75 ml olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

THE PROCEDURE

You will need a large frying pan. I have an old frying pan which diameter is 40 cm; it came with the house 😁 I use it exclusively for frying and grilling fish and fish-based foods, just like the original owners. It's ideal for this dish, as I can fry the most fish in one turn.

Rub all the sardines with salt and lemon...

...and fry them all in very hot oil. If you're using whole sardines, three minutes per side will be enough. With fillets, 2 minutes tops per side will be enough.

NOW, MOJITO 🍋

Sometimes I mix it with cilantro; both ways work for me. However, when I use cilantro only, I have to be careful enough not to cut it too finely or it will turn bitter. So parsley 😁 Wash it well.

Let it dry well. It doesn't need to be completely dry. Chop it finely and add it in a glass bowl.

Peel and crush the garlic. I used my old mortar and pestle, which works just fine for this dish.

Add the crushed garlic in the glass bowl, plus the vinegar, oil, and salt. Mix well. I mix this quickly, but I have to warn you if you have never made parsley mojito: parsley absorbs the oil fast, so you may want to mix the vinaigrette first and then add the parsley.

Choose a glass recipient with a lid to marinate the sardines and store them in the fridge. You can eat them right away, but will be tastier in a couple of days. Alternate layers of sardines and mojito, starting with the sardines.

Use the same procedure for fillets.

It's super easy, and you will have ready to eat fish in the fridge.

As usual, I hope you have found this recipe useful. I certainly did ten years ago when my husband suggested we should keep fish like this in our fridge all the time.

Finally, one the great advantages of this ready to eat fish is that you will enjoy it cold from the fridge. Imagine all the time you can save during those hectic working weeks. In my case, I can assemble a meal in a few minutes and feel I actually ate and not just snacked--But sure you can eat these for a snack, too!.

Bon appetite!

I love fish dishes 😋

How about you?

All text and images are my own. I have taken the pictures with my Redmi 9T cell phone. And if any GIFs here, I've used GIPHY for all them.

Thank you so much for your visit :)

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