Lisbon and coastal Portugal
Grilled sardines are the food of Portuguese summer — specifically of the Festa de Santo António in Lisbon in June, when the entire city smells of sardine smoke. The technique is minimal: fresh sardines, unsalted, grilled over charcoal on a grelha (wire grill) until the skin blisters and the flesh inside steams in its own fat. The only accompaniment is coarse sea salt applied after grilling, bread, and, traditionally, the cooking drips caught in a slice of bread placed beneath the grill. The technique requires the freshest sardines obtainable — a sardine more than 24 hours from the sea produces a different experience.
The sardines are never scaled, cleaned, or gutted — they are cooked whole. The skin and innards add flavour and protect the flesh during high-heat grilling. Apply coarse salt only after grilling — salt before cooking draws moisture and prevents the skin from crisping. The charcoal must be at full heat, past the orange stage. Cook 3-4 minutes per side for a medium sardine (15-18cm). The flesh should separate from the bone easily when pressed.
The bread-under-the-grill technique (pão com as gotas) produces a slice of bread saturated with sardine fat and charcoal smoke — considered a delicacy in its own right. The best sardines in Portugal are from the Atlantic coast between Setúbal and Peniche, in season from June to September. Pair with Vinho Verde or Setúbal Moscatel.
Cleaning the sardines — a serious error. Salting before grilling — draws moisture. Grilling over gas — the smoke from the charcoal is a flavour component. Eating them cold — sardines must be eaten immediately from the grill.
Leite's Culinaria — Portuguese tradition