Breaded Sardines

Freeze the bread, cut off the crust. Use a slicer or a very sharp bread knife to slice the frozen bread as thinly as possible. You will need 32 slices. Set aside to thaw.

Prepare brine by dissolving 10 g of salt in 100 ml of warm water and cool it down. Immerse the sardine fillet in the brine and leave it for 10 minutes to remove blood residues and season it. Remove and dry on a paper towel, set aside.

Blanch the tomatoes for 14 seconds and peel them, remove the seeds, and dice the flesh. Sprinkle zucchini and eggplants with sea salt and let them sit to remove bitterness.

Heat a little olive oil in a pan and sauté the onion for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add the pepper and continue to sauté for 3 minutes, then add the zucchini and eggplant and cook for another 4 minutes.

Mix the tomatoes and simmer them until soft. Season to taste. Remove from heat and keep warm.

Cut each slice of bread so that it is slightly larger than the sardine fillet. Place the fillet on the bread. Heat olive oil in a pan. Place several slices of bread with fillets on top in the pan and cook over medium heat until the bread is golden brown. The bread will transfer heat to the fillet, cooking it but not excessively. Keep the finished portions warm.

To serve, spread the vegetable mix on plates and place the sardines bread side down on top.