Last updated: 18 January, 2026 @ 11:01
August is when British sardines show off. Caught close to shore, thick-bodied, gleaming, and as cheap as they’ll ever be.
The temptation to buy ‘just a few more’ is real – as is the risk of standing in your kitchen three hours later, wondering what to do with 26 small oily fish.
Don’t panic. Sardines are versatile fish. They don’t need much to shine: a hot grill, a bit of vinegar or a pile of steaming pasta.
Here are our top three ways to do sardines justice this summer.
1. Portuguese‑Style Grilled Sardines with Homemade Mayonnaise
Bright, smoky, and unmistakably Portuguese.
When sardines are at their peak – plump, fresh, and full of flavour – nothing beats grilling them simply.
We think our recipe for Portuguese-Style Grilled Sardines gets it just right: fresh sardines charred over a hot grill, seasoned with coarse sea salt, and served with a silky homemade mayonnaise.
It’s straightforward, unpretentious, and utterly satisfying.
Serve straight from the grill with wedges of lemon, crisp bread, and let that mayo do the creamy talking.
2. Summer Sardine Escabeche
A simple dish that gets better with time.
Summer sardine escabeche is a dish you do after you’ve grilled a dozen sardines and still have more in the fridge.
Lightly fried, then steeped in a warm marinade of oil, vinegar, onion, bay leaves and paprika, sardines in escabeche take on deep flavour and keep happily for a few days in the fridge.
Best eaten at room temperature, with bread to mop and a drink in hand.
Think picnic, lunchbox, snack, starter – or all four.
Discover our recipe for Summer sardine escabeche.
3. Pasta Puttanesca with Sardines
Punchy, pantry-based, and ready in the time it takes to boil water.
This one’s for the evenings when you want maximum flavour with minimal effort.
Puttanesca is traditionally made with anchovies, capers, olives, garlic, and chilli – but sardines stand in beautifully, bringing a richer, meatier depth.
Use filleted sardines, either pan-fried fresh or grilled. Stir them into the sauce right at the end, just before tossing it all through hot pasta.
It’s salty, sharp, and surprisingly elegant for something built mostly from the back of the cupboard, and is excellent with spaghetti, linguine or even penne.
This recipe by Julius Roberts uses both anchovies and sardines – and is a great place to start if you haven’t cooked puttanesca before.
We also think our version of seasonal sardine puttanesca is pretty decent too!
Make the most of seasonal sardines
Sardines are in their prime in mid-to-late summer – cheap, plentiful, and packed with flavour.
They also freeze well. So even if you’re not ready to cook all of your sardines in one hit, stash a few away for those inevitbale rainy days.
And if you’ve got a favourite sardine recipe you think we’ve missed, tell us. We’re listening. And likely hungry.
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