PORTUGUESE GRILLED SARDINES

Ideal as a starter, grilled sardines often make their way onto local restaurant menus when the annual Sardine Run appears off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal.

12 sardines

5 tsp sea salt, plus extra for sprinkling

3 Tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1.      Rinse the sardines, then sprinkle liberally with the sea salt. Set aside for at least 1 hour.

2.      Preheat the oven grill.

3.      Rinse the sardines under running water and then dry them with kitchen paper. Brush the sardines with the olive oil and then grill for several minutes each side until they are cooked (they can also be done over hot coals).

4.      Drizzle a little olive oil over each sardine, sprinkle with sea salt and serve immediately.

Serves 4

 

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SARDINES

The Sardine Run is the phenomenon that occurs along the east coast of southern Africa from May to July, when billions of sardines, or more accurately pilchards, spawn in the cool waters of the Agulhas Bank and move northward along the coast of South Africa. The run occurs when a current of cold water heads north from the Agulhas Bank up to Mozambique where it then leaves the coastline and swings east into the Indian Ocean.

Little, however, is known of the phenomenon. It is believed that the water temperature has to drop below 21 °C in order for the migration to take place. The run is sometimes sporadic, with the sardines failing to show in 2003 and 2006.

The shoals are often more than seven kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and 30 metres deep, and the sheer number of fish creates a feeding frenzy. Dolphins are largely responsible for rounding up the sardines into what are known as bait balls. Once the sardines are rounded up, sharks and other game fish, including tuna, as well as various bird species feed on the shoals. Cape fur seals have also been known to follow the shoals up the Eastern Cape coastline as far as Port St Johns.

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