This is another typical Sicilian dish. Sicily is very famous for its fresh fish. This pasta can be made with different fresh herbs. I personally like it with continental parsley and mint, but basil goes well with it too. It is usually served with busiati and you can have a go at making some by following my step by step instructions on How to make busiati in the Techniques page of this site, or you can easily serve it with short pasta. This time I have chosen to make it with sedanini lisci where lisci means smooth and to serve it with some finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano on the top. So, once again, I seem to be breaking some rules. Ridged pasta (rigata) is usually considered a better option for tomato based sauces as they tend to hold more sauce, but since fish has a delicate flavour, I wanted something more refined and less rough. As for the cheese, I already broke the “you-should-not-serve-cheese-on-pasta-with-fish” rule when I made Farfalle with salmon as to me taste is more important than rules and I think this pasta tastes so much better with Parmigiano than without it.
Ingredients for 4 persons:
200 gms swordfish, cubed
400 gms tomatoes, tinned
1 medium (or 2 small) onions, thinly sliced
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbs fresh parsley and/or mint and/or basil, finely chopped
1 medium eggplant
1/4 glass white wine
Salt to taste
Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated to serve
Cube the swordfish into 1.5 x 1.5 cm pieces and keep aside.
Thinly slice the onions and put them in a frying pan with the extra virgin olive oil. Sauté on a low fire until the onion is soft and translucent.
Add the cubed swordfish and cook it on all sides. Add the white wine and raise the flame to burn the alcohol off.
Add the tomatoes, lower the flame and let the sauce cook for at least 20 minutes. You may need to add a little water to keep the sauce from drying up.
In the meantime, cube the eggplant into 3 x 3 cm pieces and put them in a bowl filled with salty water. Keep them in the water for half an hour. This will make the eggplant less bitter.
Remove the eggplant from the water and dry it well. Deep fry it in hot vegetable oil and add to the cooked swordfish and tomato sauce. Add the chopped herbs and mix well.
Cook the sedanini lisci following the steps on How to cook pasta “al dente” in the Techniques page of this site, but drain it 1 minute before it is cooked as it will finish cooking together with the sauce. Put the drained pasta in the frying pan with the swordfish sauce, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and mix well while cooking it on a slow flame for 1 or 2 minutes.
Serve with thinly grated Parmigiano Reggiano on the top.
What a pretty dish! Love swordfish and eggplant!
I love cooking with eggplant because they absorb so much flavour from sauces and other ingredients. The eggplant cubes you used must be so tasty from the tomato based sauce!
Pfffth! That you-should-not-serve-cheese-on-pasta-with-fish” rule is dumb. Cheese away!
Awesome dish, loving the eggplant 🙂 Buzzed!
This looks amazing! Beautiful dish.
Beautiful Dish!!!! I love eggplants….. Everything in the pool of rich and luscious tomato sauce yummm……
Thanks Manu for a wonderful dish.
If this is breaking the rules, PLEASE continue to break the rules! 😀 p.s… I gave you a shot out in my latest post!
Never thought of combining swordfish and eggplant in a pasta dish! Sounds deliciously interesting, Manu!
I have recently started enjoying swordfish. This combination with eggplant looks rich and satisfying.
Wow, Manu!! It reminds me “pasta alla Norma”, but with swordfish in it (and with some variations, of course)… wonderful!
Looks very tasty. I love eggplant and swordfish!
I love eggplant because it sucks up all the sauce and flavors (well as well as oil…) and it makes it really nice flavor. And I love your stand on adding cheese. Kids like it more mild taste with cheese too… well I didn’t know we are not supposed to add cheese on fish pasta in general. Good to know, but I still might put cheese like you. 😉 I love this dish (well which dish I never liked among your collection?! None…!).
Manu, this made me so hungry! And it’s 10.30 in the morning here 🙂 Also, fabulous step-by-step photography.
What a lovely dish! I am craving fish now 🙂
You know Manu, I have never been a big fan of seafood but I see you post recipe after recipe and I really want to make them ALL..
maybe I don’t like seafood because I have never had it in interesting,flavorful recipes like yours
What a comforting pasta dinner! Looks delicious!
This looks so pretty and yummy, fish with pasta is relatively new to me..but with your wonderful recipe I am sure its going to be awesome
looks delicious!!! Love the combination and it’s making me hungry now.
This sounds really yummy, Manu! I love eggplant, but I have never had eggplant with fish before… Sounds good! I would love to try this one 🙂 thanks for sharing!
This looks so yummy! Wonder if Bill would notice the eggplant???? Probably 🙁
This looks like a very healthy dish, Manu! Not only it looks healthy, it is also hearty. Now, I am really hungry after I saw this post. Thank you, Manu!
~ ray ~
I love the combination of eggplant and swordfish… I did a similar dish myself only it was lasagne!