How to Grill SardinesThe Portuguese Summer Method

To grill sardines the Portuguese way, buy fresh, fat sardines in summer, leave them whole with heads and guts in, rub them with coarse sea salt for 20–30 minutes, then grill them over very hot charcoal embers for about 3–4 minutes per side until the skin blisters. Eat them straight away on a slice of bread.

That's sardinhas assadas, the smell of every Portuguese summer. It's one of the simplest dishes in the country, and one of the easiest to get wrong abroad.

When are sardines in season?

Sardines are at their best from June to September. In late spring they start feeding heavily, and by midsummer they're plump and full of fat, which is what makes them juicy on the grill. In winter they're thin and dry, and fishing is restricted for part of the year to protect stocks.

That's why sardines are the food of the Santos Populares, the June festivals for Saint Anthony, Saint John and Saint Peter. On the night of 12–13 June, Lisbon's old neighbourhoods fill with charcoal smoke. Our Santos Populares food guide covers the whole menu.

Outside the season, or outside Portugal, you can still grill sardines, but choose the biggest, shiniest fish you can find.

How to choose fresh sardines

• Bright, clear eyes and shiny, silver-blue skin.
• Firm bodies that don't bend limply when you hold them by the head.
• A clean sea smell, never fishy or sour.
• Scales still on. Lots of loose scales in the box is a good sign of freshness, not a bad one.
• Size: medium to large. Tiny sardines fall through the grill and dry out.

Allow 5–8 sardines per person as a main course. In Portugal people eat a lot of them.

Do you gut sardines before grilling?

No. In Portugal, sardines are grilled whole: head, scales, guts and all. There are good reasons:

• The skin and scales protect the flesh from the fierce heat.
• The guts keep the fish moist, and the fat around them adds flavour.
• The fish keep their shape and don't fall apart on the grill.

You don't eat the guts. You lift the fillets off the bone and leave the head, spine and insides behind. If you really don't want them, buy larger fish and ask the fishmonger to gut them, but expect drier sardines.

Salting: coarse salt, not fine

Put the sardines in a bowl or tray and scatter them generously with coarse sea salt (sal grosso). Toss them gently and leave them in the fridge for 20–30 minutes. Some cooks salt them in layers up to an hour ahead.

Don't rinse the salt off. Shake off the excess and grill. Coarse salt seasons the fish slowly and helps the skin crisp. Fine table salt dissolves too fast and makes them taste salty on the surface. Our flor de sal guide explains the different Portuguese salts.

Portuguese

Algarve sea salt

Sea salt from the Algarve salt pans, for coarse-salt roasting batatas a murro and for finishing grilled fish.

Tip: A little goes a long way. Use it for finishing, not boiling water.

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Charcoal heat and grilling time

Portuguese sardine grills are low, wide charcoal grills, and the trick is heat without flames.

1. Light the charcoal well ahead. Wait until the coals are glowing and covered in white ash, about 30–40 minutes. Flames will blacken the fish.
2. Use a hinged double grill (a sardine basket) if you have one. It lets you turn a whole row at once without tearing the skin.
3. Oil the grill bars, not the fish.
4. Grill for 3–4 minutes on the first side until the skin blisters and lifts off the bars easily. Don't move them before then.
5. Turn once and grill for another 2–3 minutes.
6. They're done when the flesh near the spine is opaque and lifts away from the bone.

Fat dripping onto the coals will flare up. Move the basket aside for a few seconds rather than spraying water on the fire. For a whole Portuguese barbecue menu, see our Portuguese churrasco guide.

How to eat grilled sardines

In Portugal, grilled sardines are served on a thick slice of bread, either rustic wheat bread or broa, the dense corn bread from the north. The bread catches the oil and juices, and you eat it last.

1. Lay the sardine on the bread.
2. Pull the skin back with a fork or your fingers.
3. Lift the top fillet off the bone and eat it.
4. Lift away the spine and head in one piece, and eat the bottom fillet.
5. Finish with the soaked bread.

Serve with salada de pimentos assados (roasted pepper salad with garlic and olive oil), boiled potatoes and a green salad. A cold glass of vinho verde is the classic drink. Read our vinho verde guide and Portuguese bread guide for what to buy.

How to cook sardines without a barbecue

Grilling indoors works, but warn the neighbours. Sardines smell strongly.

In the oven

Heat the oven grill (broiler) to its highest setting, or the oven to 240 °C. Put the salted sardines on a rack over a tray lined with foil, close to the heat, and cook for 4–5 minutes per side until the skin blisters.

In an air fryer

The air fryer is the cleanest indoor method. Cook salted sardines at 200 °C for about 8–10 minutes, turning once, in a single layer. Our air fryer sardinhas assadas recipe gives exact quantities.

Amazon best seller

Cosori TurboBlaze 6 Qt Air Fryer

One of Amazon's best-selling air fryers. The 6 Qt basket fits a batch of pastéis de bacalhau or chicken thighs for four, and the ceramic coating is PFAS-free.

Tip: Size is what matters for Portuguese cooking: 5.5–6 Qt feeds 2–4 people in one batch.

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In a griddle pan

A very hot cast-iron griddle works for a few fish at a time. Open the windows first.

From the shop

What you’ll need

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Portuguese

Algarve sea salt

Sea salt from the Algarve salt pans, for coarse-salt roasting batatas a murro and for finishing grilled fish.

Tip: A little goes a long way. Use it for finishing, not boiling water.

View on Amazon

Amazon best seller

Cosori TurboBlaze 6 Qt Air Fryer

One of Amazon's best-selling air fryers. The 6 Qt basket fits a batch of pastéis de bacalhau or chicken thighs for four, and the ceramic coating is PFAS-free.

Tip: Size is what matters for Portuguese cooking: 5.5–6 Qt feeds 2–4 people in one batch.

View on Amazon

Portuguese

Bordallo Pinheiro ceramic sardine

Every June, Bordallo Pinheiro asks artists to paint its ceramic sardine for the Lisbon festivals. A small piece of Portugal for a shelf or wall, and a great gift.

Tip: Each design is by a different artist. This one is "10 Springs" by Gonçalo Viana.

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