Ahh how time flies. It’s two months since I last posted here. I missed posting last month because my laptop was being repaired and after that, I was busy with tax submission. Anyway, all is well now and here’s a simple and delicious recipe for you all.
I first learned about French rillettes in the form of pork rillettes. While I haven’t tried making pork rillettes before I’ve made sardine rillettes many a time. Rillettes are meat cooked slowly in its own fat and then shredded and mixed with the warm fat and packed into small pots. The surface is then sealed with a layer of fat to preserve the meat (like pâté). In the case of sardine rillettes using canned sardines in oil, you only need to mix the sardines with the oil from the can, then shred and season.
Sardine rillettes is quick to whip up and tasty. Perfect food for when you’re busy!
Let’s make sardine rillettes.
Gather the ingredients into a plate; sardines, oil from the can, cream cheese, chopped spring onion, chopped shallots and freshly ground black pepper. Use canned wild-caught sardines as they are the best. Ignore the sliced lemon for now.
First, coarsely mash the sardines with cream cheese. Then, mix everything together on the plate.
Next, add organic apple cider vinegar or lemon juice to taste. Begin by adding 1 teaspoon and taste until it’s to your liking. The acid will cover the fishy smell (if any) and give the rillettes a refreshing taste.
My preferred choice is organic apple cider vinegar as I always have it on hand plus it’s less tangy and is not soapy like lemon. Regarding the sliced lemon in the previous photo, I used it as I happened to have it. Also, I don’t use all of the juice from that sliced lemon. I adjusted it according to my preference.
Some if not most canned sardines and cream cheese contain salt. Taste the rillettes before seasoning it so you can agak-agak (estimate) how much salt more you need to add. The canned sardines and cream cheese that I used contains salt already. So, I only added a few tiny pinches of sea salt to round up the flavors.
Put the sardine rillettes into a ramekin or bowl and chill it for at least an hour. Serve it chill or at room temperature.
Sardine rillettes is ma favorite! 🐟❤️😋
When it comes to serving sardine rillettes, there are many ways. On crackers, bread, lettuce leaves, celery sticks, and tomatoes are the obvious choices. Then there are the options of having it as is and on eggs and bacon. What else do you have in mind?
Sardine rillettes on Auvergne dark rye sourdough bread. Sardine rillettes IS for me a full meal. 😛
Give it a try and let me know if you like sardine rillettes.
Sardine Rillettes
Serve 1
1 can of wild-caught sardines in extra virgin olive oil (110g~130g)
5 teaspoons oil from the canned sardine
70g~80g cream cheese
1 stalk spring onion, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
two pinches of freshly ground black pepper
1~2 teaspoons or to taste, organic apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
fine sea salt, to taste
Method:
1. Place sardines and 5 teaspoons of the oil from the can, cream cheese, chopped spring onion, chopped shallots and freshly ground black pepper on the plate.
2. Mash and mix the sardines and cream cheese coarsely. Then, bring everything on the plate together.
3. Next, add the organic apple cider vinegar or lemon juice starting with 1 teaspoon. Mix, taste and add more until it’s to your preferred liking. You can use either organic apple cider vinegar or lemon. Typically I use organic apple cider vinegar (ACV) as I seldom buy lemons nowadays plus I love ACV more.
4. If your canned sardines and cream cheese contain salt (check the ingredient list), make sure to taste the rillettes before seasoning it. If you feel it needs salt, add them. I added two small pinches of sea salt to this batch although both the canned sardines and cream cheese are salted.
5. Transfer the sardine rillettes into a ramekin or bowl. Chill for at least an hour before serving. This will allow the flavors to mingle. Serve on crackers, toasted bread, lettuce leaves, celery sticks and more or eat it as is! It tastes even better the next day but who can resist?
Enjoy!
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