TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Pesce Spada alla GhiottaSwordfish alla Ghiotta
A celebrated Sicilian dish of swordfish from the Strait of Messina, given sweet-sour flavor with olives, capers, pine nuts and raisins. Ghiotta means greedy, a name reflecting the many layers of flavor from its varied ingredients.
AUTHENTICITY SCORE
Authenticity Score
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Ingredients (2 servings)
- Swordfish steaksAsk for steaks 2 cm thick.400 g (2 steaks)
- Pitted green and black olives80 g
- Capers30 g
- CeleryThinly sliced2 stalks
- Canned peeled tomatoes200 g
- Pine nuts30 g
- Raisins (soaked in water)30 g
- White wine vinegar40 ml
- SugarFor the sweetness in the agrodolce.15 g
- Extra virgin olive oil60 ml
- Cake flourFor coating and browning the swordfish.30 g
- Salt and black pepperas needed
Method
Slice the celery
- 1 Thinly slice 2 celery stalks.
Sear the swordfish
- 1 Season the swordfish with salt and black pepper and dust lightly with flour.
- 2 Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and brown over medium-high heat for 2 minutes on each side, then remove; the center may still be partly raw.
Ready when
Continue once both sides are browned. The center may still be partly raw.
Sauté the sauce base
- 1 Sauté the celery in the same pan.
- 2 Add capers, olives, 30 g pine nuts and 30 g raisins and sauté for 2 minutes.
Ready when
Continue after 2 minutes.
Reduce the agrodolce sauce
- 1 Crush and add 200 g whole tomatoes.
- 2 Add 40 ml white wine vinegar and 15 g sugar and reduce for 5 minutes.
Ready when
After 5 minutes, continue when the sauce thickens and smells sweet and sour.
Finish the swordfish
- 1 Return the swordfish to the sauce, cover and simmer over low heat for 5–7 minutes.
- 2 Plate with plenty of sauce.
Ready when
After 5–7 minutes, the dish is ready when the swordfish is fully cooked.
About this dish
The Strait of Messina has some of the Mediterranean's strongest currents, and the swordfish passing through are exceptionally rich. Sicilian fishermen practice their traditional fishing from May to August each year and have cooked the fresh catch in many ways.
Alla ghiotta means 'like a glutton,' or in an appetite-stimulating way. Swordfish is simmered in an agrodolce, or sweet-sour, sauce combining tomatoes, olives, capers, raisins and pine nuts.
The structure of this sauce attests to the lasting influence of Arab cooking in Sicily. The pairing of raisins and pine nuts reached the island during Arab rule in the 9th–11th centuries and has remained part of its cuisine ever since.
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