School of Casserole
Baked Sardine and Tomato Bacalhau-Style Casserole with Crispy Herb Breadcrumbs
50 minutes
Serves 4
DinnerPortugueseGluten-freeNut-freeSoy-free
Herb's take
Portugal’s iconic bacalhau gets a tinned twist by swapping cod for canned sardines, briny, bold, and seriously underrated. You’ll learn the trick to a crisp, flavorful breadcrumb topping and how to treat sardines with the reverence usually reserved for their cod cousins.
Equipment needed
- 2-quart baking dish
- large skillet
Ingredients
Yield
4
Instructions
- 01Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly oil a 2-quart baking dish.
- 02Place the potato slices in a medium pot, cover with cold water, and add a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer and cook for 8 minutes, until just tender but not falling apart. Drain and set aside.
- 03Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and golden, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook 1 minute longer.
- 04Add drained tomatoes, bay leaf, and paprika to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until most of the liquid evaporates, about 6 minutes.
- 05Remove skillet from heat. Gently fold in the sardines, half the parsley, and lemon zest. Carefully break sardines into large chunks but don’t shred entirely.
- 06Arrange half the potatoes in a shingled layer in the baking dish. Top with half the sardine-tomato mixture. Repeat with remaining potatoes and sardine mixture.
- 07In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and half of the lemon juice with a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour evenly over the casserole.
- 08In another bowl, toss bread crumbs with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, thyme, and remaining parsley. Sprinkle over the casserole.
- 09Bake uncovered for 25–30 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown on top.
- 10Let rest 10 minutes before serving, then drizzle with a little extra lemon juice.
Want your own recipe?
Toss me some ingredients in the Recipe Lab and I'll invent three recipes on the spot. Just for you.