Sardines with Batak Pepper & Turmeric

Sardines with Batak Pepper and Turmeric from la belle-iloise

Sardines with Batak pepper and turmeric from la belle-iloise are whole sardines in mild rapeseed oil, seasoned with a berry from the highlands of Sumatra. Their bright citrus note meets turmeric, which gives the oil its golden color and underlying earthy warmth.

Sardines with Batak pepper and turmeric are a spiced tinned fish from la belle-iloise in Quiberon, Brittany. Inside the flat tin are whole sardines in rapeseed oil, accompanied by lemon juice and the very berry known as Andaliman on Sumatra, where it has been a staple for fish dishes since time immemorial.

A tingle that tastes like grapefruit peel

Batak pepper first tingles only slightly on the tongue and then releases the bright notes of grapefruit peel that linger over the sardine.

Turmeric settles underneath, earthy and with a fine bitterness, coloring the oil that deep gold familiar from curry. The rapeseed oil remains in the background because it has very little flavor of its own, allowing both spices to come through unimpeded. The lemon juice keeps the recipe bright and the fish fresh, with its firm, dark meat effortlessly supporting the seasoning.

A little potato starch thickens the sauce so that the spices cling to the fillet rather than collecting at the bottom of the tin.

On baguette, in rice salad, with steamed vegetables

The seasoning stands out most clearly when served plain on crusty baguette, with the dry bread soaking up the golden oil and its color.

In a lukewarm salad of rice or quinoa, the berry and root together provide an accent that no European spice can quite replicate. When served with steamed vegetables and a splash of coconut milk, it creates a dish that tastes of distant travels, as the milk softens the tingle and carries the earthy note forward. Take the tin out of the cold in good time so that the oil becomes liquid again and the aromas can open up.

A glass of dry white wine pairs well, as does a dry cider from Brittany on warm evenings. Those who prefer something more classic will find the familiar side of the company in our sardines in tomato sauce.

The berry from Lake Toba

Batak pepper grows wild on thorny bushes around Lake Toba on Sumatra and is hand-picked while the clusters are still green.

It is named after the Batak people, whose cuisine would be incomplete without it: in Arsik, the carp dish from the Indonesian highlands, the berry has seasoned fish for generations. It is precisely this ancient connection that la belle-iloise has captured and placed into a Breton tin. Turmeric also comes from that same culinary tradition, extracted from the rhizome of a ginger relative often found in gardens throughout Southeast Asia.

For this recipe, la belle-iloise uses rapeseed oil instead of the olive oil found in their classics, because a neutral oil lets the exotic spices take center stage. Dried and ground, both spices are added to the tin just before sealing, where they slowly infuse the meat over the course of months.

The tin for an evening with curious guests

As a starter for four, the tin is sufficient when served with plenty of baguette; for a main course with rice, it is better to plan on two. Unopened, it will sit ready in a dark cupboard for years until the occasion calls for something unusual. What else comes from Quiberon can be found in our la belle-iloise selection, and further tinned fish can be found right next to it.

Content 115 g – Drained weight 87 g