Cuban-Style Sardine Pasta with Tomato Sauce

Sauté the finely chopped onion in olive oil until softened and lightly golden. Add the crushed garlic and Turkish red pepper flakes and cook for a few seconds. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, then add half of a 200 ml measure of hot water to thin the sauce.

Drain and check the sardines for bones, then add them to the sauce and flake them gently with a fork. Add the salt and black pepper and simmer over a low heat for another 10 minutes.

Boil the pasta in plenty of well-salted water for 1 minute less than the packet instructions suggest. Before draining, reserve half of a 200 ml measure of the pasta water.

Add the cooked pasta to the sauce and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes with the reserved pasta water. Remove from the heat and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Drizzle with lemon juice and serve with chopped parsley.