Red mullet, olive oil, celery and onions, cooked on the roof of Il Polpo Nero: where the fish comes from in the south of Sardinia, how we make triglie alla plancha, and what to pour with it.
The first episode of A tavola, on our Instagram, is very short. Fresh red mullet rinsed under the brass tap. Gutted on a round board. Laid on the plancha of the little outdoor kitchen on the roof, next to a pile of celery and onions softening in olive oil. Then the plate, with the white house behind it. The caption said everything there was to say: "Red mullet, olive oil, celery, onions, and the house behind."
Triglie alla plancha is not a recipe anyone invented. It is what you do with a small, bright, very fresh fish when you have a hot surface and no wish to complicate things. This is how we do it, and a few things worth knowing before you buy the fish.
Where red mullet comes from in the south of Sardinia
In the south of the island, the place to go for fish is Cagliari's Mercato di San Benedetto, about 35 kilometres up the coast from Pula. If you knew it before, it has moved. The old market building on Via Cocco Ortu closed in March 2025 to be rebuilt, and the traders now work from a temporary hall in Piazza Nazzari, a short walk away: some 170 traders under one roof, fishmongers included. The city's tourist office gives the hours as 7:00 to 14:00 on weekdays and 7:00 to 15:00 on Saturdays, closed on Sundays. Go early, because the best fish goes first, and check the hours before you set off. The local press expects the rebuilt market to open by the end of 2027.
For the rest of the morning, see a day in Cagliari, from Castello to the Marina. Closer to the house, ask us where to buy fish that morning.
Triglia di scoglio or triglia di fango?
The triglia di scoglio, the rock mullet (Mullus surmuletus), lives close to the coast, over rock, gravel and sea grass, mostly in water shallower than a hundred metres. It has a gently sloping head, golden stripes along its flanks and dark bands on its first dorsal fin. The triglia di fango, the mud mullet (Mullus barbatus), prefers mud and sand, has a short, almost vertical snout and plain fins, and is mostly caught by trawlers. Both have the two barbels under the chin that they use to dig for food, which is how you know you are looking at a mullet at all.
Either works on the plancha. What matters is freshness: bright eyes, firm flesh and a colour that has not faded. As for size, the legal minimum is 11 centimetres, which is very small, and the sustainable seafood programme Mr Goodfish recommends 15 centimetres or more in the Mediterranean. Count two fish of about 150 grams per person. Red mullet spawn in late spring and early summer, and Italian seasonal calendars list them among the fish of autumn and winter, which makes December a perfectly good month to cook them, wherever you are.
How we cook triglie alla plancha
On the roof at Il Polpo Nero there is a small outdoor kitchen with a plancha, a fridge and a sink, which is all this dish needs. At home, a cast-iron griddle or your heaviest frying pan will do the same job. The only rules are a very hot surface, very dry fish, and the patience not to move it too soon.
Triglie alla plancha with celery and onions
Serves 4. Preparation 20 minutes, cooking 15 minutes.
Ingredients
- 8 red mullet, about 150 g each (1.2 kg in all), or 12 smaller ones
- 2 white onions (about 300 g)
- 3 sticks of celery, with their pale inner leaves
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 1 lemon, to serve (optional)
Method
- Clean the fish. Under cold running water, scrape off the scales with the back of a knife, from tail to head; they come away easily. Slit the belly, remove the guts and rinse. Pat the fish very dry, inside and out. (Or ask the fishmonger to do all of this.)
- Prepare the vegetables. Slice the onions into thin half-moons and the celery thinly on the diagonal. Set the celery leaves aside.
- Heat the plancha. Turn it to high and give it five minutes. A cast-iron pan needs three or four minutes over a high flame.
- Cook the celery and onions. Put them on the cooler side of the plancha with 2 tablespoons of oil and a pinch of salt. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, turning now and then, until soft, sweet and catching a little at the edges. Push them aside to keep warm.
- Cook the fish. Rub the fish with 2 tablespoons of oil and salt them inside and out. Lay them on the hottest part of the plancha and leave them alone for 3 minutes. When the skin is crisp it will come away on its own: turn them once and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more. Larger fish, around 200 g, need about 4 minutes a side. They are done when the flesh at the thickest point is opaque and lifts easily from the bone.
- Serve. Pile the celery and onions on a warm dish, lay the fish on top, pour over the last 2 tablespoons of oil and scatter the celery leaves and a little pepper. Lemon on the side, for those who want it. Eat straight away, with your fingers for the last bits.
What to drink with red mullet: a Vermentino from the south
A cold Vermentino di Sardegna, and preferably one from the south of the island. A few we like:
- Argiolas, Costamolino. From Serdiana, in the hills north of Cagliari: a crisp, dry, savoury Vermentino di Sardegna DOC, which the estate itself suggests with seafood and fish stews. Tastings are by booking.
- Pala, Soprasole. Also from Serdiana, where the Pala family made its first harvest in 1950: a Vermentino di Sardegna DOC from old vines on limestone at Ussana.
- Cantine di Dolianova, Prendas. A Vermentino di Sardegna DOC from the vineyards around Dolianova. The cellar runs guided visits with tastings, Monday to Saturday, on booking.
- Cantina Santadi, Villa Solais. From the Sulcis, in the south-west, a cellar better known for its Carignano; Villa Solais is its Vermentino di Sardegna DOC.
If you would rather drink it where it is made, we have more ideas in our week in the south of Sardinia.
Or let someone else cook
If you would rather sit at the table and watch the sea, a private chef can cook for you at the house, on request. Francesco Stara, the chef of Fradis Minoris, on the Nora lagoon at Pula, which held the only Michelin star in the south of Sardinia in the 2026 guide, can bring a dinner of his own to the roof. For something more like Sunday lunch at a friend's, Marzia Aroffu, named Cuoca d'Italia in 2018, cooks a family-style dinner, also on request. Everything we can arrange is on our experiences page, and our guide to Michelin dining around Pula has the restaurant itself.
More from the table
A tavola is a series on our Instagram, and this dish was its first episode. Its companion, Una giornata, tells a summer day at the house one moment at a time; you can read it here as Una giornata, a summer day at Il Polpo Nero. And if you would like to cook triglie alla plancha on that roof, with the sea behind you, write to us and ask for dates.
Lola
The house
Il Polpo Nero, Perd'e Sali, near Pula, South Sardinia. Ten guests, a pool, and a rooftop kitchen facing the sunrise.
