Saury Archives - Sardeenz!

Patagonia Provisions Smoked Wild Pink Salmon

This Patagonia Provisions Smoked Wild Pink Salmon was found on sale at Whole Foods at the same time as their smoked salmon with pastrami spice. The only difference appears to be the pastrami part. Let's see how this one compares.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.8/5.

Again a fraction of a point deducted for that empty space in the can. The aroma is smoky and sweet, courtesy of natural wood smoke and organic brown sugar. A sip of the broth echoes both.

Let's Eat

Out of the tin, you can better appreciate the bronze color from the natural smoke. There's still some skin attached, and some drops of fat exuding here and there. Both will contribute to a more unctuous mouth feel.

There were a couple of tablespoons of broth left in the tin, and I poured it over everything.

The meat is al dente, as expected, but flakes readily. On the palate, the smoke and brown sugar are well-balanced. Salt is a reasonable 510mg., maybe a little low for this type of product.

Absent other flavor embellishments such as the one from Fishwife, this one compares reasonably well to similar competition from Wildfish Cannery.

Main Takeaways

Firm, meaty salmon
Well-balanced smoke and seasoning

If there's any complaint to air, it's that another half ounce or so could have fit in the tin. The $7.64 Whole Foods/Amazon Prime sale price made it more than reasonable, though.

Brand: Patagonia Provisions
Description: Smoked Wild Pink Salmon
Species: Pink salmon
Country of Origin: WA, USA
Source: FAO67, Northeast Pacific
Skin/Bones: Yes/No
Net Wt: 3 oz.
Price Range: $10

J-Basket Sanma Kabayaki

DeenLeave a comment

I purchased this J-Basket Sanma Kabayaki at the same time as some of their Saba Kabayaki. The terms sanma and saury are interchangeable. I had some other saury kabayaki before, and wanted to compare brands. These were under $3 at a local Asian market.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.5/5.

It still has that drab, beige color the kabayaki sauce imparts. I noted a mild fishy aroma, but not off-putting. The flavor is the same mildly sweet and savory found in the others. The texture is a little tougher than mackerel, but is tender enough.

The can is packed quite full. At 3.5 ounces, it is mostly fish with barely a tablespoon of liquid. I noted a few visible hair-like bones, and crunched on just a couple of small others. A little skin here and there as well.

Dumped out and spread over rice, you can see it's a generous portion packed into the small can.

I've mentioned before that I thought I would be done with the whole kabayaki thing when I ran out of what I had on hand, but it's grown on me a little. I just wish some of these Japanese canned fish came in unseasoned versions in order to get a sense of their natural flavor.

Main Takeaways

Typical kabayaki tinned fish preparation
Generous portion courtesy of minimal canning liquid
Previous dismissal of kabayaki may have been premature

Brand: J-Basket
Description: Sanma Kabayaki
Species: Pacific saury
Country of Origin: Japan
Source: FAO61, Northwest Pacific
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 3.5 oz.
Price Range: $2-3

Choshita Saury Kabayaki

DeenLeave a comment

I went out on a limb and ordered a couple of Japanese tinned fish selections, including these Choshita Saury Kabayaki. They ended up being a little mystery to be solved, as the package received had no English, not even an added sticker like imported cans often do.

Pacific saury, also known as sanma, is apparently a popular seasonal fish commonly enjoyed in the Japanese autumn. The kanji characters of the Japanese name literally translate as "autumn knife fish". It is a shallow water fish which grows to a length of about 12 inches.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 3.5/5.

What little research I had done about kabayaki prior to opening the can led me to expect a coloration characteristic of a soy sauce-based glaze. So, even though the brown color was not exactly appetizing (IMO), it wasn't a surprise.

I chose to consume these over a bowl of rice, which I understand is how they are commonly served. This allowed me to just pour out the entire contents so as to savor the entire preparation. "Kabayaki" means grilled and basted with a sweet and savory glaze. Although I have to say the grilled aspect might have been lost in the canning process. Either that or the glaze just overpowered any grilled flavor.

There were a few crunchy bones, maybe 3 or 4 vertebrae, but that was all that was apparent. I found nothing off-putting in either the texture or the flavor. I have a second can and might try frying them up before serving to see if that adds anything to the experience.

Main Takeaways

Preparation style overpowers the flavor of the fish
Might be better heated

See it on Amazon.

Brand: Choshita [Tawara Canning Co.Ltd]
Description: Saury Kabayaki
Species: Saury
Country of Origin: Japan
Source: FAO61, Northwest Pacific
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 3.5 oz.
Price Range: $5-6