smoked Archives - Page 4 of 5

JOSÉ Gourmet Smoked Small Sardines in EVOO

Another selection from a recent online order, these JOSÉ Gourmet Smoked Small Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil were intriguing. The majority of smoked sardines are sprats/brisling, so I welcomed the opportunity to try smoked pilchards, and especially some from a premium quality producer.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.9/5.

The five you see are what you get. This is one of those shallower cans. I was hoping for smaller fish, but that's OK. The initial whiff when cracking open the can was similar to that of tinned smoked oysters. The carton doesn't specify how the smoke flavor is achieved, but one has to assume from the firmness of the fish, the bronze appearance of the skin and the pink hue to the flesh that these are naturally wood smoked. A sip of the oil has, for lack of a better word, a "woody" note, like the oak-y notes of a fine red wine.

Some pelvic fins remain, but no scales evident. They are firm enough to be pulled from the can intact. The fish is tender but with that al dente bite smoked fish often exhibit. The smoke level is just right, not overpowering the taste of the fish.

Using EVOO is always welcome, but any flavor notes it might have imparted were masked by the smoke.

All in all, though, another quality selection from JOSÉ Gourmet.

Reasonably priced in lots of three at Amazon.

Main Takeaways

Not really all that small
Great smoky aroma and flavor
Good overall balance lets fish flavor still shine through

Brand: 100 Misterios / JOSÉ Gourmet
Description: Smoked Small Sardines
Species: Pilchards
Country of Origin: Portugal
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 3.2 oz.
Price Range: $9

Wildfish Cannery Habanero Smoked Coho Salmon

DeenLeave a comment

I've been waiting to crack open this Wildfish Cannery Habanero Smoked Coho Salmon for some time now. I tried a few other cans of various smoked salmon in the interim, and wanted to have a broader frame of reference before trying this more premium offering.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 5/5.

Impressive. From the deep color to the marbling of the fish to the aroma of smoke and the myriad seasonings, just impressive. Extracting a small bite, the flavor and texture are overwhelming in multiple (good) ways: smoky, heat, sweet, savory, salty; the meat al dente from the authentic smoking process. I found it hard to stop picking bites directly from the can. But I wanted to get it out over some rice to get all of that sauce. Here's what's in it:

Wild Alaska Coho salmon, habanero hot sauce (Alaskan bull kelp, fermented peppers, mango puree, water, vinegar, agave, salt, conc. lime juice, garlic, xanthan, rosemary extract, dried habanero pepper), sea salt, brown sugar, garlic, and black pepper.

There is some skin with a thin layer of fat adding to the mouth feel. As I ate more of it, I found the heat to be steady, not at all fatiguing on the palate.

The complexity of the flavor of the sauce was deep and, again, impressive. There's that word again.

The salt, however, was another story. The carton says the contents is two servings, so the total for the can is 840mg. sodium. That's kind of pushing it. Still, it didn't seem untenable, just quite noticeable.

All things considered, there's much to recommend this one.

Main Takeaways

Impressive color, aroma and texture
Steady, balanced habanero heat
Complex flavors from a baker's dozen of ingredients

See it at Amazon. Unfortunately, a little pricier there than elsewhere, but can be had in eaches.

Brand: Wildfish Cannery
Description: Habanero Smoked Coho Salmon
Species: Alaskan Coho salmon
Country of Origin: USA
Source: FAO67, Northeast Pacific
Skin/Bones: Yes/No
Net Wt: 4.2 oz.
Price Range: $10

Trader Joe’s Lightly Smoked Salmon

DeenLeave a comment

I keep seeing this Trader Joe's Lightly Smoked Salmon when I visit the store. It wasn't all that expensive. None of their canned fish is, really. The applewood smoke claim made it sound appealing. For $4, I took a chance.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 3.5/5.

Seems to be quite a bit of headroom filled with oil that could have easily been more fish. According to the can, the oil is about 30% of the contents. It doesn't really look like what one would expect a smoked salmon to look like. (Compare to the Wild Planet.) The oil is neutral, and doesn't taste of the fish, nor smoke, at all. The meat was stuck firmly to the can, and would not lift out in any large pieces. A taste of the fish reveals it is buttery soft and mild in flavor. But no trace of the promised applewood smoke. I also thought it could have used a little more salt.

The can says farm-raised and from Chile. Which explains why it's quite reminiscent of supermarket variety fresh salmon, but just swimming in oil. The can says EVOO, but it had none of the notes one looks for in a good extra virgin. Don't get me wrong, this wasn't bad, I just think the can over-promises and the contents under-delivers.

Main Takeaways

Applewood smoke MIA
Tender, mild fish but needed salt
Not the smoked salmon you're thinking of that costs three times more

Brand: Trader Joe's
Description: Salmon in EVOO, lightly smoked
Species: Atlantic salmon, farmed
Country of Origin: Chile
Source: FAO N/A
Skin/Bones: No/No
Net Wt: 5 oz.
Price Range: $4

Patagonia Provisions Smoked Mussels in EVOO

DeenLeave a comment

This can of Patagonia Provisions Smoked Mussels has been lingering on my shelf for a while. I got them at Whole Foods a couple of months ago when they were on sale. I really liked their spicy mussels, and hoped these would be as good.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.9/5.

These look good. Smell good, too. The aroma of the sea and smoke combined. They look like they're in some kind of golden sauce. The ingredients say mussels, mussel broth, EVOO, water, salt, natural wood smoke.

Contrary to package direction, I ate them straight from the can. I counted twelve mussels, give or take one. They are firm and meaty.

Now for the taste. The non-mussel ingredients have somehow combined into this velvety, salty, buttery goodness that the smoke complements but doesn't overpower. It's almost like a New England style chowder in a can. I want to open another can right now, but don't have one.

Main Takeaways

A taste of the sea in a can
Nice meaty mussels
Flavor combination greater than the sum of its parts

See it at Amazon. The price there isn't too bad right now. The sale at WF put the Prime member price under $6.

Brand: Patagonia Provisions
Description: Patagonia Provisions Smoked Mussels in EVOO
Species: N/S
Country of Origin: Spain
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: No/No
Net Wt: 4.2 oz.
Price Range: $7-8

Wild Planet Wild Smoked Pink Salmon

DeenLeave a comment

Officially described as Wild Planet Wild Smoked Pink Salmon in Extra Virgin Olive Oil. First foray into tinned salmon. I remember the tall round cans years ago from which my mother made salmon salad. It had the little cylindrical vertebrae bones in it that would just pulverize on contact, the only fish bones I wasn't afraid of getting stuck in my throat as a child. While boneless, this salmon is quite different from that in all other respects.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4/5.

I guess I was expecting more than I should have. I've seen those cans of really premium smoked salmon reviewed, and that stuff is amazing-looking. Of course, it also costs twice to three times as much.

This is boneless, but not skinless. It ended up being mostly skinless because most of the skin stuck to the bottom of the can when I pried it out.

The flavor is very smoke forward, almost to the point of overpowering the fish flavor. The package doesn't say if the fish is naturally wood smoked or artificially flavored. Ads claim it is wood-fire smoked.

We eat fresh, broiled salmon regularly, so the tougher texture of this was also comparatively surprising. I think I'll chalk this one up to experience, and maybe check into that more spendy one I've seen that I thought looked so appealing.

Main Takeaways

Smoke stronger than necessary
Superior to most supermarket varieties
Better versions far more costly

See it at Amazon.

Brand: Wild Planet
Description: Wild Smoked Pink Salmon in EVOO
Species: Oncorhynchus gorbuscha
Country of Origin: Latvia
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/No
Net Wt: 3.9 oz.
Price Range: $5

MW Polar Brisling Sardines in Olive Oil

DeenLeave a comment

Bought these MW Polar Brisling Sardines in Olive Oil after failing to note that what I had bought before was packed in canola oil. Those were in a regular metal pull-top can, and, even though packed in canola, I thought were quite good. Finding these seemed to be a happy coincidence, as they were in olive oil, had a higher net weight and were by far cheaper. Be careful what you wish for.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.8/5.

They had that same bronze color from real smoke, and were packed nicely, with 10 fish visible on the top layer, fewer and larger than in the stock photo. Then-- you guessed it-- only 3 fish under that. Not really much different than the metal pull-top can.

While these tasted fine, there was a good bit of tail prickliness, to the point that I bit off the tails and didn't eat them. I do wonder if a higher visible fish count through the clear cover, i.e. smaller fish, would translate to more tender, non-prickly tails. But I have also seen it asserted that prickly tails are not uncommon in brisling sourced from Latvia.

I'm ambivalent about buying them in this format again, as I really think there were more and better fish in the 3.52 oz. can than in this 4.23 oz. one. At around $2.50, they were way cheaper, but not as satisfying, overall.

Main Takeaways

Authentically smoked
Prickly tails
Version in traditional can might be better value

Brand: MW Polar
Description: Smoked Brisling in Olive Oil
Species: Sprattus sprattus
Country of Origin: Latvia
Source: FAO 27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 4.23 oz.
Price Range: $2-3

Wild Planet Smoked Mackerel in EVOO

DeenLeave a comment

I found this Wild Planet Smoked Mackerel in Extra Virgin Olive Oil intriguing because it emphasized the "smoked" aspect. Not so many other tinned mackerels do, even though they might list smoke flavor on the container. Unsmoked, mackerel can be a buttery, rich, tender bite of fish. I wondered what a truly smoked iteration might taste like.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4/5.

What it lacks in visual appeal, however, it more than makes up for in taste. The contents are two fillets stacked, skin side down. A bit firmer than other mackerel tasted to date, but it's still acceptably tender.

The smoke flavor, naturally achieved, is forward, but not overpowering. I tried a couple of bites with just a few drops of Valentina hot sauce, and it made for an interesting flavor combination.

Recommended. I paid $5 at WF, but I see it's currently under $4 on sale for Amazon Prime members there.

The packaging lacks source information, other than to say "product of Latvia".

Main Takeaways

Good balance on the smoke
Firm but still tender enough
Good value, especially if on sale

Brand: Wild Planet
Description: Wild Smoked Mackerel in EVOO
Species: Scomber japonicus or Scomber colias
Country of Origin: Latvia
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/No
Net Wt: 3.9 oz.
Price Range: $5