I've been waiting for my local Walmart to have these back in stock for a while now. Fully described as King Oscar Skinless & Boneless Sardines, Spanish Style in Olive Oil. As is usual with KO skinless/boneless sardines, these are pilchards.
Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.5/5.
I didn't include a photo of the just-opened can because it looked like any other can of King Oscar skinless/boneless pilchards. My assumption was that whatever was included in the can would be underneath the fish, so photographing that would have been moot. Perhaps the idea is that one is expected to dump the fish out onto a plate, et voila! there are the inclusions nicely perched atop the liberated can contents.
Such was not the case, as I chose to do as I usually do, which is to dig portions straight out of the can. I did manage to find the carrot and cucumber, but felt a little disappointed to find no actual whole pepper. These were not as firm as I have come to expect from KO. Digging around to find the veggies created a bit of a mush. They still tasted fine. However, if there was supposed to be any pepper to convey some heat, both it and the heat were absent. Maybe the pepper lady was on break when this can went down the line. I will reserve final judgement until after opening the second can I bought.
Main Takeaways
- Not as firm as typical King Oscar boneless skinless
- Flavorful but absent heat
Brand: King Oscar
Description: Skinless & Boneless Sardines in Olive Oil, Spanish Style
Species: Pilchards
Country of Origin: Morocco
Source: FAO34, Eastern Central Atlantic
Skin/Bones: No/No
Net Wt: 4.23 oz.
Price Range: $2-3