spicy Archives - Sardeenz!

Pollastrini Sardines in Spiced Tomato Sauce

These Pollastrini Sardines in Spiced Tomato Sauce came from International Loft, and they round out the four varieties of Pollastrini tinned sardines they currently stock.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.9/5.

Reasonably nice looking, with skin only slightly roughed up. There are two small peppers. The sauce appears thick and has not separated from the olive oil as sometimes happens. The aroma is of tomato and fresh sardine. A taste of the sauce is encouraging.

Let's Eat

I just dumped the can directly over the rice. Only a little sauce was left in the tin, owing to how tightly the fish were packed in there and how the viscosity of the sauce made it cling to them. There are six fish total, with one being smaller than the rest.

The first bite caught me off guard, as it made a squishy sound when I pierced the fish with the fork. I quickly realized it was one of the peppers underneath.

The fish are quite tender, and only maybe slightly what you could characterize as dry. The sauce made up for it however, and its spiciness was spot on. One of the better representations of spicy tomato sauce, in fact.

Saltiness was about right, the label listing 240mg. sodium.

Country of Origin

You may have noted the tan piece of tape on the image above. It's part of a label covering the bottom area of the lid and there to obscure the designation "Product of Italy". For reasons not quite certain, Pollastrini has for some time been sourcing sardines from and processing them in Croatia, Italy's neighbor across the Adriatic Sea. What's under the black part doesn't appear to differ from the label covering it.

An add-on label on the bottom of the tin also revises the sourcing, but peeling it back reveals a more interesting difference. The label says "sardines, tomato concentrate, sunflower oil, chili, water, sugar, potato starch, salt". Behind it, the can says "sardines, tomato sauce, olive oil, celery, hot pepper, natural flavours, spices and salt". So, a little more going on here than just country of origin. The International Loft website listing still claims olive oil.

Main Takeaways

Tender sardines
Spicy tomato flavor well-represented
Substitution of sunflower oil puzzling

Brand: Pollastrini
Description: Sardines in spiced tomato sauce
Species: Clupea pilchardus (Sardina pilchardus)
Country of Origin: Italy/Croatia
Source: FAO37, Mediterranean Sea
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 3.5 oz.
Price Range: $6

Natural Catch Spicy Yellowfin Tuna Filets

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Caught these Natural Catch Spicy Yellowfin Tuna Filets, new and on sale at Whole Foods. Regular $5.49 marked down to $3.77 for Amazon Prime members. One of a few cans of various premium tuna I've acquired recently to try.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.5/5.

Nice presentation with the pepper visible. Packed reasonably full of layers of yellowfin tuna filet. Ingredients list vegetable broth in addition to organic EVOO and spices. A nice, warm heat from the seasoning, not overpowering. No dry mouth feel like some tuna, and a nice, fresh tuna taste.

Natural Catch is an up-and-comer in the premium tuna arena. Based upon this can, I'd say they will be a contender. Recommended.

Update

I had another can in my stash for several months now, and decided to revisit and update this year-old review. Very early reviews here were not as in-depth as they have come to be, and this was one in need of revisiting.

I had been critical in the past about Natural Catch marketing. For a time, they mounted an aggressive social media campaign showing how their tuna consisted of premium filets. I noted, in both individual cans I had tried after the first one, and in the advertising, that the filets comprised only the top third of the can contents, and what was underneath was largely a mass of chunk tuna.

This most recent tin had a little more in the way of filets, approximately 50%, with an additional filet piece below the photogenic ones normally covering the top.

The flavor was consistent with my previous assessment, and I still recommend it, especially if it can be had at the sale price at which Whole Foods periodically offers it.

See it at Amazon.

Brand: Natural Catch
Description: Yellowfin Tuna in Spicy EVOO
Species: Yellowfin tuna
Country of Origin: Viet Nam
Source: FAO71, Western Central Pacific
Skin/Bones: No/No
Net Wt: 4.4 oz.
Price Range: $5-6

Casablanca Spicy Sardines with Hot Peppers

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These Casablanca Spicy Sardines with Hot Peppers came from a local Middle-Eastern market. I've learned to check there regularly, as I've found several selections I haven't seen elsewhere, and they seem to get new things frequently. Moroccan sardines at $2 a tin felt like a challenge worth taking.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.5/5.

It's one of those stiff, scary-to-open cans with the squiggly ridges on the lid. Fortunately, I get it open without incident. It's just two huge pilchards, which I've come to expect from inexpensively-priced Moroccan sardines. Skin is a little roughed up. The oil is tinged red from peppers, I assume, but I don't see any yet. The aroma is a little fishier than I'd like. A sip of the oil, listed as sunflower, has a heat that doesn't hit until the back of the throat. I see some bones sticking out from the tail end of the loins. No scales or fins, though.

Let's Eat

Heaving them out over rice, I find two bright red peppers underneath. There's a few tablespoons of the oil left in the tin, and I poured most over the fish and rice.

I think what I like least about getting overgrown pilchards is the sense that I'm butchering a side of beef rather than enjoying some little fishes. Nonetheless, the meat is tender and moist, not mushy, and reasonably melt-in-your-mouth in texture.

The fish flavor, like the aroma, is a bit stronger, but not off-putting. The pepper flavor is low but steady, no real complaint there. They don't seem all that salty, and the carton confirms a low 200mg. sodium. I didn't feel compelled, however, to add anything salty to make up for it.

Main Takeaways

Why couldn't they be smaller
Tender, meaty fish regardless
Maybe could have used some salt

Brand: Spice N' More Corp. / Casablanca
Description: Spicy sardines in olive oil
Species: Sardina pilchardus
Country of Origin: Morocco
Source: FAO34, Eastern Central Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 4.375 oz.
Price Range: $2

Pollastrini Spicy Sardines Revisited

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I'm not sure why I bought this second can of Pollastrini Spicy Sardines. Maybe I thought I was re-buying another brand I liked. Or perhaps it was because the vendor was having a sale, and the one additional can put me over the amount for free shipping. Looking back, the first time I tried this particular tin, I thought the fish were good, but the spicy part was lacking. Anyway, it ended up being an opportunity for redemption.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.9/5.

They look pretty much the same as the last time, one exception being far more peppers. The first can had only three, whereas this one has at least seven visible. As before, and as with other Italian sardines, they are pilchards with tail left on. I see a few fins.

The aroma is of fresh fish. A sip of the olive oil has a little heat, perhaps more than I recall from the first tin.

Let's Eat

There are eight fish total, one more than last time. I am impressed by canneries that are able put more fish in smaller tins than the competition.

The fish lift out of the tin mostly intact. Dividing them with a fork, they are quite tender.

On the palate, the extra peppers have done their duty, infusing the fish with an even, moderate heat and spice. The meat is satisfyingly tender. I didn't find them too salty, even though the label lists 550mg. sodium.

Main Takeaways

Tender, flavorful fish
Good spice and heat from the peppers
Don't judge a brand by just one tin

I'm glad I bought these again, and intend to in the future. Hopefully, those will match these.

One More Thing

All the Pollastrini tins I received on this last order had this label on them. I was confused about why a tin from Italy would have labeling indicating sourcing from Croatia. I reached out to the vendor for clarification, but have not received a response.

Croatia is closer to Italy than most people probably realize. If not for a finger of Slovenia reaching out to the sea between them, the two would share a border. Croatia lies directly east of Italy, across the Adriatic Sea, with as little as 53 miles between them at one point. My assumption is that circumstances must sometimes require additional processing capability, and a Croatian cannery steps in to fill the need. Or perhaps boats are making catches destined for Pollastrini closer to the Croatian coast, and processing them there makes more logistical sense.

You can see from this particular can, that the tin itself bears cannery codes from both Italy and Croatia. What then necessitates the additional label, I'm not sure without removing it. My guess would be, if the tin is printed solely in Italian, that the label is simply providing information in English. But there is verbiage in English visible outside the label. There must be some US requirement the tin lacks but the label fulfills. Who knows?

Brand: Pollastrini
Description: Spicy sardines in olive oil
Species: Clupea pilchardus (Sardina pilchardus)
Country of Origin: Italy/Croatia
Source: FAO37, Mediterranean Sea
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 3.5 oz.
Price Range: $6

Tomé Sardines in Spicy Olive Oil with Chilli

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I found these Tomé Sardines in Spicy Olive Oil with Chilli as a new item at one of my local Asian markets. What intrigued me most was that an Asian importer out of New York was distributing Portugese sardines, packed by Ramirez & Cia, no less. At $3.29, it seemed I couldn't go wrong. Or could I?

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.6/5.

They're not the prettiest. Packed dark dorsal side up, with a fair amount of broken skin. The olive oil is only slightly tinged amber from the pepper. You can see it peeking out from the far side of the tin. I see no fins, tails nor scales.

There's not much of an aroma, of fish, spice or otherwise. A sip of the oil is unrevealing except for the tiniest hit of heat at the back of the throat.

Let's Dig In

There are four fish total, one slightly truncated at the tail end. They are firm as they lift from the can, and have a certain heft to them. They are not inclined to fall apart during the transfer to the rice bowl.

There were about four tablespoons of oil left in the tin, and I poured about half over the fish. I wasn't expecting much from it, and ultimately didn't get much.

The fish resist yielding to the stab of a fork, but are reasonably tender on the palate. They are not dry, but there isn't a lot of sardine flavor to them. I tasted the pepper, and it was only a tad more spicy than the oil, which isn't saying much.

I noted they weren't salty at all, and I thought they could have benefitted by a little more. The carton confirms an unusually low 190mg. sodium.

Main Takeaways

A little rough looking
Tender enough, but lacked sardine flavor
Needed salt

These didn't blow me away, and I now question having bought a second can solely on the reputation of Ramirez & Cia. They produce the Berthe brand, of which I was highly impressed. As far as spiciness goes, I was far happier with similar from Angelo Parodi, which cost only a little more.

Brand: Ramirez & Cia. / Tomé
Description: Sardines in spicy olive oil with chilli
Species: Sardina pilchardus
Country of Origin: Portugal (dist. by United Foods of Asia, Ltd. NY, USA)
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 4.4 oz.
Price Range: $3

Patagonia Provisions Spicy White Anchovies

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These Patagonia Provisions Spicy White Anchovies came from Whole Foods, where they are a new item. Several visits were required to obtain them as the initial stock coincided with a sale, they sold out quickly, and then restocking took forever. I finally found them back in stock, but sadly, after the sale. Still, they were less expensive than the average online price. Let's try them.

I'm amazed by comments online that state, "they're not very salty", or "they're not white". These are not the anchovies you put on your pizza (although you could), nor in your Caesar salad dressing.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 5/5.

Firm and meaty looking fish. The oil (organic EVOO) is tinged red from organic Spanish paprika and cayenne. The aroma is a tangy, from the apple cider vinegar. There is no real aroma of fish, or it's masked by the spices.

Let's Eat

Pulling them from the tin, they are quite firm. A more slender fish than sardines, and I see no fins or tails. Not really any scales, either. There are six fish total.

The remaining liquid in the tin has bits of diced red bell pepper, and I poured everything over the fish and rice.

Digging in, they slightly resist being divided into bite-size pieces with a fork. The flavor of the fish is fresh. The texture is a tad dry, but not a deal breaker.

The seasonings were well-balanced and the salt level unobtrusive, even though it's listed as a moderately high 840mg. The back of the carton states, "The Heat Is On", but there's not really any heat here, the cayenne being last on the ingredient list. "Spicy" sardines are usually seasoned with piri-piri peppers. The seasoning here is more akin to an escabeche style pickled sauce.

White anchovies make for an interesting alternative to sardines. I'd certainly have no problem getting these again, especially if they're on sale.

Main Takeaways

Fresh, meaty fish
Well-balanced seasoning
Not too salty

Brand: Patagonia Provisions
Description: Spicy White Anchovies in EVOO
Species: Engraulis encrasicolus
Country of Origin: Spain
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 4.2 oz.
Price Range: $7

Sea Tales Sardines in Spicy Tomato Sauce

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These Sea Tales Sardines in Spicy Tomato Sauce were on sale at Whole Foods. I had to go twice, as they often don't have sale items stocked ahead of time in support of the ad. My recent interest in sardines in tomato sauce, in addition to the fact these are also spicy, made me eager to try them. Let's see how they were.

Initial impression upon opening the can: 4.9/5.

Some nice-looking pilchards. It appears to be a five count. There are the pepper and pickle right on top. So far, so good. The aroma is vegetal, tomato-y. A sip of the red-tinged olive oil is similar, with a moderate hit of heat at the back of the throat. I see no fins or scales.

Time To Eat

I was ready this time. I knew from previous tins packed in tomato sauce that there is a tendency for the oil to separate. After I placed the fish and spicy bits over rice, I used a plastic fork to whisk the remaining liquid in the tin back together before pouring it over everything.

The fish are meaty and tender, with no impression of dryness. The tomato sauce as reconstituted is milder than anticipated. There is a sweetness to it, plus a little tang from cider vinegar. There is still enough flavor to it that I wouldn't characterize it as over-cooked.

I tasted the pickle (a real pickle), and the pepper, which still had some heat to it. There was also a fragment of bay leaf, but it didn't stand out in the flavor profile. I didn't find things overly salty, the sodium was a relatively low 290mg.

All in all, I liked these and am glad I bought two cans. I'll get them again, hopefully on sale. Regularly $5.49, the sale and Amazon Prime member benefit brought them down to $4.25.

Main Takeaways

Tender, meaty pilchards
Well-balanced seasonings
Could have been a little spicier

Brand: Sea Tales
Description: Sardines in spicy tomato sauce
Species: Sardina pilchardus
Country of Origin: Portugal
Source: FAO27, Northeast Atlantic
Skin/Bones: Yes/Yes
Net Wt: 4.2 oz.
Price Range: $5-6