Sardines

[Muse]

From Oscar Levant's "Memoirs of an Amnesiac," page 220:

"When Rubinstein (Artur) appeared on Information Please, his specialty was answering questions on the royal houses of Europe. But no matter what gustatory delights are presented to him in great homes or famous restaurants, he savors a can of sardines best."

It continues:

"During the 40's, Rubenstein had to struggle to overcome the blazing reputation of Vladimir Horowitz. He once confided to me that the Horowitz phenomenon had almost made him discontinue playing the piano. I only tell this because, with his determination and ability, he finally managed to surpass Horowitz. It was a great triumph."
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This article, I think, is worth scouring for ideas on sardines: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/dining/sardines-recipes-coronavirus.html

There's plenty online about canned sardines. I have just bought a LOT of canned sardines at Costco, having been assured that the ones I bought are "the best" by a guy who evidently knew what he was talking about. They are also economical, and on sale, so I picked up a lot. You don't want to eat too too much of them, there are dietary negatives: high cholesterol and sodium, specifically, I'm warned. So, not every day type of food, but there's a lot to recommend them.
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A couple of good sites with ideas on how to eat sardines:

19 Best Canned Sardine Recipes from Around the World

This collection of delicious canned sardine recipes from Italy, Spain, Morocco and other countries is sure to make you a sardine lover.

www.atastefortravel.ca

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How to Eat a Sardine 20 Different Ways | Wild Planet –

20 Ways to Eat A Sardine · Straight out of the can · On a cracker · Add mustard to that cracker · Mix it with mayo, salt & pepper…kind of like tuna ...

wildplanetfoods.com

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Love the king tots tiny sardines. Things basically melt in your mouth.

The big ass chunked sardines I am less of a fan of, mostly because it is weird as hell pouring fishy chunks in tomato sauce out of a can.

 

[BoomerD]

 

[Fritzo]

If you want "the best" sardines, you'll want them from Portugal. Nuri is probably one of the absolute best brands you can get in the US. I buy them at World Market from time to time to make pasta, either in olive oil or spiced tomato.

 

[Muse]

If you want "the best" sardines, you'll want them from Portugal. Nuri is probably one of the absolute best brands you can get in the US. I buy them at World Market from time to time to make pasta, either in olive oil or spiced tomato.

I was in the aisle where they had sardines, etc. at local Costco (Richmond, Ca) in March and there was a guy there perusing the offerings. He was older but very fit and aware looking and he appeared to know what he was about so I asked him what he thought of what he was looking at (I rarely chat up anybody there). He emphatically says "these are the BEST!"

Season brand sardines (6 can package 4.375oz/can 10.99)

I bought them and when they went on sale later, bought more! They are different from the ones I used to buy years ago, such as Tiny Tots, which are quite small sardines, many to a can. These are much bigger but the taste isn't different, is my sense of it. The size of the can is pretty much the same. Packed in olive oil, of course.

 

[Fritzo]

I was in the aisle where they had sardines, etc. at local Costco (Richmond, Ca) in March and there was a guy there perusing the offerings. He was older but very fit and aware looking and he appeared to know what he was about so I asked him what he thought of what he was looking at (I rarely chat up anybody there). He emphatically says "these are the BEST!"

Season brand sardines (6 can package 4.375oz/can 10.99)

I bought them and when they went on sale later, bought more! They are different from the ones I used to buy years ago, such as Tiny Tots, which are quite small sardines, many to a can. These are much bigger but the taste isn't very different, is my sense of it. The size of the can is pretty much the same. Packed in olive oil, of course.

Even mid-sardines are tasty, and I'm sure the price at Costco was a big factor in that guy's judgement. High quality sardines will be very large, like this:



Northern Pacific caught sardines are usually a lot smaller and more "fishy" tasting. They'll kind of look like this:


Cheaper sardines will be even smaller than that...like a can of minnows. Those are the sardines people usually first try and decide they don't like sardines (they're pretty nasty).

 

[lxskllr]

Flower brand Moroccan spiced sardines are really good. They look like ass in the can, but taste great. Second Portugal as a country to buy from. They're all first rate. Latvia does a really good job with them also, especially if you like them smoked. French sardines are good, but not that common.. Also, try kippered herring. I actually like that better than sardines, but it's all good.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

People eat those things? Always thought they were just used as bait for real food.

Also, repeat after me, there's no correlation between dietary cholesterol and cholesterol in the blood.

 

[MrSquished]

Spain has some great tinned fish too. Found a great tinned calamari from Spain at $1.99 a tin at Shop Rite and been happily devouring those. I want to try more. Looked into a tin fish subscription but they are way too pricey.THere is actually a HUGE Portugese Sardine store in the city, along with some other Portugese tinned fish products. I'll be going there at some point

 

[Torn Mind]

Had some effect on my brain fog after my second (and last so far) bout of COVID in 2021. Improved conditions after consumption. These were the Wild Planet sardines with EVOO and a touch of lemon.

Was eating other stuff for a month before randomly choosing the food (with some help by Youtube and the mediocre channel Thomas DeLauer) with little effect.

 

[Muse]

People eat those things? Always thought they were just used as bait for real food.

Also, repeat after me, there's no correlation between dietary cholesterol and cholesterol in the blood.

Repeat after me, the higher you eat in the food chain the more unexpellable toxins you accumulate.

 

[Torn Mind]

Repeat after me, the higher you eat in the food chain the more unexpellable toxins you accumulate.

Cholesterol levels are regulated essentially in "real-time" by the body.

I'm not even sure if you are referring to cholesterol in the statement though.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Cholesterol levels are regulated essentially in "real-time" by the body.

I'm not even sure if you are referring to cholesterol in the statement though.

He isn't, he's referring to shit like mercury. He isn't entirely wrong, but it's also irrelevant. You can eat nothing but algae and cave moss for your entire life, or you can just vary your diet enough to not accumulate that stuff in sufficient quantities to matter during our short stint on this rock.

 

[Muse]

He isn't, he's referring to shit like mercury. He isn't entirely wrong, but it's also irrelevant. You can eat nothing but algae and cave moss for your entire life, or you can just vary your diet enough to not accumulate that stuff in sufficient quantities to matter during our short stint on this rock.

It's a "strategy" but how do you monitor how you're doing? Just go, hey, it's been a week since I ate a tuna salad or swordfish steak? If you like sardines, and are satisfied, you're way lower on the food chain. Irrelevant? I don't think so.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

It's a "strategy" but how do you monitor how you're doing? Just go, hey, it's been a week since I ate a tuna salad or swordfish steak? If you're good with sardines, you're way lower on the food chain. Irrelevant? I don't think so.

I mean, yeah that's a pretty good method. One serving of each type of protein per week (chicken, non alpha predatory fish, beef, pork, lamb, shellfish, tofu as desired), plus a variety of vegetables, will probably ensure you die of something other than heavy metal poisoning or heart disease.

 

[sandorski]

No.

 

[lxskllr]

I eat sardines cause I like them. It isn't a "make due" food that replaces something else. They're cheap, *sustainable, low in toxins, and depending on where they're caught, high in vitamin D, which isn't so easy to find in natural food. I eat other fishies too for something different, but every work day I don't eat out is either canned herring or sardines.


*That could change if everyone decides they like sardines, so my recommendation is don't eat them. Sardines suck, and taste like cat food ;^)

 

[lxskllr]

Lunch today...

 

[waffleironhead]

Im down for some sardines in mustard sauce. Always have them on saltines.

 

[MrSquished]

sardines are a great and healthy snack. my parents definitely had them in our pantry and so I tried and liked them.

Costco has a nice high quality brand of lightly smoked wild caught sardines. I always keep some on hand for a quick bite.

That portugese sardine store in NYC looks pretty insane though. A store that big dedicated to one country's sardines, plus a couple other proteins.

 

[sdifox]

I like to add soy sauce and chopped garlic to tomatoes sauce sardines. Warm it up in microwave

 

[WelshBloke]

If you want "the best" sardines, you'll want them from Portugal. Nuri is probably one of the absolute best brands you can get in the US. I buy them at World Market from time to time to make pasta, either in olive oil or spiced tomato.

The good Portuguese sardines are the ones where you watch them drag a net in and lots of little old ladies swoop in to pick up the spilled ones, then they charcoal grill them on the beach.
Always served with a couple of boiled potatoes and some tomato salad!

 

[Ajay]

The good Portuguese sardines are the ones where you watch them drag a net in and lots of little old ladies swoop in to pick up the spilled ones, then they charcoal grill them on the beach.
Always served with a couple of boiled potatoes and some tomato salad!

Hmm, it's lunch time. That would be such a nice lunch. Portugal is a bit of a walk from here in New England though.

 

[WelshBloke]

Hmm, it's lunch time. That would be such a nice lunch. Portugal is a bit of a walk from here in New England though.

They chuck them on the grill whole though, so if you're a little squeamish about heads and innards you might want to go for the dourada!

 

[MrSquished]

The good Portuguese sardines are the ones where you watch them drag a net in and lots of little old ladies swoop in to pick up the spilled ones, then they charcoal grill them on the beach.
Always served with a couple of boiled potatoes and some tomato salad!

That sounds fucking divine.

Grilled sardines or anchovies. Fresh caught. I mean with those simple accoutrements, heavenly.