Tinned Sardines

Tinned sardines are small fish that have been cleaned, packed in oil or sauce, sealed and heat-processed in the tin, so they are ready to eat the moment the lid comes off. Sardines packed in olive oil taste of the fish and the oil, and that oil can dress bread, potatoes or beans. Sardines in sauce come seasoned: tomato sauce can be spooned straight over toast, and a chile or curry sauce can season a whole plate. To serve them, set the open tin on a small plate with good bread and a narrow fork, as the guide to serving sardines straight from the tin explains. The story of the cannery, from brine to hand pack to sealed tin, is in how tinned sardines are made.

Where to buy sardines

Tinned sardines from Portugal, Spain, France and Denmark are gathered here, from plain olive oil packs to sardines in tomato, lemon or spiced sauce. The shop is at 263 Josephine Street in Cherry Creek, Denver, and products ship nationwide from theambrosianpantry.com. Visitors can ask staff questions in the shop. For more tins beyond sardines, browse all tinned fish, or pack three or four tins in an empty gift box to give as a set.

Related: the guide to cooking with tinned sardines.