A couple of months ago, our niece Vicki and her husband Josh went on vacation to Portugal. When they returned, they presented us with souvenir gifts, including several colorful cans of tinned fish.
Before they left on their trip, we had them over for dinner and talked about all of the places they were planning on visiting, the hotels they were staying at and the exciting restaurants they would eat at. They also mentioned their excitement of enjoying something that Portugal is very well known for: tinned fish. For the last couple of years, the media has been touting the pleasures of enjoying canned fish throughout Portugal. Tinned fish has been a part of the country’s culinary heritage since 1853, when the national canning industry was born. Over the years, it’s become Portugal’s original fast food. It’s a cheap and convenient source of protein, which helped during Portugal’s hard times of economic turbulence and when there was a shortage of food.
They say when you visit Lisbon, don’t even think about leaving the city without filling up your suitcase with several colorful tins of fish. There are store shelves stacked in every corner of the city with cans of sardines, horse mackerel, tuna, anchovies, octopus, eel and more. Some shops sell nothing but tinned fish. It’s the perfect souvenir, the cans stay preserved long after you’ve left the city, and the bright labels and intricate paper wrapping make for a stylish, colorful and affordable gift.
As ‘The Eater Guide to Lisbon’ mentioned, “Tinned fish has become part of a culinary renaissance sweeping Portugal.” There are restaurants across the city that are led by a new generation of chefs, that now include dishes made with tinned fish on their menus. It seems that tinned fish has once again become a national icon.
I have to admit that I never thought I’d be a fan of tinned fish like salmon, sardines or anchovies. I grew up on canned tuna and ate more tuna fish salad sandwiches then I would care to remember. I remember as a child watching my grandparents eat sardines and crackers as a snack and hearing stories about how that was what they had to eat as a meal when times were hard and food was scarce. I remember that the fishy, oily smell of the sardines was always a huge turnoff for me. It also didn’t help that as a kid I grew up as a very picky eater. But my taste buds have grown since those days. I learned how to appreciate other foods from other cultures and countries from all around the globe. And now I can add tinned fish to my new food appreciations. I’m a huge fan!
A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated my partner Fernando's birthday belatedly. He had lost his father around the time of his birthday, and we never really got the opportunity to celebrate it. I decided to invite a few friends over for a special dinner party where I would serve one of his favorite dishes, Cioppino a rich Italian seafood stew. Two of our friends were in the process of planning a trip to Portugal. It occurred to me that I could put the souvenir gifts of tinned fish to good use as an appetizer for the dinner. That way I could give them a taste of what they would probably experience on their trip to Portugal. With both of them being pescatarian, I knew that they would appreciate the gesture. And with Fernando’s love for tinned fish, I thought it would be something truly memorable for him.
I did some research on ways to serve the tinned fish and what accompaniments to serve with them. It just so happened that a few days prior to the dinner, we watched a program on PBS called ‘A Moveable Feast with Fine Cooking,’ and the episode happened to take place in Portugal, with a major part of the episode focusing on tinned fish. I got some good ideas from that!
I wanted it all to be simple and still elegant. I took a long cutting board that Fernando had wisely turned into a serving tray by adding handles on each end of the board, and used that as the canvas for the tinned fish. Instead of taking the tinned fish out of the cans, I placed the opened cans of tin fish right on the board and surrounded them with several items to accompany the fish. The tinned fish that I served included a can of Horse Mackerel, in an olive oil and spicy tomato sauce, a can of spiced Portuguese Sardines, in olive oil, chile pepper, carrot and spices and a can of eels, in Escabeche, (a vinegary marinade).
I bought a baguette from one of my favorite bread shops and on the night before the dinner, sliced it into rounds, brushed each side with extra virgin olive oil, and topped with flaked sea salt and a few grinds of crushed black pepper. I put the sliced bread rounds on half sheet tray and placed the tray in a preheated 375-degree oven, to toast until nice and golden brown, which took around 12 minutes, and I was sure to flip the toasts halfway through the cooking process.
Next, I wanted to focus on a couple of toppings for the crostini and the fish. I decided on a cross between a gremolata and a chimichurri sauce. To do that, I finely chopped a bunch of Italian parsley and cilantro leaves, along with some of the fine, delicate stems of the cilantro. The zest of two lemons, finely chopped, the juice of one lemon, a minced garlic clove, half of a finely chopped Fresno chile pepper, stems and seeds removed, one finely chopped and minced scallion, 1/4 cup of good extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to blend and refrigerate and let sit for at least an hour to let the flavors all meld together. You could accomplish all of this by using a food processor. But I prefer the vibrant green color that the mixture retains when you use a chef’s knife to finely chop the herbs.
During my research on tinned fish, one of the topping ideas mentioned was pickled red onions. I really liked the idea of the contrast of the crunch of red onion, along with a nice acid kick of vinegar, a bit of sugar for sweetness, a touch of salt, a hint of garlic and a peppery note from black peppercorns. This was to add a nice contrast to the tinned fish. It turns out that the gremolata/chimichurri sauce and the pickled red onions were both a huge hit among the guests. I’ll include the recipe for the pickled red onions at the end of the blog.
I also took about 15 cornichons and sliced them in half-lengthwise, placed them in a container alongside with a variety of spicy pitted olives that I picked up at my local grocery store. I also picked up a container of duck liver mousse to also include as part of the appetizer board, to be served with some brioche toasts that I happened to have on hand.
While picking up a few bottles of wine for the dinner at my neighborhood wine shop, I noticed a jar of semi-dried cherry tomatoes, in olive oil with garlic and herbs. I thought, what a perfect topping for the tinned fish and Crostini, that along with a jar of mackerel rillettes that I also spotted.
My local options for tinned fish
I prepared a pitcher of fresh Caipirinha’s, made from lots of limes, muddled with demerara sugar, a jalapeno, rosemary simple syrup and some Cachaça (Brazilian rum). I thought that it would be the perfect cocktail to go with the theme of tinned fish appetizers.
We’re now thinking that our next vacation will be a trip to Portugal, where we can experience for ourselves the joys of tinned fish in its numerous shops and restaurants. I’m even considering having a dinner party where the entire meal revolves around a variety of tinned fish, and used in each course of the dinner (except dessert of course)!
Scroll down for a printable version of this recipe
1 large red onion, peeled and sliced very thin
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 smashed garlic clove
4-5 black peppercorns