Unpacking Packed Sardines

Fresh sardines are easier to love, so if canned sardines are to enjoy the revival I think they deserve, they need to be full of distinctive, rich flavor—but not too fishy. Sardines packed in water give the purest taste and are the best choice for salads and in recipes, especially because the oil most packers use is terrible.

Granadaisa , from Morocco and available at www.barneygreengrass.com, is an exception, because even bad olive oil in Morocco is usually pretty good. And these sardines are lush (as all oil-packed fish should be), meaty, and authoritative—a way to convert tuna-lovers.

Season (www.seasonproducts.com) packs fat, smooth, superior sardines free of the chalky texture of many canned sardines.

Beach Cliff sardines (www.beachcliff.info), from ...