Linda has a nice post on sardines. They are sustainable and low in mercury due to their small size and postition on the food chain. We recently had sardines on a menu, but opted for canned rather than fresh... partly because they played a minor role in the scheme of the evening and the time involved with resourcing and prepping the fresh product in our area. Regardless, we have stigmas against many canned products. We place them much lower than fresh items. Although there are many valid reasons for this, there are some great canned foods and they deserve a little respect. When we view canning as a mode of flavoring and maturing through preservation method, it places certain items in a brand new light. Months ago we placed our mock 'canned' tuna (cooked sous-vide) on the dinner menu as a method of adding flavor and umami. High end products preserved through traditional and simple methods deserve a second glance.
My first memory of canned sardines was watching my grandfather eat them. They looked funny and stunk to my childhood senses. That was a long time ago. Part of the fun of being a chef is getting to source and try items. It is the moment when we truly become critics. When we brought the sardines in for dinner prep recently, we sampled 3 brands from different countries.
The Connétable sardines from France were amazing. These were the most interesting and powerful by far.
My second favorite were the Matiz Gallego from Spain. A very close second actually.
Finally, Moroccan sardines marinated with basil oil. Not bad, but very similar to boquerones marinated in flavored oil.
So which one did we end up using... all of them.