Portuguese Tinned Fish: What to Try and Where to Buy

In Portugal, tinned fish (conservas) isn’t a cupboard emergency: it’s a delicacy, beautifully packaged and served in bars with bread and wine. Portugal has been canning sardines for well over a century, and today the colourful tins make one of the best souvenirs you can bring home. Here’s a guide to Portuguese tinned fish.

Quick answer: try sardines in olive oil, mackerel, octopus, tuna belly and cod roe. Buy them in the specialist tin shops of Lisbon and Porto for the packaging, or in supermarkets for the best prices. Eat them on toast with a glass of vinho verde.

Why tinned fish?

Portugal’s canning industry boomed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with factories all along the coast, from Matosinhos to Setúbal and Portimão. Fish is packed by hand at the peak of the season, and good tins improve with age, like wine. Portimão’s museum, in a former cannery, tells the story. See Portimão.

What to try

• Sardines: in olive oil, tomato, lemon or spicy.
• Mackerel (cavala): rich and meaty.
• Octopus (polvo): in olive oil and garlic.
• Tuna belly (ventresca): silky and luxurious, especially from the Azores.
• Cod (bacalhau) and cod roe.
• Squid in its ink, mussels and clams.
• Sardine pâté: often served with bread in restaurants as part of the couvert (which you pay for if you eat it).

How to eat it

• Straight from the tin with crusty bread, a squeeze of lemon and some salt.
• On toast with tomatoes and herbs.
• In bars: some petisco bars serve tins with bread, salad and wine.
• With a drink: vinho verde or a cold beer. See vinho verde.

Where to buy

• Specialist shops in Lisbon and Porto sell tins in colourful retro packaging, often arranged like a library. Great for gifts.
• Supermarkets (Pingo Doce, Continente) have excellent tins at a fraction of the price.
• Markets and delis for small producers. See Lisbon food markets.

Taking it home

Tins are light, sealed and travel perfectly in hand luggage or a suitcase (check liquid rules for oil if in your carry-on, and your country’s import rules). See the best souvenirs from Portugal.

More: Portuguese seafood and what to eat in Portugal.

Prices and details change, so please double-check before you travel. Spotted something out of date? Tell us in the groups.