Canned Anchovies Belong In Way More Than Just Your Caesar Salads

Canned anchovies may not be as ubiquitous as tuna in the U.S., although we all consider it a vital ingredient in creamy, savory Caesar salad dressing. We consulted chef Charlotte Langley, canned seafood expert and president and founder of Langley Foods, who assured us that canned anchovies belong in way more than just your Caesar salads.

"Canned anchovies are a flavor powerhouse!" Langley said. While they may be tiny filets that the canning process renders almost dissolvable, even one or two of them will bring a wealth of salty, umami flavors to all kinds of dishes, sauces, and condiments. Plus, their ultra-tender texture makes them easy to incorporate into emulsified recipes with little effort. "I love melting them into sauces, like puttanesca or pasta aglio e olio, where they add a rich umami depth," Langley added.

Of course, you can also enjoy canned sardines whole as delicate toppings that'll melt in your mouth instead of into a pasta sauce. To that effect, Langley thinks they also work well with pizza. They'd taste delicious over a red pizza with olives, onions, and mushrooms to complement their oceanic umami with other glutamate-rich ingredients. They'd be just as tasty over a white pizza to cut through the richness of a cream-based sauce. Of course, you can also use them as fancy toast toppings, whether it's this sourdough avocado toast with a poached egg or this bright lemony artichoke crostini.

Charlotte Langley mentioned pasta puttanesca, a classic Italian recipe that fries a few minced canned sardines and garlic in olive oil as the foundation for a tomato sauce. You can draw inspiration from this traditional recipe by adding minced anchovies to your favorite jarred marinara or red sauce to elevate their flavors. Simply fry anchovies and garlic in olive oil before adding bottled sauce. For that matter, you could also use a fried garlic and anchovy base to upgrade vegetables like spinach, escarole, or broccoli.

In addition to pasta sauces, Langley also recommends adding anchovies to various spreads and condiments like tapenades, or, as she noted, "even whisked into a dressing or aioli for an extra savory kick." Just as you use a blender to emulsify salad dressings, you can also blend eggs, oil, and anchovies into a delicious mayonnaise. Add it to this colorful nicoise salad or to this zippy tuna pasta salad recipe to bring the tuna's more subtle umami flavor to the forefront. 

Anchovies would also make the perfect one-ingredient flavor agent for a compound butter, which is even easier to make than aioli or salad dressing. A thick round of anchovy butter is the ultimate garnish for a fine cut of steak or grilled filet of fish. Since sardines are common toppings for French onion tarts, you could alternately use anchovies over a toasted baguette slathered with onion jam and melted gruyere for an easy appetizer with traditional French flavors.