Anchova

Description: The fish fillet is about 8 to 10 cm long, dark-reddish color, characteristic salty taste and soft texture. It comes in alumini-um or tinplate packaging, with a capacity of 22, 56, 250 and 750 g.

Region: Algarve.

Other denominations: Portuguese Canned Anchovy.

Variants: It can be presented in the form of fillets or wrapped around a caper.

Special feature: Semi-preserved or preserved fish fillets.

History: In the Algarve there are traces of cetariae near Lagos and Tavira, proving that the salting of fish was already carried out in Luso-Roman times. Anchovy, produced since time immemorial, was sold as semi-preserved, in bulk. It was only about 50 years ago that filleting and packaging in watertight packaging began.

Use: As an aperitif, also used in the preparation of various dishes and some meat stews.

Know-how: The fish, anchovy or sardines, is headed, gutted and subjected to the action of saturated salt and brine. It is placed in containers ranging from 10 kg to 10 tons, well mixed with salt and subjected to a pressing that leads to the purging of the oil and other fluids from the fish. It remains in these containers for 3 to 6 months, during which time the anchovy takes place. At this point, the fish is cleaned, separating the spine and skin, thus preparing the fillet.

Source: Produtos Tradicionais Portugueses, Lisboa, DGDR, 2001