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$3.50
This flavor from King Oscar made its debut in 2021 and has quickly become one of the most sought after tins in the line. Capers add a briney but tart sea flavor, and we all know how vinegar partners with olive oil. Try pouring off the liquid and whisking it together to turn it into a vinaigrette that you can dress the sardines and/or a salad with. It doesn’t make a thick sauce, but will definitely emulsify enough to coat mixed greens.
One layer, 8-12 fish
106g tin
Pictured with a fresh herb roll.
In stock
Ingredients: Lightly smoked brisling sardines (Sprattus sprattus), extra virgin olive oil, white wine vinegar, capers, salt.
Product of Poland
See what Matthew Carlson has to say about these sprats compared to King Oscar Sardines (Sprats) in Extra Virgin Olive Oil with Lemon and King Oscar Sardines (Sprats) in Dijon Mustard.
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jfeyes (verified owner) –
Delicious! I Like KO for quality, flavor and value!
Todd King (verified owner) –
Really tasty. Good flavor from the capers and White wine vinegar. The fish were a little on the softer side for my taste. That may be because of the vinegar. Overall, I would get again.
twa101 (verified owner) –
I got a big hit of vinegar upon opening, barely any fish scent with this tin. And holy cow! Big capers! They look like big, homegrown garden peas. This 8-12 tin had 8 fish, a bit fragile, and tended to break in the middle. They were soft, but still with some texture to the flesh, and not at all mushy. However, this is easily the most assertive tin of KO that I have tried to date. The vinegar is strong with this one, which I love, and has some of the floral notes from the capers. The vinegar also tames the fishy flavor of the sprats, but does not dominate it. Others may disagree. If you have a kid that likes salt & vinegar chips, this would be the ideal tin to introduce them to the sardiney universe.
The oil in this tin is thinner than a normal King Oscar, but that is expected with the white wine vinegar. Could easily be made into its own vinaigrette. In fact, I think the entire tin could be made into a great dipping sauce by popping it into a blender. I’m betting that it would be good with raw or roasted cauliflower.
Overall, I loved it, and this might be my favorite sprat from King Oscar. Really wish that the local stores stocked this flavor.
Hream McDan (verified owner) –
Very, very interesting tin with so many giant capers (maybe 20?). The oil and vinegar liquid is thin, flavorful, fragrant. The fish actually reads more like non-salt-cured anchovies than sardines, presumably due to the inclusion of vinegar. Have to say that this textural change was a success, as I don’t think this tin would work if these had the traditional KO sardine soft texture. The sardines aren’t dry, but having 2-3 capers for each bite really helped with overall moisture/texture/intrigue … I ended up being quite impressed with that balance. If you’re worried about this being too vinegar-forward, don’t be. I could easily have handled a lot more tang from vinegar (but that’s a flavor profile that I enjoy). Adding a little bit of salt & pepper really made the flavors pop.
Overall, absolutely worth buying as a change of pace tin. I love the concept and really like the execution. While it’s not something I’d use as a daily driver, it’s easily a tin for me to add to every other order as a fun/unique addition to the pantry.
Greg L (verified owner) –
This tin delivers exactly what you’d think (in a good way!). I always manage my expectations with King Oscar sardines. Their plain tins are the bottom of the scale of quality that I’ll eat and enjoy. However, if you like capers and white wine vinegar, this is a solid tin. Predictably, the presence of the vinegar weakens the sardines physically and gives them a firmer, drier mouthfeel. They didn’t look beat up in the tin, but I couldn’t keep a single fish whole no matter how I tried to extract it. I wouldn’t say they are dry, but you do get that “in vinegar” texture applied to the fish. It isn’t unpleasant and in fact can be a welcome change of pace if you eat sardines on a regular basis. The fish flavor is fairly mild. The big win here is the mountain of capers sitting on top of the fish. Large, chunky, tasty capers. The white wine vinegar is really pleasant as well, though it takes the driver’s seat when it comes to the main flavor. If the flavor profile of vinegar and capers is interesting to you, this tin is a no-brainer based on its price.
TinnedFishStoner (verified owner) –
These were nice, I tasted the white wine vinegar immediately upon biting into both the fish and the capers, but it was nice and quite an interesting flavor combination considering I already love sardines and capers in their own respective forms. They’re definitely worth the try, it’s really good and I would get it again although personally I don’t think I would consider it my absolute favorite KO tin. Also I find it nice that the capers being in there gave the texture more than just a simple sardine every bite, and I enjoyed pairing a caper with a little sardine and eating it whole every bite. If you love capers on your fish, then I would grab these because for less than 5 dollars, KO has really good quality deens and these are perfect for a little snack on the go.
Michael Popplewell (verified owner) –
My first flavor that was not just plain olive oil from King Oscar. I really liked the flavor profile on these; they aren’t very sour but I do love vinegar. I tried a fish by itself and you get the vinaigrette sensation from it. They weren’t mushy at all, and I had no issues getting the fish unpacked. I prepared these over penne pasta with parmesan, emulsifying the remaining oil with some pasta water, garlic, and mustard for a sauce that was quite delicious. However, these are seasoned well enough to eat right out of the can. These are definitely making a home in my pantry.
Andrew Tolston (verified owner) –
This tin offers a captivating twist with an abundance of giant capers, creating a unique texture enhanced by a thin, flavorful oil and vinegar blend. As someone who loves vinegar marinated boquerones, but laments the fact they are not available in tins, these provided not-quite an alternative, but something in that ballpark. The addition of 2-3 capers per bite adds intrigue and impressed me with its thoughtful execution. Despite initial concerns about vinegar intensity, the flavor was just right, and a dash of salt and pepper elevated the experience.
I really enjoyed these over a bagel with cream cheese and some pickled red onions – and at the price point would definitely keep some around my pantry.
kyelmoore (verified owner) –
My first foray into sardines! I purchased these as the flavor sounded wonderful and familiar from my past seafood experiences. I was perhaps a little too bold, and decided to eat these straight from the tin. Overall, I enjoyed the experience, but I had expected and ended up wishing for more acidity from the vinegar and capers, as I found these to be very fishy. Which is obviously to be expected, and is certainly not a bad thing, but this did make it a little more challenging to eat the whole thing straight from the tin. This did not stop me from wolfing the whole tin down like some sort of goblin.
I was a little hesitant to start my ‘dine journey with the bigger boys, as the bones are somewhat intimidating to me, but these sprats had a great balance of firmness, and the bones were undetectable. I feel as though I made the right choice starting with sprats. I really enjoyed the experience of popping each one into my mouth, and the texture was exactly what I was hoping for.
Exclusively due to my hubris, I ended up with a mixed bag for a first sardine experience, that was still ultimately positive. I will certainly be trying King Oscar and other sardines again, but I will probably be smarter about it next time, and try some of the wonderful sounding serving suggestions I’m seeing in the comments 🙂