We are home to the largest selection of canned fish in the world.
$4.50
“Rich miso flavor finish” is the tagline.
These are Thai fish, canned in Japan.
The can reads “Delicious blue fish for the body” (In English, we’d say “for
health” rather than “for the body”).
Nissui’s corporate website has a lot of information about sustainability,
zero plastics, and diversity.
100g (3.53 oz) tin
In stock
Ingredients: Sardines (Sardinops melanostictus), water soybean paste (soybean, rice, salt), sugar, food starch-modified, salt, guar gum.
Check out Matthew Carlson enjoying these, Hagoromo Sardines in Soy Sauce (Iwashi de Kenko), and Nissui Whole Sardines in Sweet Soy Sauce (Iwashi Ajitsuke).
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wadematthewtroyer (verified owner) –
I had this tin warmed up over some leftover rice.
The flavor of the sauce was lovely, with a really savory flavor and a noticeable hit of sweetness as well. I am not sure I would pinpoint the flavor as being “miso,” more like generic sweet-savory with a slight meatiness. The one thing that threw me off was the texture once warmed up, they got kind of gummy and almost stuck to my teeth in an unappetizing way.
The flavor though was great and for being a meal in a can and not something other brands do, I would definitely buy more of this in future to have on hand for a quick meal or to add to something else. This would be phenomenal alongside a some bok choy or gai lan, something bitter or vegetal to offset the savory sweetness.
Hream McDan (verified owner) –
A pretty solid tin that is perfect for chilly weather. Warm up leftover rice, put this tin in some just-off-boiling water for 10 minutes … excellent. I felt like these were a little higher quality sardines than I expected, they held together nicely. Texture was moist, not too soft and not too firm. I didn’t add a thing to the sauce -it didn’t really need it- but next time, I’ll probably top it with some scallions and a touch of wasabi. The Nissui miso mackerel is very similar to this tin, I liked both but maaaaybe the mackerel a little more? Regardless, if you’re the kind of person who frequently has leftover rice, then you should have always one of the Nissui miso tins on hand for a quick, delicious lunch.
Riley Mitchell (verified owner) –
Had this warmed up over a bowl of Tamago Kake Gohan(rice with raw egg) for breakfast, such a good can for little money. The miso sauce has a hint of sweetness that pairs with well with the fish. The fish were firm, but flaky, no mush at all. Definitely going to keep a can or two of these on hand, very filling over rice.
CAleb TEnenbaum (verified owner) –
Nice tin! Good warmed up as suggested, with rice. This is the 2nd Japanese tin we tried. We really enjoyed the sauce. The texture was nice, although I felt a little bit of spikiness from the bones which I am not used to experiencing. Overall, they were solid and I would consider buying again, except I think the Hagoromo Sardines in Soy Sauce (Iwashi de Kenko) are just a step better. At the same price point and use-case, I would recommend those.
Christopher Therrien (verified owner) –
In his review of this product: Nissui Whole Sardines in Miso, YouTube sardine influencer, Matthew Carlson, found TWO large fish in his tin. I say this because upon opening my tin, I found FOUR sardines: three being medium sized and one smaller fish hiding underneath the three others.
I stood there pondering why some canning companies pack the smaller sardines under the larger ones. Let’s be honest, it’s not like they’re visible from the outside of the package, they’re encased in a tin, right? And the consumer is most likely going to open that tin at some point, right? And once they remove the large Sardines on top, they’re going to notice the smaller ones on the bottom, right?
As I’m thinking these thoughts, my wife, who happened to be sitting there when I opened the tin inquired, “Do they look ok?”
“Yes, it’s just that we got four smallish fish and Matthew got two large ones.”
“He did?”
“Yes.”
“Wasn’t that video like two years ago?” she replied.
“I guess it was. I don’t know, they all tend to blend together after a while.”
After a minute or two, poking around with chopsticks to make sure more fish weren’t hiding in the can, I tasted the sauce. It’s somewhat creamy with a hint of lightly sweet umami flavor, not at all fishy.
I lightly cooked the four sardines with their delectable miso sauce and served them over a bed of warm white rice, chopped scallions (¼ inch for extra crunch), and a couple healthy shakes of All-purpose Kikkoman® Soy Sauce. Mix it all up and you have a delicious dish.
In closing, if I had to venture a guess it would be that this product is probably not consistent in sardine quantity or size, but sold by weight. Of course, I could be wrong and it’s possible I just got an odd can. There’s really no telling unless I buy more cans to compare it to. Which I will, very soon.
marshallprather (verified owner) –
We had these tonight in a rice bowl with avocado, egg, furukake, chili crisp and avocado — similar to a dish we had yesterday with the Nissui Sardines in Soy Sauce. I found the miso flavor to be very mild with just slight umami but possibly not lending itself to our preparation as I greatly preferred the depth of flavor in the previously mentioned Sardines in Soy Sauce. Overall still a great quality tin.
Savoury Snacks With Catz (verified owner) –
This tin would be a desert island pick in the sense that it’s delicious and only needs some hot rice to make a meal.
The fish themselves are smaller than typical pilchards but bigger than brislings, and assertive tasting. They have a nice savoury-sweet miso sauce. I buried the sardines and some of their sauce in hot short grain rice, like a giant onigiri, and then topped it with avocado, roasted seaweed, kimchee, and watercress for an easy dinner.
I don’t think a non-lover of sardines would be swayed, but for those who already love sardines, these are a treat.
SK (verified owner) –
I am quickly becoming a fan of Japanese sardines and this can did not disappoint. The price doesn’t hurt either. The can had about 4 large fish in a wonderfully rich and sweet sauce. The sauce kept the fish moist and clung to the meat well for a lot of flavor in each bite. I didn’t feel like making a dish so I ate these straight out of the can at room temp and really enjoyed them.