We source Cantabrian anchovies only. Cantabrian anchovies are fished sustainably in the Bay of Biscay in the Cantabrian Sea, and they are the best anchovies for all sorts of reasons. It’s partly down to context. The Cantabrian Sea's weather patterns, currents and water temperatures - the merroir - help create the flavour and texture that makes the Cantabrian anchovy the gold standard amongst anchovies.
- Anchovies are oily fish, like sardines. And also like sardines, they are a small forage fish, meaning larger fish like halibut, salmon and sharks feed on them. Anchovies are five to six inches long on average. They belong to the family Engraulidae (Engraulis is Greek for anchovy), and, like sardines, the order Clupeiformes. There are 144 different species of anchovy. They like temperate marine waters mostly and sometimes freshwater. They are omnivorous, feeding on plankton and newly hatched fish.
- Anchovies are attracted to light, surfacing at night when the moon is bright. On nights when the moon isn’t full a 2000-year-old tradition can be employed where fishermen suspend a lamp from the front of small boats called lampara (Spanish for lamp) to attract the fish to the surface so that a ‘mother’ boat can net them. Before the advent of tech like sonar and radar and larger fishing boats, this was the capture method.
- Because anchovies' flavour is short-lived after they are caught, they are cured rather than exported. Tinned anchovies are prepared by hand then preserved in barrels filled with salt - a layer of salt, a layer of anchovies and so on. During the curing process, the anchovies flatten with the weight of the layers of anchovies above them and a pungent liquid rises to the top of the barrels. Our anchovies include Olasagasti and Zallo - Basque canneries that source the best anchovies from the morning seafood markets and begin the curing process the same day. Zallo and Olasagasti anchovies are cured for a minimum of six to eight months. Angelachu, Solano Arriola and Carmelo anchovies are cured for longer. After the fish emerge from the salt barrels they are cleaned, filleted, deboned and the skin removed. Finally they are packed in oil. Or in salt. Anchovies canned in salt are not filleted which means home cooks and chefs can follow tinned seafood tradition at home and fillet the anchovies themselves.
- Cantabrian anchovies are the best anchovies. The Cantabrian Sea's merroir (weather patterns, currents and water temperatures) is partly why the Cantabrian anchovy’s flavour and texture is world-renowned. Anchovies in the Cantabrian Sea grow to a good size because the choppy water there is oxygenated and strong currents drive deeper, nutrient-dense waters to the surface, supporting plankton growth which the anchovies feed on. The Cantabrian Sea’s turbulent waters also mean that the anchovies have to be strong swimmers, and this, along with the coldness of the water, sufficiently firms their flesh to weather the salt-curing. Furthermore, the anchovies are submerged in barrels filled with brine for up to 2 hours when they reach the cannery to further firm the flesh. In spring, when Cantabrian anchovies are fished, the anchovy's fatty reserves are at their peak, ready for summer when they spawn. The higher fat content assists the long curing and development of flavour.
The best Spanish anchovies
Anchovies from Santoña are the crème de la crème of Cantabrian anchovies. Angelachu, Carmelo and Solano Arriola anchovies are all produced in Santoña, a fishing town boasting over a century of anchovy expertise. The Cantabrian town is the birthplace of the Cantabrian anchovy, where the first Italian settlers began to produce salted anchovies.
- The anchovies from here are always Engraulis encrasicolus - the finest example of the anchovy due to its high omega-3 content and flavour profile.
- The very best bocarte - the Spanish name for the fresh anchovy before it is cured - are bought at the Cantabrian ports. The anchovies are then quickly run from the harbour to the Santoña canneries where the curing process begins and lasts for up to a year or longer.
- The sobadoras fillet the anchovies post-curing, removing the hair-width bones a machine would miss and safeguarding the delicate texture a machine would compromise.
- Producers like Angelachu even carefully clean excess salt away with fishing net, a laborious process that ensures its signature refined finish and mild salinity.
- The numbered slip of paper inside these oil-packed anchovies identifies the sobadora. It’s like a signature on a work of art.
Anchovies are highly nutritious. They are full of tissue-repairing, muscle-building protein, and omega-3 fatty acids which promote heart health. They’re a good source of B vitamins niacin, riboflavin and vitamin B-12 (which help promote brain, eye and skin health). Anchovies also contain calcium, iron, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids.
Serving tips
An anchovy fillet or several add depth of flavour to sauces. Two or three go a long way, because they’re umami-packed.
The salting traditions brought to Spain originated in Italy and there are plenty of Italian anchovy-based recipes.
- Spaghetti puttanesca: onion softened down in olive oil with chilli and garlic, mixed with olives, anchovies, capers and tomatoes and then tossed through spaghetti.
- Mozzarella in carrozza (mozzarella in a carriage): French toast wrapped around a mozzarella slice and two anchovy fillets, closed with a cocktail stick and deep fried.
- They’re in Provençal condiment tapenade: puréed black olives, capers (tapeno is the Provençal word for caper), garlic, lemon zest and the juice, and anchovies.
- In the Basque Country they’re speared with an olive and a piparra or guindilla pepper to create the Gilda - named after Rita Hayworth’s salty, green and spicy character in the film of the same name. We like to bookend the Gilda with two large Gordol olives and use two large anchovy fillets folded into an S, and separated by sections of crunchy, spicy piparra pepper.
