Stöcker in organic extra virgin olive oil

Papa Anzóis Stöcker in Organic Olive Oil. Firm, mild carapau from the Atlantic off the Algarve.

Papa Anzóis Stöcker in Organic Olive Oil is Portuguese carapau, hand-packed in extra virgin olive oil from certified organic farming. No sardine, no real mackerel and no seasoning sauce, just fish, oil and salt.

Papa Anzóis Stöcker in Organic Olive Oil comes in a 120 g tin from Parchal on the Algarve and contains 70 percent fish, 30 percent oil and a little salt. Those accustomed to oil-packed sardines will immediately notice a different fish with the first bite. The flesh is firmer and milder and stays in one piece when lifted out. In Portugal, this fish is called carapau and is landed there at all times of the year.

Stöcker is neither a sardine nor a real mackerel

Zoologically, the stöcker belongs to the mackerel family and thus differs fundamentally from the sardine. Its German nicknames wooden mackerel, bastard mackerel and shield mackerel are misleading, because it is not in the same family as the real mackerel. The latter name refers to the large, keeled shields on its side.

The difference becomes tangible on the fork. The sardines from the same factory are soft and full-bodied in aroma. The stöcker, on the other hand, is mild, its flesh compact and juicy. Salt is the only seasoning, so the fish's own taste remains in the foreground. It is therefore not suitable as a substitute for a full-bodied oil-packed sardine. Those looking for exactly this character are better off choosing the sardines in organic olive oil from the same house.

Potatoes, vinegar and garlic in the Algarve style

Firm stöcker is suitable for the Algarve carapaus alimados. For the classic, salt the fish, boil it, remove the skin and take out the bones. Then add garlic, vinegar and olive oil. The dish is served with new potatoes or with sweet potatoes grown in Aljezur.

At home, cook small potatoes or sweet potatoes until soft, slice them and place the stöcker in large pieces on top. One finely chopped garlic clove, a splash of white wine vinegar and a spoonful of oil from the tin are enough. The dish tastes just as good lukewarm as cold. Just as easy: toasted rustic bread, rubbed with garlic and topped with fish.

Our tip: Use the oil too. It makes up just under a third of the tin's contents and is organic olive oil; over warm potatoes, it replaces any dressing. For a smooth, spreadable fish cream, however, the stöcker is not suitable, as its flesh is too firm. Serve it alongside the stöcker with lemon, and your guests will see how strongly the acidity changes the same fish.

From the fishing port on the Rio Arade

Measured by the value of landings, only octopus and sardine rank above the stöcker in Portugal. It is landed in places including Lagos, Olhão and Tavira. Before the refrigerator, it was salted. This allowed it to reach remote villages in the hinterland, where it was eaten in migas and açorda, two bread-based dishes.

This carapau is processed in Parchal on the Rio Arade; Portimão lies on the other side of the river. Conserveira do Arade was founded in 2015 by Vincent Jonckheere and Manuel Mendes, who wanted to bring canning back to the river. Employees prepare the fish with a knife. Instead of pre-boiling it, the factory dries it for around 24 hours at a low temperature. Then hands pack it into the tin, and oil is poured over it from a jug. A certificate certifies the operation as a craft business.

Extra virgin olive oil is the highest quality grade for olive oil, obtained exclusively mechanically. Organic refers to the oil in this tin, not to the fish from the sea. Its organic control number is PT-BIO-04. Like most ingredients, Conserveira sources it from producers in the region.

Number 04 for an evening with petiscos

Papa Anzóis additionally distinguishes its varieties by numbers, and each tin is wrapped in paper. The stöcker in organic olive oil bears the Nº 04. In Southern Europe, stöcker is known fresh, smoked and from a tin.

For a petisco evening, so Portuguese call small snack dishes, open several varieties and serve bread with them. As a gift, the wrapped tin is already ready-packaged. Further tins from the house are available in our selection of Papa Anzóis, and further fish from a tin under fish tins.

A fish for everyone who likes to eat their tin plain and discover something new: carapau from Parchal, simply in organic olive oil.