Sardines and anchovies

Sardines and anchovies are constantly confused, in recipes, at the store, and at the table, and that is no wonder.

Ölsardinen ohne Gräten von la belle-iloise

Sardines and anchovies are constantly being confused—in recipes, in stores, and at the table—and it’s no wonder. Both are small, silvery fish related to herring, both come to us in tins and jars, and both smell of the sea the moment you open the lid.

The answer in one sentence: you eat sardines as a fish, and anchovies as a seasoning. If you remember that, you'll almost always make the right choice on the shelf. The rest of this guide explains why that is, how to identify the two on the label, and what to do if a recipe calls for one but you only have the other in your cupboard.

What is the difference between sardines, anchovies, and sprats?

Sardines and anchovies belong to the herring family, but they can be distinguished. The sardine is larger and, above all, rounder, while the anchovy is smaller and slimmer; this is how the Bavarian Consumer Center describes them. Anchovies grow to an average length of 10 to 15 cm, slightly less in the south. They live in schools in the upper water layers of the eastern Atlantic, the North Sea, the Mediterranean, and the Black Sea, and feed on plankton, the MSC explains. They live up to 5 years, migrate south in winter and north in summer, and are caught using purse seines or pelagic nets, resulting in little bycatch due to their schooling behavior.

However, the most important difference lies in what they become. Sardines are usually eaten as a whole fish. According to the guidelines of the German Food Book, sardines for canning are gutted, heated without their heads and tails, placed in the tin with oil or sauce, and sterilized, allowing them to keep for several years without refrigeration. Anchovies, on the other hand, are usually salted. For salted anchovy products, whole, ungutted anchovies are placed in coarse salt and left to mature at room temperature for several months. This results in salted anchovy fillets, anchovy rings, and anchovy paste—also known as "anchovy paste"—which must contain at least 75% salted anchovies.

Anchovy is the internationally common name for the European anchovy, preserved in salty or sweet-and-sour brine. "Anchosen" (spiced sprats) are something different, even if the words sound similar. According to the guidelines, these are products made from sprats, herring, or other fatty fish that have been cured with sugar, acid, salt, herbs, and spices; *appetitsild*, for example, is made from sprats. We are most familiar with sprats themselves in their smoked form. Fangst’s Brisling No. 2, for instance, are smoked sprats in rapeseed oil.

For canned sardines, there is even a specific EU regulation from 1989. According to this, canned sardines must be products made from fish of the species *Sardina pilchardus*. If a fish of a different species is offered in the same way, such as the sprat (*Sprattus sprattus*) or the herring (*Clupea harengus*), the tin is considered a sardine-type product rather than a canned sardine. So, anyone who reads *Sardina pilchardus* on the ingredient list knows they have a real sardine in front of them.

The regulation also governs what appears on the front of the tin. "Boneless" means that in addition to the head, gills, tail fin, and entrails, the backbone has also been removed; "skinless and boneless" means the skin has been removed as well. "In olive oil" only appears on the tin if olive oil was used, and it cannot be mixed with other oils. Other refined vegetable oils are labeled "in vegetable oil," or the oil is named specifically.

This leads to the most important test: read the ingredient list, not just the name on the front of the tin. For Olasagasti's Basque-style anchovies, the list includes anchovies (53%) with the Latin name *Engraulis encrasicolus*, along with olive oil, garlic, cayenne pepper, wine vinegar, and salt. If, however, "sprat" appears on the list, it is not an anchovy, regardless of what the tin looks like.

The fact that anchovies mature in salt on the northern coast of Spain actually has a specific history. At the end of the 19th century, Salvatore Orlando came to Getaria from Sicily, sent by his father. He was one of the Italian pioneers who brought ancient salting techniques to the Cantabrian coast, where they were previously unknown. He married the Basque woman Simona Olasagasti, and their surname remains to this day on the jars of the company, which now produces in Markina in Bizkaia.

Can I use sardines instead of anchovies?

Sometimes, but it takes a little extra effort. The deciding factor is the role the fish plays in the dish. Anchovies are a seasoning: they have spent months in salt and provide saltiness and depth to a sauce, salad, or pizza. Sardines are a fish. They come out of the tin already cooked and not salt-cured; they provide meat and oil and have a milder flavor.

For me, a tinned sardine is a welcome pantry staple that promises enjoyment at any time and is incredibly versatile thanks to the many creative recipes our canned fish producers offer: classic in oil, with lemon, or in tomato sauce, but also with algae pesto, kumquats, or green pepper. They taste good not just on dinner bread, but also with fried potatoes, salad, or pasta.

Anchovies, on the other hand, are a fine seasoning ingredient in my kitchen. Even a single anchovy fillet transforms a dish, lending it depth, umami, and seasoning without being overtly "fishy." Whether in Caesar dressing combined with Parmesan, in *vitello tonnato* sauce, or in tomato sauces—even in goulash or meatballs—the anchovy is an essential ingredient.

Spiced sprats are also no substitute for anchovies, even if the name sounds similar. They are cured with sugar and acid and bring an entirely different profile to a dish than an anchovy that has spent months in salt.

For a pasta dish where the sauce relies on anchovies, sardines only work with a bit of help. Mash them with a fork, add them to the pan late in the process, and season with salt and a bit of grated lemon zest. You will end up with a different, meatier dish that is equally good in its own way. Conversely, anchovies do not replace a sardine on bread: anyone who eats an anchovy fillet the same way as an oil sardine will taste mostly salt.

Where both have a place side-by-side, the matter is simple. For a tomato sauce, let an anchovy fillet melt in the oil with the garlic before adding the tomatoes, and place a few pieces of sardine on top at the end. On a board with bread, the sardine is the main course and the anchovy is the salt for it, for example, placed over a few olives.

An opened tin does not belong back on the shelf. Both A Banca da Sardinha and Fangst advise keeping the remainder in the refrigerator and eating it within two days. Do not throw away the oil from the tin. It has surrounded the fish and tastes of it, and a spoonful in a dressing or over warm potatoes turns the leftovers into a second meal.

Why are sardines so hard to find?

That question stems from a difficult period. In the summer of 2014, the Portuguese sardine fishery lost its MSC certification, and by 2017 the Iberian stock was in critical condition; the fishery was on the verge of complete closure. That year, Portugal and Spain were only allowed to catch 10,000 tons combined. Fleets and governments subsequently committed to science-based plans with cautious catch rules, closed seasons, and annual quotas. In 2025, quotas were back up to 34,406 tons for Portugal and 17,332 tons for Spain, and today’s MSC certification covers 317 vessels from the Bay of Biscay to the Strait of Gibraltar. Fishing is done with purse seines.

Anyone buying sardines from Portugal or France today will find them available again, with some companies even specifying exactly when they were caught. The first sardines of the season are caught by the *bolincheurs* of Concarneau between June and July, and these are what Conserverie Gonidec uses for its vintage sardines; on our shelves, these are the vintage sardines from Les Mouettes d'Arvor. A Banca da Sardinha processes fresh catches from the Portuguese coast using the traditional pre-cooking method.

This is what an evening looks like when both come to the table: an open tin of sardines with their oil, a slice of bread, some butter, a few radishes, and next to it a small bowl of olives topped with an anchovy fillet. Two fish, two roles, one board.

Sardine or anchovy: which tin for what

For what	What	On the shelf
On bread, pure with the oil	Sardines in olive oil	A Banca da Sardinha
For those who don't like bones	Boneless oil sardines	la belle-iloise
For the pan	Sardines for frying with farmhouse butter	la belle-iloise, à la Nantaise
With vintage on the tin	The first sardines of the season	Les Mouettes d'Arvor 2026
As a seasoning	Anchovies in olive oil	Olasagasti, Anchovy Basque-style
Smoked	Sprats in rapeseed oil	Fangst, Brisling No. 2