What's the best tuna? (With the verdict, one free recipe!)

By Natasha Austin

November 16, 2007 | Being a student requires some frugality on my part when purchasing food. The classic standbys that get most students by include canned soup and chili, ramen noodles, macaroni and cheese, and the endless cans of tuna. On a recent trip to the grocer I was overwhelmed by the choices of tuna brands. I became bound and determined to find the best quality and value for my money in the tuna market.

I bought three cans of brand name tuna, and one can of generic brand. To mix things up a little, I also purchased two tuna in a bag. My poor husband didn't know what hit him the next day when for lunch he was asked to be a second taste tester. The results were surprising, and the activity fun!

We first started with the Star Kist Chunk Light Tuna in a bag. The package claimed no need to drain, however upon opening the package water ooz.ed out everywhere and I ended up draining the package. The fish it self was light in color a good part of the fish, unfortunately they were all in small pieces, defiantly not the "chunk" I was looking for. The 3 oz. bag cost $1.49, held about 2.5 oz. of actual meat, making it 80 cents per ounce of tuna. When mixed with mayo for a sandwich the tuna developed a strange dry and chalky texture. The bag of tuna did seem to have a less fishy smell than those from a can.

Bumble Bee also sells a tuna in a bag product. Their labeling is what first lured me to the product. A picture with big huge chunks that you could fit on a fork was not what I found to be inside the package. Instead I found the same small and tiny bits of tuna found in the other product. The 7 oz. package cost $1.99. After weighing the contents minus the water there was 6 oz. of tuna in the package, making it 33 cents per ounce. If you were buying tuna in a bag product, this is the better value for your buck. While it is a good value, the quality of fish dwindles, being dark in color with very dark specks, and it lacked the tuna taste you are looking for.

Star Kist also sells a Chunk Light product in a can for 78 cents. Actual fish content in the 6 oz. can was 4 oz., making the price 20 cents per ounce of fish. The tuna did not have an overwhelming fish smell and had some medium sized chunks, the most important for making sandwiches. After making a sandwich we found the flavor to be very pleasing.

After trying Bumble Bee in the bag, we decided to give the 6 oz. can a try. The 89-cent can of tuna yielded 4.5 oz. of fish, making the value 21 cents per oz.. The texture was mealy made up of small flakes and no chunks. This can of tuna carried the highest fishy smell of them all, as well as the darkest color we saw. The sandwich texture was slightly mushy due to the mealy texture.

Chicken of the Sea ended up being our least favorite. After weighing the contents it came in the most expensive at 99 cents a can and 25 cents per ounce of meat. The fish meat was microscopically small making it difficult to drain. The fish carried a heavy metal smell from the can and when mixed with ingredients carried little if any fish taste. On the sandwich the tuna had such an unappetizing wet texture neither my husband nor I could finish eating it. It was so bad he made me promise him never to buy Chicken of the Sea again.

The generic Smith's brand, Kroger, was the best can of tuna. The 6 oz. of tuna cost just 59 cents and after draining found it to be 17 cents per ounce, making this the best value for your money. This can was the easiest to drain as very few bits and pieces drained with the water. The fish meat was very light in color, the lightest of them all, and had a faint fishy smell. My biggest surprise came with the size of the chunks; some were nickel-sized, a big change from the competition. When made into a sandwich the texture was just right and the flavor outstanding. The fish actually carried a slight sweet taste that mixed well with the other ingredients.

Smith's brand Kroger definitely outswam its competition in the tuna department. You get more tuna for your money, and exceptional pieces of fish. So the next time you are stocking up your pantry with tuna goods, remember buying generic pays off.

Want something more than everyday pickle and tuna sandwich?

Try my tuna wrap recipe below, or check out some of my other recipes at www.recipeswapping.blogspot.com.

Crunchy Tuna Wrap

Yield 4 servings

1 (6oz.) can Kroger Chunk Light Tuna
2 teaspoon mayo (optional)
1 tsp Italian salad dressing or your favorite salad dressing
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot or red onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons finely diced red bell pepper
1 small clove of fresh minced garlic (optional)
1ž2 teaspoon paprika
4-5 leafs of lettuce
1ž2 cup sliced cucumbers
4 tortillas

Mix tuna, mayo, salad dressing, onion, celery, red peppers, garlic and paprika together.

Lay leaf of lettuce in center of tortilla. Layer cucumber slices in a straight line down the leaf of lettuce. Top with 1/4 of tuna mixture and wrap up like a burrito. If taking it on the run, wrap the tuna wrap in wax paper to hold its shape. Tuna Wraps keep very well in the refrigerator up to 3 days.

NW
MS