I was at the grocery store today and it occured to me that it never occured to me to wonder why canned tuna comes two different ways. I’ve been eating canned tuna all my life, but I never really gave any thought to what I was buying or what the difference might be. It can’t be a product quality thing because they both sell for the same price. Is it a flavor issue?
Packed in oil definitely tastes different. From my hazy recollection of my distant youth, it always used to be in oil, and it was only the “fat is horrible” health fads that made them start packing it in water, even though that had less taste. Now a generation has grown up with it both ways, so it’s easier to just maintain both to meet customer preference.
Perfect for Cafe Society. Moved from General Questions.
samclem Moderator
What TimeWinder said. Used to be tuna was only packed in oil. Since it’s a somewhat oily fish, that worked just fine. Then they came up with this packed in water crap – oh, excuse me, that’s packed in pure natural highfalutin’ spring water. Where once we had to drain the excess oil out, now we have to drain the water and add oil. :smack: But hey, that’s progress. :rolleyes:
I use the packed in water variety for sandwiches, which I never make anymore, and the packed in oil kind for salad nicoise.
The main difference seems to be the fishy aftertaste. The oily kind definitely tastes better. It is also higher in fat/calories. However, the Whole Foods I used to shop at in California sold a packed in water variety that retailed for $4 a can and was absolutely delicious. If I remember correctly, it was packed in broth instead of water and it was canned very quickly or something or the other. It was a small company that they let sell at sample stations on Saturdays, after which they picked them up and seemed to stock on the shelves. I so rarely eat sandwiches that I haven’t searched for the product at the WF here in Michigan.
For the salad nicoise it works out perfectly. I drain the oil completely and just toss with red wine vinegar. I figure the calories end up about the same as if I’d used an oil vinaigrette.
I hate tuna in oil. It makes it taste greasy and too fishy. Plus, most importantly, the cat can’t drink the oil I drain out of the can, and she will glare then sulk if it goes down the sink.
Ditto for hating tuna in oil. I prefer my grease in the form of the mayo I add to it afterwords. 
Sometimes for camping/kayaking/road trips I bring along cans of tuna and just eat it straight outta the can with nothing else added, and even then I prefer water-packed.
I’ll be damned if I waste my calories on oil packed tune. If I’m eating canned tuna I’m trying to be healthy, if I wanted something high in fat I’d be at McDonalds.
It always seems to me that the tuna packed in oil tastes saltier. This is just my opinion of course.
This is what we do too. If we’re going to mix our tuna with something cream or mayo based (casserole or salad for sandwiches), we use tuna in water. If we’re eating it out of the can, say on a salad or crackers, we go with the tuna in oil. Or good sardines in cans.
Yup yup. I actually just did a calorie comparison because I’m making salad nicoise for dinner tonight. Packed in water is 70 calories, packed in oil is 110 for the same serving size. I believe the nicoise option with the tuna packed in oil (I buy the Trader Joe’s packed in olive oil variety) ends up healthier than the sandwich option, first because there’s no bread, and second because I’m positive that I use more than 40 calories worth of mayo to make a tuna sandwich.
The thought of adding mayo to oil tuna makes me retch however.
All that said, I suspect the best fish oils are probably the ones that the fish exude naturally-which is why my preferred 2 varieties of fish for both taste and health are Pacific Mackerel and Pacific Sardine.
I was confident Shark Sandwich would show up in this thread.
Hmmmmmm,
…but, I dont actually eat the** oil**, nor the water. I drain the liquid out of the tuna before I eat it. I assume the the 110 calorie count is if you consume all the oil in the can?
Are your 70 calorie and 110 calorie counts including the oil/water? They must be.
If somebody drains off the water and oil, then , what is the approximate difference between the calorie counts?
If drained oil tuna is only 10 calories more (80) than tuna in water, then maybe I dont have to use tuna in water anymore?
I buy both, but tuna in oil tastes far better to me (especially the ones packed in olive oil). If I only have the water-packed variety around the house and want to make myself a light snack, I always add olive oil to it, anyway.
The cans specifically listed the calorie counts as being post-draining. As I said, the 40 calories don’t matter to me because I don’t use oil tuna for sandwiches, only for salad with no dressing. So I’m already saving on two pieces of bread and mayo.
Why can’t the cat eat the oil…? It’s not like it’s toxic or anything.
Well, ours, being a cat, isn’t much for moderation, and then she barfs all over everything for the next three days as her itty bitty tummy tries to deal with the godawful invasion of fishy oil which got crammed down the pike.
So, that’s why for us.
We usually drizzle just a few drops on top of their food and let them at that part so they don’t hate on us (actually, so they’re distracted and don’t even notice us) throwing it down the drain.
I like it in oil for sammiches, all I need is bread, some pepper, and some nice mustard, and I’m set to go.
Also - does anyone actually NOT drain their canned tuna? :eek: (need a barfy face)
It’s funny how taste change. I always used to buy tuna in oil and loved it. Then I switched to water packed tuna, and now I can’t stand it packed in oil 
We have always drained our oil-packed tuna and given it a quick rinse under running water. Tastes much better than the water-packed, but not greasy at all. And somewhere, around the time water-packed became available, I remember reading that the oil-packed tuna actually was better for you in some way (if rinsed, which we had been doing for decades anyhow) than the water-packed. Just can’t remember if it was the calories, the toxins, the whatever…that fact just sticks in my head. Something about the oil leaching something or other. So does no one else rinse their oil-packed tuna?
Cheap (not albacore) packed-in-water tuna is the only kind of seafood I eat and that only with mayonnaise. That’s also the only way I’ll eat mayonnaise. (two not so good tastes that actually work together). Packed in oil tastes too greasy, oily, and fishy.