Cantabrian
Anchovies
Fishing in the Cantabrian Sea gets underway in the spring months. The ships identify schools of fish and then proceed to surround them from the surface with seine nets, which are dropped into the water. The vessel them turns around the school in a 360º circle to confine the fish in the net.
1.
ANCHOVY FISHING STARTS
IN THE NORTH OF THE
BAY OF BISCAY
2.
MAKING ITS WAY TO THE
CANTABRIAN COAST IN
APRIL AND MAY
3.
THE ANCHOVY IS
FOUND MIDWATER
AT VARIOUS
DEPTHS
4.
ANCHOVY FISHING IS
REGULATED AND LIMITED
TO ENSURE SUSTAINABLE
AND ENVIRONMENTALLY
FRIENDLY FISHING
Seine
fishing
When the school is surrounded, the net is closed to keep the fish from getting out. The fish are removed from the net using a huge scoop called a “salabardo”. The anchovies are brought on board alive. This fishing system is highly selective and environmentally friendly. We bear the MSC seal, which certifies our use of sustainable methods and the traceability of our products.
Salt curing
The skill of the salt-curers of Cantabria is essential to preparing anchovies, as evidenced by the slow curing process and the careful handling of the “sobadoras”, who carefully select and manually cut the anchovy fillets. The weather conditions of the Cantabrian coast offer the mild temperatures that are ideal for ensuring the natural curing of the product.
5.
THE FISH ARE
SELECTED TO MAKE
ANCHOVY OR WHITE
ANCHOVY FILLETS
BASED ON THEIR
CHARACTERISTICS
6.
ANCHOVY FILLETS
ARE SALT CURED
BETWEEN ONE AND
TWO YEARS
Artisanal
process
The entire process of filleting the salted and marinated anchovies is done by hand using age-old methods and processes. It’s a process with a definite artisanal nature in which every operation is done by hand
The
"Sobadoras"
“The sobadoras of Santoña” are tasked with carrying out the entire manual process. They take the utmost care to select, clean and cut the best fillets to offer a high-quality product. Experienced workers devoted to making the best fillets every day in the town of Santoña. Their trade is regarded as art.
7.
EACH ANCHOVY
FILLET IS
INDIVIDUALLY
HAND CUT
Anchovy filets
The art of filleting is a meticulous traditional craft that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Cantabrian coast. The anchovy fillets are prepared and selected using a long, artisanal process by the experts, the “sobadoras de Santoña”. The fillets are selected by size. Any bones and impurities are removed to yield individual fillets that, by themselves, are a pure delight. The fillets are carefully placed in the containers to preserve their integrity and quality.
Packed
in oil
8.
THE ANCHOVY FILLETS
ARE COVERED IN OIL
TO PRESERVE THEIR
QUALITY AND FLAVOUR
Anchovy fillets are classified as semi-preserved. To preserve them, the fillets are covered in the finest sunflower seed or olive oil. This makes the product ready to eat immediately once the anchovy is removed from the container. Our anchovy fillets come from fish exclusively caught in the Cantabrian Sea and all the elaboration process takes place in the region of Cantabria, from the handling to the sealing and labelling.
