Tuna Fish

Updated on August 31, 2012
B.. asks from Rockwall, TX
21 answers

Does tuna fish (canned, or pouch) taste as bad as it smells? My husband and I could both never bring ourselves to try tuna. The small alone turns us off. We were just talking about how tuna would be such an inexpensive lunch or dinner option. I realize I could just buy the stuff, and test it out. I'm just curious, as to what you ladies (and gents) think. Is tuna very fishy and strong tasting?

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So What Happened?

Thanks, folks! I think I will just be brave, and try some. Thanks, for all the tips on cutting the smell, and how to eat it. We will do the pouch, because we try to avoid BPA.

8kidsdad - I'm a little confused by your smoking comment! Who said anything about smoking? I didn't, and I've never had a cigarette in my life!! Weird. Eta- Gotcha!

Featured Answers

J.W.

answers from St. Louis on

Taste less fishy than it smells if that is what you mean. Really once you drain off the water the smell drastically improves, add mayo and it becomes yummy. :)

7 moms found this helpful

J.B.

answers from Houston on

I love the stuff, my wife can't stand it. And yes it is does taste fishy to some degree. In the can it comes in either water or oil, I can't eat the tuna in oil, WAY to fishy for me.
Most people doctor up tuna so much, myself included, that it almost becomes something else. Miracle whip, tomato, pickle, celery, boiled egg, onion, salt/pepper. My two cents.

4 moms found this helpful

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J.C.

answers from Philadelphia on

Tuna fish (and crab dip) are the only sea foods I eat. It definitely taste better than it smells.

4 moms found this helpful

F.H.

answers from Phoenix on

Honestly, we eat it alot, I don't purposely smell it. lol I mix it with mayo and sprinkle in some onion powder, garlic powder and celery salt. Then put it on bread or a scoop on my green salad. I also like a pineapple slice on my tuna sandwhich. Yum! Try it, you'll like it! =)

4 moms found this helpful

V.W.

answers from Jacksonville on

It smells WAY worse. If you can hold your nose to mix it up with some mayo and put a little bit of pickle relish in it, then it TASTES GREAT.
But opening the can, squeezing out the water it is packed in, and mixing it up in a bowl is a smelly proposition.

I just suck it up and do it. And then (immediately) rinse out the can and run the water/disposal to help flush away any residual odors down the drain. Once that is done, mixing it up isn't too bad. My husband, on the other hand, doesn't rinse the can and it stinks up the whole kitchen and lingers...

But the taste? We love it. Even my son eats it, and has since he was a little guy, maybe 5 or 6 years old?

3 moms found this helpful

T.F.

answers from Dallas on

I agree... it does smell way worse than it taste.

I love tuna salad and I make it for myself or eat it out at least weekly.

I'm not sure about others but I can eat my tuna salad (only way I eat it) around 11am and not be hungry until dinner around 6. It sticks with me and I only drink water afterwards.

I'm also picky.. I like it mixed with a little mayo, chopped pickles and then I eat it on the side with fresh tomatoes, cheese and crackers.

Try it.. Oh, the pouch is not bad but I did not like the already prepared ready to eat in the pouch. It was my pickiness though.. I am sure people like it.

3 moms found this helpful

L.A.

answers from Austin on

Purchase it in Water.. The smell is not so bad. Drain the water and give it to your cat or dog.. they will love it.

Or you can purchase the pouch.. no need to drain..

I like a little mayo, some dill pickles chopped, some white onion and celery chopped and lots of black pepper.. Better once it has set together for a few hours.

I am craving it now!

Updated

Purchase it in Water.. The smell is not so bad. Drain the water and give it to your cat or dog.. they will love it.

Or you can purchase the pouch.. no need to drain..

I like a little mayo, some dill pickles chopped, some white onion and celery chopped and lots of black pepper.. Better once it has set together for a few hours.

I am craving it now!

3 moms found this helpful

N.G.

answers from Dallas on

Oh, I LOVE tuna, hate the smell. A tuna sandwich with good, fresh bread is soooo good.

I put tuna, real mayo, a squirt of mustard, salt & pepper, hard-boiled eggs, and either chopped pickles or dill relish. Yummmm.... in tuna salad, you really can't smell the tuna.

You can also make it with canned (or pouch) chicken. Same thing.

3 moms found this helpful
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C.O.

answers from Minneapolis on

I'm not a big fan of tuna but I think it does taste better than it smells. Buy the stuff packed in water, drain it and mix it with some mayo and put on bread. You can usually get 2 sandwiches out of one can.

2 moms found this helpful

⊱.H.

answers from Spokane on

My husband and boys love tuna. We buy the stuff packed in water, not oil, and it seems less fishy. I just add mayo and pepper. They also love tuna melts ~ basically a grilled cheese with tuna on it. Maybe try it that way first so you have some cheese to soften the tuna taste.

2 moms found this helpful
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R.J.

answers from Seattle on

Yep. It tastes EXACTLY how it smells. Disgusting.

Canned in oil (expensive) is better, I suspect because it hasn't decayed as much.

There ARE grades of canned tuna.

'Tuna' being the lowest & Solid White Albacore being the highest.

Chunk Light is a fairly inexpensive middle option.

The 'dark' aspect of the super oily smelly 'tuna' and 'chunk tuna' and 'chunk light' tuna is from the 'bloodvein'. Fish excrete differently from mammals. Their wastes (poo/pee/oils) are carried THROUGH the muscle in a 'stripe' (NOT an actual vein or intestines, but filtered in a channel of muscle) of dark red-grey tissue. It's the part you cut off before cooking ANY kind of blood vein fish (salmon, tuna etc.)... Unless you're a commercial canning company selling by weight. Tuna is weird in that it has a full 20% of its weight in deep triangular bloodveins.

So the cheaper/lower grade the tuna, the higher the concentration of oils and poop in it.

Yum.

2 moms found this helpful
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K.P.

answers from Seattle on

I can only eat it if I add things to it. Mayo or Miracle Whip, pickles, onion, celery, and a bit of salt and pepper and then it's delicious. I also only buy it in water too.

My hubby on the other hand will eat it right out of the pouch he loves it. He used to make me send it to him when he was sent overseas.

2 moms found this helpful

K.I.

answers from Los Angeles on

We like it at my house. I kinda think it's a mellow flavor and that it smells stronger than it is.

We add mayo, red onion, diced tomato, diced pickle, and diced hard boiled egg and eat it on toasted bread...my kids like me to add a slice of cheese on top to theirs.

Add in mayo slowly until you get a consistency you like, you can always add more but you can't take it out!

2 moms found this helpful

C.C.

answers from San Francisco on

B., I feel the same way! The smell of it makes me gag. I can't even get past the smell to actually eat it. But my older daughter loves canned tuna, and I asked a question a while ago about people's recipes for tuna salad sandwich - I have made many of the different versions and my daughter tells me they are delicious. So, just a thought, you might want to check those answers for some recipe ideas. :)

2 moms found this helpful
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M.S.

answers from Seattle on

I really like tuna, but I do have to admit, some brands are better than others. At our house, we either buy the Costco brand or Chicken of the Sea. Any other brands are way too strong, IMO.

Also, we only buy tuna that is packed in water, for a few reasons. First, it helps with the smell. Tuna in oil is VERY smelly. Second, tuna packed in water is healthier than tuna packed in oil. Oil runs the calories way up.

I've never tried tuna in the pouch, only canned, so I can't vouch for the pouch.

Be brave and try tuna, it's really good. You could buy gourmet tuna from a specialty store or a farmer's market (we have vendors her at some of the markets that sell high quality canned tuna) for a better experience, but just be aware that it wil ocost you more than the grocery store.

Good luck!

2 moms found this helpful
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C.C.

answers from Dallas on

I never liked tuna either until a friend made a sandwich for me - not with the eggs and mayo, but a grilled tuna/cheddar. I was addicted. The only fish I've ever liked is friend shrimp and catfish...don't like hot tuna or salmon casserole or salmon patties ... I have learned to like a tuna salad sandwich (cold), but my favorite is still the grilled. It smells awful, but tastes wonderful. Make it like a grilled cheese - NOT American cheese - must be cheddar - on both sides of the bread, tuna on top of one side, when the cheese melts, put it together and grill to toasty brown....

Good luck! Hope you like it - healthy too!

1 mom found this helpful
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B.C.

answers from Los Angeles on

How can anyone say tuna smells bad when they smoke? Oh Well ! !

Yes, tuna has a strong smell if you aren't used to it. Bur fried liver smells much worse. And so does some women's perfume.

I never drain off the water or oil if I am making tuna salad or tuna noodle cassarole or any of a number of things. The water or oil helps spread the flavor more evenly. And it makes the tuna go farther.

I don't like sweet pickle relish. I REALLY don't like sweet pickle relish. But we were on a 9 hour road trip and she made tuna salad sandwiches with sweet pickle relish and it was actually very good. I really enjoyed it. If she had had another one, I'd have eaten it too.

If you are looking for something for a 72 hour kit, tuna should be on your list.

Good luck to you and yours.

ETA: Hi B.. We were talking about the bad smell coming from tuna. I was comparing the bad smell from tuna and other bad smells, like cigarette smoke and fried liver cooking.

1 mom found this helpful
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H.O.

answers from Dallas on

Yes it can have a strong smell, but get one in water and it does not smell as bad. Once it is mixed with items, it is not as bad. My family LOVES tuna sandwichs. Tuna mixed with mayo, mustard, sweet relish, egg, salt, and pepper.

1 mom found this helpful
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P.K.

answers from New York on

Love tuna fish salad sandwiches, hate the smell when I open the can. Try it. You have nothing to lose.

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D.H.

answers from Louisville on

I think you'll prefer the solid white albacore - not sure if that comes in a pouch or not! And once you mix stuff in it - whatever you like - the taste will be changed by those items! Have fun!

ps - I freeze tuna sandwiches for granddaughter's lunches - they thaw by lunchtime but are still cool enough to be good! my mom did this for me all those eons ago when I was in grade school! LOL!

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C.K.

answers from Miami on

Tuna does smell stronger than it tastes. As for it is a relatively inexpensive animal protein. However, if you are eating it for health reasons, then skip all comments that added mayo or miracle whip because that just negates the good. I drain the water (the cats treat!) and flake it and eat it along with grapes and celery. If I can afford the carbs, I'll put the flakes on a cracker, otherwise the flakes sit on an apple slice. I like the sweetness of grapes and the saltiness of the fish together. If you need to turn it into a white creamy "salad" use a little strained unflavored yogurt and chop up pecans and grapes and apples and mix it with the tuna.
If either you or DH have problems with gout, avoid tuna, it is high in purines.

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