Hello and welcome to Ad’s Food Blog!  

As per request, we are about to judge two Corned Tunas from two of the most popular brands of Tunas in the country. The San Marino Corned Tuna and Century Chunky Corned Tuna. This is very exciting since a lot of us prefer to eat healthy and flavorful meals straight from the can when fresh foods aren’t available or when we’re on a diet. Tunas are the healthiest option among the canned foods however, we must check the labels and choose accordingly as it might offer too much or too less than what we need. 

I’m so excited about this! (By the way, Century corned tuna was not accessible when we were buying at the store that’s why we chose chunky corned tuna as a substitute. )

Both are rich in Omega-3 and DHA which means both are good for the heart and offer many nutritional benefits such as: helping eye health, reduces the certain risk of cancers, prevent Alzheimer’s, fights depression and anxiety, etc. Omega-3 and DHA can be found in fish. Tuna is a fish. Therefore, we can get benefits from eating it :)).  

I’ve checked the Nutrition Information of the two and I want to share it to you: 

per 56g serving size                       San Marino          Century 
Energy                                              60 Kcal             70 Kcal                            
Fat                                                  3 g                    2.5 g 
Trans Fat                                          0 g                    0 g 
Sodium                                            220 mg            350 mg 
Carbohydrate                                   2 g                    3 g 
Protein                                            6 g                    8 g 
DHA                                                 28 mg            162 mg 
Omega 3                                          392 mg             792 mg 

By looking at the Nutrition Information, we can already say that Century offers more DHA and Omega 3 than San Marino Tuna. (350 mg> 220mg) than San Marino Tuna.  

I checked the ingredients and I also noticed that there are more ingredients in Century Corned Tuna than in San Marino Corned Tuna. I realized that the ingredients were the reason why it has so many benefits. 

Ingredients of San Marino Corned Tuna: 

• Tuna Flakes 
• Soy Protein Concentrate 
• Soya Oil 
• Iodized Salt 
• Spices and Seasonings 

Ingredients of Century Tuna Corned tuna: 

• Tuna  
• Soy Protein Concentrate 
• Water 
• Soya Oil 
• Iodized Salt 
• Sugar 
• Spices and Seasoning 
• Paprika Oil 

Both have no preservatives which are good since preservatives weaken heart tissues and cause cancer. 

TASTE TEST – SAN MARINO 

San Marino claims that their corned tuna has less oil and lots of tuna (as said by Marian Rivera). It’s good for the heart and better than other brands. 

When opened it, I got more excited to eat it because of it’s aroma. The smell was so good and I guess it had to deal with the spices. I don’t think it looks appetizing. Let’s be honest, no canned food looks appetizing. It looks like rice soaked in oil. I tasted it and it was really good. It’s soft and soggy to the tongue like porridge but tastes like tuna but flavorful and meaty thanks to the spices and seasonings. It says that it’s good with bread so I tried it with bread and the results were gorgeous. 

I think San Marino Corned Tuna is greater with bread, salad, rice or any other companion since it reduces its saltiness which appeared later on. I tried to finish the can after eating the bread with tuna but as I eat it solely, it becomes saltier as time goes by. I had to take a few intervals to finish it but hey, it’s the best with bread! Try it. 

TASTE TEST – CENTURY  

 Before I open the can, I already thought that the century one would be a lot saltier because of its sodium content and I wasn’t wrong. 

As you can see, Century Chunky Corned Beef is soaked in oil just like any other tuna products of Century Pacific Food Inc. They have this distinct taste in their tunas. I heated it first since the product is best when heated. It didn’t have any smell or whatsoever. When I tasted it, I immediately felt the roughness. The taste was very similar to Century Tuna Flakes in Oil. It tasted like sardines instead of corned tuna.I felt like they just added oil and vinegar since it tasted a little bit sour.If I need to be honest, It tasted weird and I wasn’t able to finish it. Eating it with rice made it bearable.

Verdict 

Advantage-Disadvantages- Century 

We can agree that the canned tuna which has more benefits in terms of Omega 3 and DHA was Century Chunky Tuna, but if we’re also going to base in nutrition information solely, it also has higher sodium, carbohydrates, and protein a buyer must consider and this is all because of the ingredients it contains. If you want higher omega-3 and DHA, this is a better choice but if you’re considering the taste, I bet you’ll have a hard time in finishing it. Century Chunky Corned Tuna might be harder to find since Century Tuna promotes the Century tuna flakes in oil than the corned tuna.It costs 37.25 pesos.

Advantage- Disadvantages-San Marino 

The main advantage of San Marino is its taste. It tastes more of a corned tuna than a corned tuna can be plus I think the ingredients balances the flavor. If we compare it to Century’s, it has lesser Omega 3 and DHA. It also has higher Fat by .5 g hence the sogginess but the flavor proves that it has just the right amount to balance the flavor of meatiness. It costs 37.50 pesos.

Conclusion 

While Century Chunky Corned Tuna’s Omega-3 and DHA content are higher, I think it deserves the spot because of its taste. It has balanced nutrition and much bearable to eat. I was more excited for Century at first if I’ll be honest since it has a lot of ingredients and benefits , but I just can’t define the taste. Maybe it’s because there are many seasonings and ingredients that the taste wan’t recognizable anymore plus it’s saltier and more oily than San Marino. My take is if it has high nutrition and you can’t eat it then what’s the purpose? Both brands can be purchased at any grocery store but Century Chunky Corned Tuna might be harder to find. Hence, with all of these reasons SAN MARINO WINS!

Note: I’ve been seeing commercials of both brands on TV when I was a kid but didn’t tried it because I thought canned foods are not always the best to eat- canned foods are really risky to eat especially when consumed all the time therefore, we must try to avoid eating canned foods all the time as it might pose health problems.(It contains BPA, a chemical that has been associated with health problems like heart disease and type 2 diabetes.) Please be cautious about your health. 

Thank you! See you on my next blog!