I wasn't sure where to put this so if it's in the wrong spot someone please feel free to move it. I'm having a problem finding bones in my tuna! Yuck! I love tuna and I don't have any trouble eating it straight out of the can. But the bones are really turning my stomach off to it. I have tried starkist, bumblebee, chicken of the sea, Kroger brand and walmart brand. Of all of those the walmart brand seems to be the best. I have found significantly less bones in it and there are actually chunks of tuna instead of just mush. Does anyone else constantly find bones in their tuna and what brand do you buy? I really want to continue to eat tuna but I have a weak stomach when it comes to bones.
When I was in the US, I found bumblebee to be the best. Also there are different types of tuna, flake, chunk, solid albacore, in oil, in water. You'll pay more for the solid tuna, or the chunk, but it tends to be better quality.
I've also never found anything even resembling a bone in tuna. Are you buying the cheapest you can find. The cheapest tuna is usually labeled flake (the mush), which is never going to have large chunks or solid pieces.
No matter which brand you buy, look for chunk, or solid tuna. Chunk is made from larger pieces than flake, and solid is made from an uncut piece.
I don't think that what you're finding is actual bone (uness you're buying the cheapest of the cheapest). If you're buying chunk tuna, (and not flake - and even with flake most don't contain bone), I suspec that you're finding dried bits of overcooked tuna (I find this in both flaked tuna and flaked crab in cans. Though in crab you do find bits of shell in all but the most expensive of brands - and sometimes even then).
I am buying chunk light tuna but I'm going to look for solid. I went as far as looking at reviews for certain tuna after finding a lot of bones in many cans of one certain brand. The reviews were horrible and a lot of people had found bones and fish scales in their tuna. I found fish scales in one of the others I tried as well. I need to get the same kind you ladies are getting because I love tuna and want to continue eating it. I'm glad I posted this on here. I didn't know you could buy solid tuna so thank you for responding!
Have you tried the tuna in the foil pouches rather than the cans? I find that the tuna looks, and tastes much better out of the foil packets.
I especially like the tuna steaks and fillets in the pouches (they're usually near the cans, and come in an assortment of flavors like lemon-pepper, teriyaki, sweet and spicy, smokey....)
I especially like the Starkist Light Meat Tuna Fillets teriyaki. And I don't remember which brand has the sweet and spicy, but that's really good too.
The solid pieces in the foil packages are a little more expensive, but they tend to go on sale quite often and they even show up in Dollar Tree and other dollar stores. The Walmart brand is quite good.
I was a bit leery of the pouches when they first came out, because I assumed they'd taste funky, but they're actually MUCH better than the tuna in cans. The tuna doesn't absorb any metal taste (that I can detect) from the foil as it can in the can.
Hubby and I are very frugal, so we do buy whatever is on sale for a very good price (even flake tuna... which we tend to use in casseroles and other recipes where the tuna is going to break down anyway). I've never had a bone problem with flake, but I usually am careful about which brands I buy.
I'm actually not opposed to eating the occasional fish bone or scale (the bones in canned fish are very good for you), so maybe I've never noticed because I actually like the canned fish bones. I eat the bones in mackerel, salmon, and sardines.
Growing up, my mother always took the bones out of canned salmon and would say "some people eat them, but I don't like them." I used to remove them and the bones from sardines (because my mother did). Then when I read an article in a magazine about how good the bones were for you, I decided to leave them in. I usually mash them into the fish when I'm making salmon or mackerel patties, or salad, but I've also picked them out and eaten them "straight." I love the crumbly texture.
Now fish scale, shrimp shell/tail, and crab cartilage, not so much. It feels like plastic wrap/packaging.
I do like shrimp peel, soft-shell crab, and fish/shrimp tail deep fried (where it's friend until crispy), but those are only good when deep-fried and I don't eat fried foods very often anymore.
the bones are supposed to have alot of calcium... but I can understand how it can be a little gross and you have to be careful because a tiny fish bone can get stuck in your throat. But really, it's probably no different then eating chicken meat off the bone.
I have found a scale or something like it once or twice and I think it was in starkist but no bones or anything like that. I like great value (Walmart)'s tuna the best for the price and quality.
I am surprised to hear that (and a little grossed out). I eat a lot of tuna and have never found a bone in all these years. I always eat Bumble Bee solid white.
I hope you returned it for a refund.
And to the posters that said they would eat a bone....isn't that a choking hazard? Or are they soft bones?
And to the posters that said they would eat a bone....isn't that a choking hazard? Or are they soft bones?
The bones in canned fish (at least those I've eaten, in sardines, mackerel, and salmon), are very soft, and they crumble, almost dissolving in your mouth (sort of the texture of a buttermint, or soft smarties candies - not sweet of course, but the texture is the same). With salmon and mackerel I usually use my hands to break up the bones (they crush into dust with the lightest of pressure).
I do NOT eat the bones in cooked (not canned) fish, because they ARE a choking hazzard, and they also can get caught in your throat like a sliver (I've had that happen, and it's not pleasant. If it happens, you can try to dislodge the bone by eating mushing a piece of bread and swallowing the ball of dough, hoping the little bone gets stuck in the bread).
Well the only exception is fried fish tails and fins. I love those, but they have to be fried perfectly to be able to eat the tails and fins (if they don't crumble between your teeth like a crispy cracker, it's not a tail or fin you should be eating).
My hubby bought a can of "bone crackers" in an asian grocery store. They're crumbled on top of a soup sort of like fried onions and garlic (like the Durkey french fried onions inn a can). They're fried tails and fins, and they crumble like a crispy chip.
I've been eating tuna for over 25 years and I've never had a bone in my tuna before. That would be shocking, and I'd definitely feel perturbed (especially if it was going into a sandwich or something). My father used to pick the bones out of all of our fish when my sisters and I were young because they were a choking hazard, and now I just avoid all fish bones altogether, though I understand many cultures do eat them, especially fried.
Anyway, check out Bumblebee solid white albacore. Albacore is supposedly a better tuna for you, and the solid looks and tastes a lot better. Good luck and I hope you don't find any more bones!
This is the exact reason I don't eat chunk light tuna. I HATE THE BONES! So gross. I have never found bones in the chunk white albacore - however, it is much more expensive! I only get tuna when it's on sale...
I never knew there were so many different kinds of tuna! I'm going to the grocery store this afternoon so I might try some different brands and flavors although I really like the taste of just plain tuna. Thanks so much for the suggestions!
Bones in my tuna
