Savory Spreads from Spain, Portugal, and Italy

Savory spreads are spreadable creams and pâtés made from fish, mushrooms, vegetables, cheese, or meat that taste salty and savory rather than sweet. They belong on bread, but they are also ingredients: a spoonful into risotto, stirred into pasta, or added to a sauce. Our selection comes from three culinary traditions where such jars and tins have a long history – from the Basque Country, from Portugal, and from Molise in Southern Italy.

Pâté, spread, cream: what’s in the jar

The names are often used interchangeably. A pâté is usually a finely ground, firm mass that you spread with a knife. A cream is softer, sometimes almost liquid like a sauce. The deciding factor is the main ingredient and its proportion: Vitelium’s porcini pâté contains 69% porcini mushrooms and 5% summer truffles, while the white truffle cream contains 13% Caciocavallo, a southern Italian filata cheese, and 4% white truffles.

Our fish creams come from the canning kitchens of the Iberian Atlantic coast. Tuna, sardine, or mackerel are processed with olive oil, tomato, or lemon into a mousse that you can spread directly from the jar or tin onto toasted bread. Salted anchovies provide the savory, slightly salty depth that tuna alone rarely has.

Truffles in a jar

With truffle products, it is worth checking the variety. The summer truffle, Tuber aestivum, is mild and nutty and is often used in pâtés. White truffles like Tuber borchii or the Alba truffle Tuber magnatum Pico have a more intense aroma and are used in smaller quantities. The ingredient list indicates the percentage of truffles contained and whether additional flavoring has been used.

Three producers, three kitchens

Our top seller is the tuna and anchovy cream from Olasagasti in Markina-Xemein in the Basque Country. Tuna, olive oil, and salted anchovies from the Cantabrian Sea are processed with lemon juice and a little milk protein into a savory, creamy fish spread in a 110g jar.

Vitelium from Molise harvests its own olives and also uses the oil for its pâtés and creams. The vegan porcini pâté with truffles is very popular, earthy and robust with bay leaf and cloves; the 90g jar is enough for pasta for four. Also ranking high is the vegetarian white truffle cream with cream and Caciocavallo, which is also available as a 90g jar for risotto for four.

From Portugal comes the fish pâté gift set from José Gourmet: four illustrated 75g tins featuring tuna, sardine, mackerel with red pepper, and spicy mackerel with piri-piri, based on olive oil, tomato, and vinegar.

On bread, in the pan, on pasta

The simplest way to enjoy savory spreads is as an appetizer: toast slices of white bread, spread thinly, and it's ready. Top the tuna-anchovy cream with a few capers, just like with pintxos in the Basque Country; serve the Portuguese pâtés side-by-side in their tins on the table. Stir the porcini pâté into scrambled eggs, hot pasta with a splash of pasta water, or into gravy for steak and game. Add the white truffle cream only at the very end to finished risotto or over tagliatelle so that the truffle aroma is preserved. And for a quick supper, a good slice of farmhouse bread with butter and a spoonful of pâté is all you need.

For guests, assemble a small spread platter: toasted white bread and breadsticks, two fish creams, the porcini pâté, plus olives, pickled peppers, and a few lemon wedges. It takes ten minutes and looks like much more effort. Savory spreads also have a place at breakfast, perhaps as porcini pâté on a fried egg or tuna cream on a rye roll with cucumber slices – a change of pace for anyone who prefers a savory start to the day.

What to look for when buying

• Choose the size: The 50g jar is meant for tasting, the 90g jar for the pantry and family pasta.
• Main ingredient proportion: Percentages for mushrooms, truffles, or cheese show you how intense the spread will taste.
• Vegan or vegetarian: The porcini pâté is vegan, the truffle cream is vegetarian; the fish creams contain fish.
• Allergens: The truffle cream contains milk, celery, and gluten; the tuna-anchovy cream contains fish and milk protein.
• Storage: Store unopened in a cool, dry place; refrigerate after opening and consume promptly – you will find specific instructions on the label.

More for bread and pantry

Savory spreads are part of the Breakfast & Spreads category. If you prefer things sweet in the morning, you will find crunchy nut creams and cedar nut butter under Sweet Spreads. And if you enjoy the tuna cream, it is worth taking a look at the tinned fish selection, featuring tuna, sardines, and mackerel.

Order savory spreads online

Whether fish cream for an aperitif, truffle cream for risotto, or porcini pâté for supper: at Leni & Hans you can order savory spreads online, and your package will arrive in 1–3 days.