The best canned foods to stash in your pantry

In a perfect world, we would all be making meals from scratch using only the freshest ingredients. But when we need to juggle family, work and training commitments, we often don’t have the energy or time for such kitchen tasks. We’re simply looking to press the easy button to get a meal on the table. Besides, fresh ingredients aren’t always as fresh as we would hope, especially when out-of-season locally.

Enter canned food. Certainly, these humble staples can be a hack to getting grub in your belly quicker and with less effort than cooking from scratch. Yet, cans often get a bad rap and are thought to be nutritionally inferior and less flavourful than fresh or even frozen foods. But many canned foods are typically still nutrient-rich because the canning process has less of an effect on nutrition than you may think. With a lengthy shelf life, canned food lets you stock up without much worry about costly waste.

So bust out your can opener and add these four tinned foods to your diet for a quick nutrition boost. As for canned fruit cocktail—I still don’t go there.

Mackerel

In any given supermarket, you can probably cast your line for a tin of mackerel even though it often goes unnoticed in a sea of tuna and salmon. This swimmer houses troves of nutrients. Not only is canned mackerel high in protein (roughly 20 g in a can) to help you hold onto your lean body mass, the fatty fish is also a strong source of life-extending omega-3 fatty acids. A 2024 study published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings found that subjects with higher omega-3 levels live longer and are specifically less likely to die from cardiovascular disease and cancer. There is also some evidence that greater intakes of omega-3s can help lessen exercise-induced muscle soreness. As a bonus, you’ll also net a healthy dose of vitamin D, a nutrient needed for proper bone health and muscle functioning but one that most of us fail to get enough of. You can add canned mackerel to sandwiches, pasta dishes and even salads. Or for a high-protein snack, smash it on whole-grain crackers.

Peaches

Nobody should endure a fresh peach in January that has all the juiciness of a rock. Canned peaches offer a more flavourful year-round option for this fruit. Surprisingly, the nutritional content of canned peaches, including amounts of vitamin C and folate, is comparable to that of the fresh fruit. There’s a stack of research demonstrating that when people eat more daily servings of fruits, fresh or canned, their risk for several health conditions like heart disease is lowered. Not to mention canned peaches are a way to work quality carbs into your diet to help you keep pedalling strong. They are a great topping for cereal, yogurt and salads. You can use the juice to add a touch of fruity sweetness to salad dressings. Also, blend them into post-ride smoothies.

Pumpkin

Pumpkin makes for a great way to sweeten up your diet. Consider canned pumpkin purée as one of the best sources of the plant-based compound beta carotene. Our bodies can convert beta-carotene into vitamin A, which is needed to maintain eye, immune and bone health. A study in the European Journal of Nutrition found that people with higher levels of carotenoids, including beta carotene, tested for a younger biological age as indicated by longer telomeres—DNA sequences at the end of chromosomes that shorten as cells replicate and age. Canned pumpkin—the purée, not the pie filling full of sugar that sits nearby in the grocery store—is also a good source of vitamin K, a nutrient important for supporting better bone strength. The purée mixes well in the batter of pancakes and waffles for some extra sweetness. It’s also easy to stir the purée into yogurt or oatmeal, or blend into smoothies and dips. I’m a big fan of adding canned pumpkin to a pot of chili.

Black beans

Talk about a healthy fast food. With a large range of essential vitamins and minerals—iron, magnesium, folate and phosphorus—consider black beans (and all canned beans, for that matter) almost akin to multi-vitamins in a can. It’s no wonder that people who eat more legumes, including canned beans, generally have a higher overall diet quality. Canned beans are also a fibre powerhouse, with as much as 15 g in a cup serving. Recent science suggests that increasing the intake of soluble fibre, which beans are a source of, can help improve blood pressure numbers for better heart health. The bonus of black beans is that they are a source of anthocyanins, the same class of potent health-benefiting antioxidants that you find in blueberries and blackberries. As for those uncomfortable and embarrassing gassy after-effects, draining canned black beans in a colander and then rinsing them well will send a high proportion of the gas-producing compounds down the drain. With that said, spoonfuls of canned black beans are still not advisable as a pre-ride fuel. Use canned black beans in soups, chili, tacos, burritos, salads and veggie burgers.

A Word on Salt

Some canned foods can be high in salt, particularly fish and beans. While this does not pose a health risk for some people and the extra salt can be helpful in replenishing stores after a sweaty ride, it’s still a good idea to moderate your salt intake. You can now find more low-sodium or no-salt-added options. Placing canned beans in a colander and rinsing them well with a stream of water will lower their sodium content significantly.

Chipotle Black Bean Burgers with Peach Salsa

Serves 4

1 cup cooked or canned black beans
1 1/2 cups mashed sweet potato
1 cup cooked brown rice, cooled
3/4 cup almond flour or oat flour
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 tbsp chipotle chili pepper in adobo sauce, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 cup canned peaches, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green onion, sliced
1/3 cup basil, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
Juice of ½ lime

1. Add black beans to a mixing bowl and mash gently so they still have some texture. Mix in sweet potato, rice, flour, cilantro, chipotle pepper, garlic, cumin, ½ tsp salt and black pepper. Form into four patties and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or more. Cook patties for 4 minutes per side.

2. To make the salsa, combine peaches, bell pepper, green onion, basil, jalapeno, lime juice and ¼ tsp salt.

3. Serve burgers topped with peach salsa.

Matthew Kadey is a registered dietitian and the designer of Ontario’s BT 700 bikepacking route.