Scallops cooked and packed in oil or a sauce. Spanish producers use vieiras, the large scallop, and zamburinas, a smaller variety from the Galician rias that is more common and more affordable in tins.

Size and flavor. Vieiras are larger and milder. Zamburinas are smaller, with a deeper, more concentrated shellfish flavor. Zamburinas are the more common tin and the better value.

Galician-style sauce with olive oil, onion, paprika, and sometimes tomato is the most traditional. You also find them in plain olive oil, or in a vieira sauce made from the scallops themselves.

On bread or toast with some of the sauce, which is often the best part. They also work over rice or folded into a simple pasta, added at the end so they stay tender.

Different, not lesser. Canning firms the texture and concentrates the flavor. If you are expecting a seared sea scallop you will be surprised, but on their own terms they hold up well.