Food and Whine by Mr. Verbose
While we are all aware that most Americans get their B vitamins and protein from animal sources, in Southeast Asia it is quite a different story. In the countries of Laos, Kampuchea, Thailand and Vietnam, it is fish sauce which is an important source of these nutrients. To the uninitiated, fish sauce or “Nuac mam,”can smell quite nasty; and with good reason.
Fish sauce is made by taking small sardine-like fish which are native to the sea, lakes and rivers of Southeast Asia, leaving them out in the sun to dry, and then placing them, with enormous amounts of salt, into huge wooden vats. The combination of hot tropical sun, salt and fish produces a thin brown extract which collects at the bottom of the vats. This liquid, the product of fermenting fish, is then diluted with water and bottled as fish sauce.
Fish sauce does taste better than it sounds, though. Use some in stir fried vegetables instead of soy sauce; or in place of anchovies in your next Ceasar salad. Or, you can try this recipe and see if you don’t become an avid convert to that nasty stuff you thought you’d hate.
Mr. Verbose’s Special Sauce
3 or more cloves garlic
2 or more dried chili peppers
2-3 tbsp. sugar
2 or more tbsp. fish sauce
3 tbsp. chopped fresh coriander leaves
Juice and pulp of one lime.
Start by crushing the chilies, sugar and garlic into a paste in your stone mortar and pestle (if you insist, you may try your Cuisinart). Next, add lime juice and pulp, continuing to work the paste in the mortar. Finally, add the coriander leaves and fish sauce and dilute with water to taste. This sauce tastes great on rice, or plainly prepared fish, meat or poultry, but alas, not cornflakes.