Fish Sauce

Popular throughout Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand and Vietnam, fish sauce is a pungent, salty liquid used as a condiment and flavouring. The liquid is clear amber to dark brown in colour and is used in much the same way as soy sauce. In Vietnam, fish sauce is served with most meals as a dipping sauce. It’s made from salted and fermented dried fish or shrimp, which are layered into large wooden barrels and left to ferment. After 3 months or so, the liquid is drained off to produce a high-quality sauce, normally reserved for table use. Subsequent drainings yield a fish sauce of lower quality that is used for cooking. Fish sauce is called nam pia in Thailand and nuoc mam in Vietnam.