I Just Bought Fish Sauce! Now, Um, What Do I Do With It?

[BlooInBloo]

I was just at the kwikemart, and saw that they had it. I remembered my ex-gf used it all the time, and I liked what she made, so I bought a bottle.

I have no idea what sorts of things to use it for, though. Any ideas?

[Midlodemocrat]

1. Pour it all over yourself and return to GD.

:thumbsup:

[carlyhippy]

26. *snorts*

Carly

[crispini]

2. Basic stir fry

Chop up various kinds of veg and meat, stir fry, add fish sauce and maybe some water and a little bit of sugar. And whatever chilis you like. Easy squeezy.

[applegrove]

33. Get some chinese lettuce or some bok choy and stir fry that for a minute. I always liked

the stir fries made with that veg. though I used hoisin sauce not fish sauce.

[begin_within]

3. Throw it away

That is the worst "flavoring" in the world, that I have ever smelled or tasted. And the way they make it is gross too. Nuoc man - Vietnamese for "nausea juice." Get hoisin sauce instead - yum!

[Swede]

4. Nuoc mam

mt

[BlooInBloo]

10. I thought the same when I just plain tasted it one time when the gf was cooking!

I called it "icky fish sauce" from then on.

But as long as I didn't see the food being made, stuff she made with it ended up tasting awesome!

[begin_within]

11. Well to each his own. But to my taste, soy sauce is much better... hoisin sauce the best

[MajorChode]

23. You've probably had fish sauce all your life and didn't realize it

My parents used worcestershire sauce for all kinds of things (as do I).

Eastern fish sauces are an essential ingredient for many types of curry dishes which is why they use so much of it. There's also great variety between different ones. Some of them have a very strong taste and should only be used sparingly in certain dishes during preparation or as a condiment for soups and other dishes. Some of them have a very mild flavor and can be used to dip things like spring rolls or meat on a stick.

[PaddyBlueEyes]

5. Throw it away!!

[Taverner]

6. Thai Fried Rice

Couple pieces of chicken, a scrambled egg chopped up, a few shrimp if you got 'em, few pieces of tofu if you got 'em, some ham if you got it, and some pre-cooked rice (necessary)

While frying (w/tsp oil) add a few dashes of fish sauce and a small tsp of sugar.

[Taverner]

9. Oh and don't forget the onion and garlic

Sorry, left those off

Fresh minced garlic and onion, or powder if that's what you got

[BlooInBloo]

15. Ok - so the basic gist I'm getting is: whatever i'm wok-ing, toss a dash of fish sauce in.

EDIT: And sugar and soy, too.

[Taverner]

17. Exactly - but only if you want that SouthEast Asian flavor

It's not really a Northern Asian Flavor

[BlooInBloo]

18. Don't think my taste buds are quite that hi-res yet - lol! But noted - thanks!

[Mabus]

7. Pad Thai

That's the only reason I buy it.

[Swede]

8. Shred some port or chicken on top of rice noodles

then douse it with the nuoc mam.

[Danger Mouse]

12. Fish will quake in fear at your presence now.

YOU HAVE THE FISH SAUCE. GET EQUIPPED WITH FISH RAY.

[JVS]

13. CHUG CHUG CHUG!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

14. Bury it.

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

16. The secret with fish sauce

is to use it sparingly, so that it is a subtle part of the dish's overall flavor profile. It cannot be cheerfully dumped into a dish willy-nilly, like light soy sauce or ketchup. Used with a light touch, fish sauce adds a lovely flavor to Vietnamese and Thai dishes; if you can taste the fish sauce up front, that's too much.

[BlooInBloo]

19. Gotcha - so this 1 qt bottle should last me a looooong time.

[grace0418]

31. Yeah, it will last, but that's okay. My husband is Filipino and we've had the same

bottle of fish sauce for a long time, but it keeps. And it adds a wonderful complexity to Asian dishes. It's really quite nice, and I don't even like seafood.

[Fire Walk With Me]

20. Help the fish get sauced.

[old mark]

21. Put it in the cupboard for a few years till it gets really GOOD...

then throw it out.

mark

[tigereye]

35. that sounds like what we used to do, until we got a Thai cookbook!

:rofl: That package of miso got the same treatment for a while, as well.

[old mark]

36. I have a bottle of Oyster Sauce in my fridge.

I believe it must be nearly 4 years old by now - the store I bought it from is no longer in business.

Kind of afraid to open the cap.


mark

[XemaSab]

22. I use mine for Thai curry

It adds salty depth to the dish, much like the bonito flakes in the miso soup. :shrug:

[Nickster]

24. Use it to make kimchee.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

25. look for thai and vietnamese recipes online. a lot of them require fish sauce

epicurious should have a few good ones

[Bertha Venation]

27. Bait a trap with it. Trap a feral cat, get it fixed, let it go again.

:)

[BlooInBloo]

32. hahaha! Man, the depth of hatred for the stuff by some is FIERCE!

:rofl:

[Lost in CT]

28. Give it to the food pantry along with those canned beets and soy cheese. nt

[LynneSin]

29. I bought a can of Turkey Rub thinking "Gee this might be fun to use"

that was 3 years ago - still haven't used it for anything

[grace0418]

30. Thai food is so delicious and fresh and relatively easy to make. Most recipes use

some combination of one or more of the following: fish sauce, coconut milk, galangal or ginger, lime, chili peppers, curry and fresh veggies. Mmmmm. Look up some Thai recipes and go to town. Once you've made a few, it's easy to experiment with those ingredients. There's a wonderful salad that combines ground chicken, ginger, peanuts, fresh onions, lime juice, chillies, fish sauce and chopped cabbage or lettuce. It's super easy and soooo delicious.

[lutefisk]

34. It always comes in flimsy plastic bottles with leaky caps, or glass bottles with ill-fitting caps

It's almost as if the makers want it to tip over in one's refrigerator, which it eventually will.

It's a unique smell. I can really only think of one other thing that smells like fish sauce.

[AlCzervik]

37. cram it.