Fish sauce

Fish sauce is small fish such as anchovies layered with salt and fermented, sometimes for up to two years, until the liquid runs amber and intensely savory. Southeast Asian cooks use it much as Western cooks use salt, and that is the trick worth borrowing: a teaspoon in beef stew, chili, Bolognese or a pan of roasted Brussels sprouts adds depth without tasting of fish once cooked. The smell from the bottle is the worst of it. Vietnamese nước mắm and Thai nam pla are interchangeable for most uses. Read the label: premium bottles such as Red Boat list nothing but anchovies and sea salt.