The fish sauce cookbook : 50 umami-packed recipes from around the globe

146 Pages·2015·10.58 MB·English

by  Barboza, Clare, Meewes, Veronica

T H E
FISH SAUCE
C O O K B O O K
To my father,
who first sparked my interest in Southeast Asia
with colorful memories of the wonderful people he met
and food he ate in Vietnam.
T H E
FISH SAUCE
C O O K B O O K
50 Umami-Packed Recipes from Around the Globe
VERONICA MEEWES
Photography by Clare Barboza

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION | ix
MAKING FISH SAUCE AT HOME | 1
Vegan Nước Chấm 2
Homemade Fish Sauce 4
SAUCES MADE WITH FISH SAUCE | 5
Caramel Miso Glaze 6
Rappahannock Mignonette 7
Apple Relish 8
Fish Sauce Béarnaise 9
MoPho-Style Barbecue Shrimp Sauce 10
SOUPS AND SALADS | 13
Thai Hot and Sour Coconut Chicken Soup 14
Seafood Chowder with Thai Flavors 16
Kimchi Stew with Tuna and Ramen Noodles 19
Crab and Roasted Tomato Soup in Spicy Garlic Ginger Broth 22
Kale Caesar Salad with Spiedini Croutons 23
Chicken and Candied Shrimp Salad 26
Braised Duck with Ginger Lime Slaw 28
Green Mango, Sorrel, and Candied Pecans in Spicy Palm Sugar Syrup 30
SMALL BITES | 31
Sweet and Spicy Caramel Corn with Cashews and Fish Sauce Caramel 32
Crispy Pork Steam Buns with Fish Sauce Vinaigrette 34
Shrimp Toast with Nước Chấm 36
Vietnamese Meatballs 39
Crab Fat Wings 41
Shrimp and Pork Belly Bánh Mì 42
VEGETABLE SIDES | 43
Crispy Farmer’s Market Vegetables with Caramelized Fish Sauce 44
Korean Pikliz 45
Warm Brussels Sprout Slaw with Asian Citrus Dressing 47
Shaved Winter Squash 48
Wood Roasted Summer Squash with Palm Sugar, Soy,
and Fish Sauce Vinaigrette 50
Skillet Greens, Crisp Shallots, Nước Mắm Apple Cider Gastrique 52
PASTA | 53
Late Summer Pasta Sauce 54
Ode to Sardella 56
MEAT ENTRÉES | 59
Vietnamese Caramel Chicken 60
Spice-Lacquered Duck Breasts, Baby Turnips, and Turnip Greens 61
Fermented Pork and Rice Sausage, Larb Salad, and Fish Sauce Vinaigrette 64
Marinated Grilled Short Rib with Anchovy Salad, Green Tomato Jam,
and Sweet Potato Purée 66
Freedmen’s Pulled Pork 69
Mustard and Beer-Braised Brisket 70
Thit Kho Caramelized Braised Pork Belly and Eggs 72
vi The FISH SAUCE Cookbook
SEAFOOD ENTRÉES | 75
Hamachi Tostada with Fish Sauce Vinaigrette 77
Grilled Peaches, Crispy Maine Shrimp, Chiles, and Herbs 79
Steamed Dover Sole with Fried Chopped Radish in Soya Sauce 80
Blue Crab Fried Rice with Nam Phrik Pla 82
Rice-Seared Red Trout with Mandarin and Hazelnut Brown Butter 85
Halibut with Browned Butter, Lemon, and Aged Fish Sauce 86
Lobster with Fish Sauce Caramel 87
Mussels in Coconut Chili Broth 88
Zucchini Tofu Shrimp Frittata with Fish Sauce 90
COCKTAILS | 91
Fish Sauce Bloody Mary 93
Hanoi High Five 94
Saigon Shrub 96
DESSERT | 97
Coconut Buddha’s Hand Sundae with Fish Sauce Latik 98
Apple Fritters with Fish Sauce Apple Marmalade 102
Contributor Biographies 105
Metric Conversions and Equivalents 119
Index 121
vii Contents

INTRODUCTION
When I began telling people I was working on this cookbook, most of the reactions I
received were versions of the same sentiment: “I’ve had the same bottle of fish sauce in
my pantry forever, and I just don’t know what to do with it!”
Hopefully, this collection of fifty recipes, contributed by renowned chefs and
passionate food writers, helps to demystify the funky condiment that’s been popping up
on menus all over the country lately. Using this as your guide, you’ll soon find that fish
sauce is not only a staple of Asian cuisine, but surprisingly can be utilized in everything
from Evan LeRoy’s Freedmen’s Pulled Pork on page 69 to cocktails like Lara Nixon’s
Saigon Shrub on page 96 to desserts like Andrew Lewis’s Apple Fritters with Fish Sauce
Apple Marmalade on page 102.
Straight from the bottle, the intense fishy aroma can be off-putting for some home
cooks. But when used in moderation, fish sauce can add great flavor undertones to a
dish—without necessarily smelling or tasting like it crawled out of the ocean.
You see, fish sauce is the epitome of umami, the fifth taste that occurs when the
amino acid glutamate is present. Appropriately named after the Japanese word for
“delicious,” umami can be found in rich stocks, savory dashi (Japanese stocks), and
earthy mushrooms. Fermentation helps unleash umami flavors, which are prevalent in
products like soy sauce, cured meats, aged cheeses, and fish sauce.
“It’s this brilliant way of layering in flavor complexities,” explains fermentation
expert Sandor Katz. “And I think in the world of fermented condiments there’s quite a few
examples of things that actually taste a little bit nasty in their pure form, but they really do
serve to introduce incredible flavor complexities when you use just a little bit in a big dish.”
ix Introduction