Historical records tell us that people have been making fish sauce on Phú Quốc Island for over 200 years."Īsia was not the only continent to fall in love with fermented fish-based sauces. "Phú Quốc has a global reputation of producing the best fish sauce out of Vietnam. "Red Boat specializes in fish sauce produced on Phú Quốc Island, Vietnam," Pham says. Pham says Red Boat Fish Sauce ferments their sauce for about 12 months.
"Fish, usually small fish like anchovies or krill, are salted and packed in barrels and left for several months to a couple of years."
"The complex flavor comes from the fermentation process of bacteria breaking down the salted fish," says Byrd. No matter what type of fish is used, the critters must be salted before the magic can begin. But as mentioned, some fish sauces might include herring, carp or mackerel - even krill. Just like all wines are not made using the same type of grapes, fish sauce can be made with a number of different sea creatures.Īnchovies are the common base ingredient for fish sauce. So naturally, fishing is a pretty huge deal across Southeast Asia. Plus, the region has a wealth of rivers, streams and ponds teeming with fish and crustaceans. Thailand's coast is 1,956 miles (3,148 kilometers) long - and the various shorelines of Indonesia add up to a whopping 50,300 miles (81,000 kilometers) of seaside terrain. Mainland Vietnam has a coastline that's 2,025 miles (3,260 kilometers) long. It's also made of anchovies and salt, but oftentimes includes sardines, mackerel, herring or carp, as well as sugar.īyrd says fish sauce is also commonly used in Korea and Japan, but it's mostly associated with Asia's coastal southeast. In Thailand, fish sauce is known as nam pla and is saltier than nuoc mam. "There are different varieties of fish sauce in different Southeast Asian countries, and names vary according to language, country, and specific ingredients and flavoring," Byrd explains. Likewise, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia all have rich traditions of fish sauce usage. The best supposedly comes from Phú Quốc, a small island in the Gulf of Thailand. It's known as nuoc mam in Vietnam and here it's made with just anchovies and salt.