Fish sauce........No Thanks

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

I tried the Umami burger recipe last night and all i can say is...WOW(not in a good way)that is some strong stuff. Did not care for the burgers at all. Had some friends over and tried to sneak some umami burgers on them. They didn't go over to well. I think i messed up by smelling the bottle before i cooked them and seemed thats all i could smell while eating them. I think my taste buds were playing tricks on my mind because I could not even finish one of them.

Did I use to much? 2tblspns for two pounds burger is what the recipe called for.

Squirted some on a worm tho and the catfish in my pond went nuts. They get fed pretty regular and real hard to get them to bite.....not with this stuff!!! lol

cazzy · July 2012

Fish Sauce is the main reason I haven't tried that recipe. :-&

misu · July 2012

I think that's a bit much but good to know fish like that stuff

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

Yea the recipe actually said to use 1-1/2 tblspns, But for a more daring, savory flavor try 2tblspns. I should have known after one smell from the bottle that 2tblspns would be WAY to daring for me.

fishlessman · July 2012

which fish sauce did you get. i dip fish in it
:))

lowlightbw · July 2012

Smelling is not advised, haha. The flavor it adds to the meat is worth it 10 times over in my book. Sorry you had a bad experience.

Mickey · July 2012

After all the noise on both forums knowing myself I put out the money on the one you have to order (said to be the top of line). I cannot make myself even open that bottle. Just not going to happen. Last year I gave a bottle away in the santa gift deal on the other forum. Bet this year the box will have one high dollar bottle of sauce in it as well.

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

I will check which brand it was when i get home for lunch.....I'm pretty sure it is just some cheap brand tho. BTW....I didn't think the taste was all that bad but just could not get past the smell it had on the cooked burgers.

Mickey · July 2012

I will check which brand it was when i get home for lunch.....I'm pretty sure it is just some cheap brand tho. BTW....I didn't think the taste was all that bad but just could not get past the smell it had on the cooked burgers.

I have been told by Eggers who know what they are talking about that they are all just about the same. So just buy the stuff in the local store.

Stoater · July 2012

My sis in law and my wife hate fish, I put 1.5 TBS in with worcester sauce, soy sauce chipolte hot sauce 2 shallots, grated cheese, tomato ketchup, ground dried portobello and they loved them, they asked me what was in the burgers and I said I aint telling, then they ganged up on me so I had to tell them, dang, but they said they were the best burgers they have had. I guess you should look for a different brand of fish sauce as mentioned above, it does need to be balanced though because one time I thought I would put a bit more in and they said it tasted a little fishy, still enjoyed them though.

Worcester sauce is fermented anchovy, which is essentially fish sauce.

nolaegghead · July 2012

I love fish sauce, but I'm the kind of guy that loves anchovies on his pizza. Not all fish sauces are created equal...there's the equivalent of EVOO - buy the most expensive sauce in the store. But if you don't like fishy tastes, it's not going to help.

fishlessman · July 2012

mickey, i use the three crabs, ive tried someothers and didnt like them, i hated a high priced italian fish sauce i bought, and not all are even made with the same fishtype or even fish. i have gone lighter than called for with burgers but i like it on other things better like a thai dipping sauce for tuna steaks. steak and cheese bombs are really worth a try. really, try the steak bomb

1 tbls fish sauce, 2 tbls soy, 1 teas sugar,, marinate a pound and a half shave steak for about 4 hours and stir fry in a wok

travisstrick · July 2012

A wise man told me about fish sauce (I think his name was idiot face or something like that) he said the three crabs brand was one of the best and least expensive.

chuff · July 2012

If you reluctantly consume fish sauce but you aren't crazy about the idea of it, you should never ever research how it's made. Wow.

nolaegghead · July 2012

I just did a little research, and the darker stuff is generally better, unless it was artificially darkened.

"At the factory in Phu Quoc, the workers lined up the bottles of fish sauce by gradients of color, like tea steeped to varying degrees. The darkest-colored bottle was labeled "43°N/1L" and came from the first extraction of liquid. The others bore decreasingly lower numbers -- 40, 30, 20 and 15°N/L -- and came from subsequent extractions, after water had been added."

"What the number boils down to, Nguyen explained, is the degrees of nitrogen content per liter, a figure that denotes the concentration of fish protein in each drop. While protein is solid, the process of fermentation breaks down the protein's amino acid bonds, of which nitrogen is a main component. " (so basically, it sounds like higher nitrogen=more fishy flavor and an earlier pressing, lower nitrogen=a later pressing, less concentrated and possibly with added seawater.)

"Nguyen says the unique taste of Phu Quoc fish sauce comes from a combination of weather, temperature and fish. Phu Quoc producers use only a particular variety of fish called ca com (literally, "rice fish"), or the long-jawed anchovy, from the island's surrounding waters. The high protein content in Phu Quoc fish sauce also gives it a strong taste of umami "

stike · July 2012

saw a documentary where a roman shipwreck had been located and was being excavated. the cargo was garum, and in value it was said that the equivalent today would be a similar weight of gold bullion going down.

apparently the finest stuff was ridiculously expensive.

here's a "little wiki" (which coincidentally was actually my nickname in gym class during middle school :( ) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garum

Hokie_Smoker · July 2012

I was reluctant to try fish sauce but have cooked the umami burgers several times and received rave reviews. The thoughts of fermented fish is just too much for some people so I refuse to disclose the recipe.

nolaegghead · July 2012

saw a documentary where a roman shipwreck had been located and was being excavated. the cargo was garum, and in value it was said that the equivalent today would be a similar weight of gold bullion going down.

apparently the finest stuff was ridiculously expensive.

here's a "little wiki" (which coincidentally was actually my nickname in gym class during middle school :( ) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garum

I've read about garum before....sounds revolting - fermented, salted fish intestines. Food must have been really bland back in them days before Dizzy Pig....

Mickey · July 2012

What I had ordered was Red Boat Fish Sauce @ 40n

fishlessman · July 2012

for those that didnt like the fish sauce, did you work it into the burger by hand, once you get it on you, well its there
:))

Kristinnn · July 2012

I used Tiparos fish sauce when I made those unami burgers and i wasn't thrilled either. It seemed to even turn them a little red. I will probably try it again with more of my style in a recipe.. my husband liked them but wasnt blown away as i prefer... and i knew better than to smell the bottle!!

bvc · July 2012

Don't give up on fish sauce, it has a lot to offer in dishes and you may just need to dial it back, add another flavor to it to balance, or consider a better brand of fish sauce. I too was using the 3 crab as that was would always have the largest display at my local asian market, but have been doing some more Thai cooking lately and came across this:

http://www.shesimmers.com/2012/07/thai-fish-sauce-taste-test.html

Do yourself a favor and get the Golden Boy. Life is too short for bottom tier fish sauce :)

stike · July 2012

'sounds' revolting does not equate to revolting

part of the documentary showed the guys on the boat filling a bucket with herring, and some brine. they left the bucket on the boat in the sun the whole week. time lapse pics of it breaking down, fermenting, etc.

at the end of the week they poured off the oil on top and no one found it unpleasant. even delicious.

ever eat a lobster? nothing more than a large cockroach. sounds revolting. but it ain't.

aged beef, bee vomit, blue cheese...
lots of stuff out there that's revolting to many but beloved by others.

"free your mind, and the rest will follow" :))

gdenby · July 2012

I will check which brand it was when i get home for lunch.....I'm pretty sure it is just some cheap brand tho. BTW....I didn't think the taste was all that bad but just could not get past the smell it had on the cooked burgers.
I have been told by Eggers who know what they are talking about that they are all just about the same. So just buy the stuff in the local store.

I know of some differences. The first time I heard about fish sauce, I went to a Vietnamese market. I didn't want to buy a big bottle, and eventually found a rather small bottle of a dark fluid w. some sediment at the bottom. When I got to the check out, the proprietress asked me what i was going to use it for. I mentioned a couple of different things, and she said "No, no, this is too strong. Its for special." She took me back down the aisle, and handed me a large bottle of fairly clear liquid. She said, "This is for every day use."

I didn't think much of it. Some fish flavor, but otherwise, quite bland. Ended up tossing it 'cause it was sort of like using really poor store brand chili powder. Not worth the effort.

Later, bought some 3 Crabs. Much better. More intense than good soy sauce, and more salty.
The problem I have w. it is that the extra fluid can make for a mushier burger than I like.

Now, I use small dabs of anchovy paste for ground meats, like burgers, or spaghetti, or chili. That was a suggestion from a friend who grew up in Italy. Used sparingly, people who don't like preserved anchovies do not notice what they are eating.

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

Here was the recipe BTW.........

Ingredients:

2 lbs Ground Beef
1 1/2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce (for more daring, savory depth, use 2 tablespoons)
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon Sugar
1 teaspoon fresh ground Black Pepper
4-6 Hamburger buns
condiments of your choice

Directions:

In bowl, combine all ingredients together. Marinade for about 20 minutes.
Gently form meat into a balls, then flatten into a patties.
Cook on a skillet or grill. (1/2 patties on a med./high grill take about 3 min. per side for med. rare burger. Heat temp., thickness, etc. all affect cooking times

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

And the sauce

nolaegghead · July 2012

'sounds' revolting does not equate to revolting

part of the documentary showed the guys on the boat filling a bucket with herring, and some brine. they left the bucket on the boat in the sun the whole week. time lapse pics of it breaking down, fermenting, etc.

at the end of the week they poured off the oil on top and no one found it unpleasant. even delicious.

ever eat a lobster? nothing more than a large cockroach. sounds revolting. but it ain't.

aged beef, bee vomit, blue cheese...
lots of stuff out there that's revolting to many but beloved by others.

"free your mind, and the rest will follow" :))

Sounds revolting is exactly what it is. Sounds revolting.

That said, I love fish sauce, which sounds revolting when you read about how it's made, and plenty of other products from revolting sounding processes.

What people like is influenced highly by cultural influences. I wasn't raised eating bugs, so eating them sounds revolting to me. Eating cheese sounds revolting to many asians.

I'll eat some big ol' cockroach-like lobstah any day of the week.

gerhardk · July 2012

Yet we have used Worcestershire sauce forever on beef, it is just another variation on the theme. Lots of things used to flavour our food and drink are not appetizing on their own.

Gerhard

Link to what Worcestershire sauce is made from http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/05/st_whatsinside_worcestershire/

MOvikingsfan · July 2012

@fishless......dip your fish in it?!?!?!

No friggin way...not after putting my nose up to that bottle!!

^:)^

And yea one smell of that stuff and I went for the rubber gloves!

nolaegghead · July 2012

I made a limberger cheese pizza last week. It was much more mellow than the uncooked limberger...actually very, very good!

stike · July 2012

just sayin' 'sounds' revolting doesn't mean it's revolting.

first time you heard about sex i bet it sounded revolting.

:))

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Fish sauce........No Thanks

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Here was the recipe BTW.........

Ingredients:

Directions: