What Is Fish Sauce And How Do You Cook With It?

Soy sauce and oyster sauce might have their claims to fame across a range of cuisines (especially among East Asian and Southeast Asian cultures), but equally popular is their even more potent cousin — fish sauce. While the name may not ring as many bells, if you've ever chowed down on fried rice or enjoyed a nice, steaming bowl of pho, chances are you've consumed fish sauce already.

You can continue to happily do so by learning more about this versatile condiment, which has been used in a variety of dishes for centuries. At home, fish sauce is easy to incorporate into your meals due to how inexpensive and readily accessible it is. It's made of only a few ingredients, and you can always pick it up at your local grocery store in time to spice up your next meal. On top of all that, fish sauce is easy to store for future use.

Fish sauce didn't get its name from nothing. With the limited number of ingredients used to make it, the condiment tastes exactly as expected — fishy (not too shocking, right?). Its strong, powerful flavor is accompanied by an equally pungent smell. Not surprisingly, fish sauce has a strong kick to it when used as a stand-alone ingredient. It's not hard to immediately sense this salty, sometimes overwhelming quality, which is why it's recommended to use fish sauce sparingly and as needed. The intense taste can be lessened by adding water to the fish sauce or carefully selecting the brand you use. For example, Thai fish sauce, like the brand Tiparos, is known to be saltier than Vietnamese fish sauce, like the brand Red Boat.

Regardless of which brand you choose, when the sauce is heated and combined with other ingredients in a marinade or dressing, its fishy taste diminishes and instead provides dishes with a savory, umami flavor. It adds just the right tang, pairing well with noodles, soups, vegetables, seafood, meat, and much more. Fish sauce can even be utilized in sweeter dishes. It may be a bit out of your comfort zone, but it's not unheard of to add fish sauce to caramel or peanut butter in cookies, ice cream, and other dessert recipes to create a more balanced spread.

With the origins of fish sauce tracing back to ancient Greece, early use of the condiment is just as commonly associated with the Roman version, known as garum. This product was the second most expensive liquid around, as it was believed to contain healing properties. It was a staple ingredient in the Roman diet, just as it is in many Asian cultures today.

Many countries' versions of fish sauce share similarities with garum. Vietnam's nuoc mam is especially notable for its comparable taste and texture, resulting from the two condiments being created using the same fermentation process. Food historian Giorgio Franchetti tells the South China Morning Post that nuoc mam is seen as a "'living archaeological culinary finding' that maintains the ancient Roman tradition and flavor."

This has led to conflicting beliefs as to whether or not fish sauce was introduced to Asian cultures through Greek and Roman influences. There is insufficient evidence connecting the Greco-Roman condiment with that of Vietnam or the Philippines, Thailand, or other Asian versions, though. The lack of evidence suggests that the varying versions were created independently from one another, underscoring the versatility of fish sauce and how a range of cultures can enjoy it.

If it hasn't been emphasized enough, fish sauce is a funky ingredient that packs a sharp punch when used on its own. But when thrown into a preparation that calls for other ingredients, fish sauce elicits a distinct, complex taste that can completely elevate a dish. That's not to say you should dump an entire bottle into your next bowl of soup, though.

The key to cooking with fish sauce is using it in increments. Slow and steady wins the race with this condiment; add a few drops of it to your recipe at a time and gradually increase as needed. A little bit goes a long way, as it doesn't take much of this product to alter how your food turns out. This is largely due to how sodium-dense fish sauce is. Minimal amounts of both fish sauce and salt need to be used in one dish, and fish sauce can substitute salt altogether in some cases.

Once you've played around with it and gained a sense of how much fish sauce to use, it becomes easier to employ it as a flavor enhancer for a wide spread of cuisines. The condiment works well when used in pasta and meat sauces, dressings, marinades, soups, dips, stir-fries, sweet treats, and even cocktails. Just a few common recipes that fish sauce can really amp up include an irresistibly savory fried rice and even the timeless Caesar salad.

The taste and quality of fish sauce is contingent on a range of factors, including the country it's coming from, the type of fish used to make it, additives, and conditions during fermentation. All these components affect just how sweet or salty, subtle or potent, and high or low in protein the condiment will be. What bottle you should grab off the shelf ultimately comes down to the type of dish you're making and the flavor profile you're trying to achieve.

Although there's a recipe for every type of fish sauce to shine as the most suitable option, Vietnamese fish sauce is considered top tier by many, with the most renowned fish sauces coming from the island of Phu Quoc. Exports from this region tend to have higher nitrogen content, an indicator of more protein and a deeper umami flavor. In fact, fish sauce is often graded by its nitrogen content.

These grades, measured in degrees, are found on the bottles' labels. If a fish sauce is 30°N or above, it's seen as high-grade. Because higher-grade fish sauces emanate a richer taste, it's best to use them in ways that bring out the potential of their flavor, such as in a dip or dressing. Otherwise, fish sauces with lower nitrogen levels will do just fine for recipes where the protein is cooked down and mixed with other ingredients.

For those who may not enjoy the acquired taste fish sauce brings, oyster sauce can be used as a substitute. Also produced from seafood and commonly used in Asian dishes, oyster sauce was first made by accident by Lee Kum Sheung in 1888. Sheung, the founder of Lee Kum Kee, a food company in Hong Kong that manufactures authentic sauces, was cooking oysters in his teahouse. When he forgot to put out the stove's fire, what resulted was the dark brown paste that's now often used in stir-fry recipes and marinades. Taking inspiration from Sheung's serendipity, today's sauce is made by taking the liquid that's left behind after oysters are boiled and adding salt, sugar, and cornstarch. 

Both oyster sauce and fish sauce bring savory notes to meals, but switching one for the other can make a big difference in a recipe's outcome. Because cornstarch and sugar are added to oyster sauce, the condiment is much thicker and sweeter than the runny, tangy liquid that is fish sauce. Fish sauce not only induces a fishier taste than oyster sauce but also a much fishier scent. Oyster sauce is bolder and deeper in color, giving off a dark black-brown hue versus fish sauce, which tends to be transparent with a tint of red-brown. Despite their varying depths and textures, though, both condiments will still bring an umami taste to your dish.