Page 108 - เธญเธฒเธซเธฒเธฃเนเธ—เธข
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Fish Sauce
Fish sauce is a salty seasoning made from the whole fish fermented in salt until it turns
to be clear liquid. Anchovies are typically used but some fish sauces are also made from other
types of fish (Pla-Soy, Pla-Katuck, Pla-Saitun). In the olden days, fish sauce is produced at home
to use in the family. Later, to respond to the greater demand, it becomes industrialized, from
clay jars to bottles, both big and small, as well as in powder form.
Fish sauce has a rich translucent reddish golden brown colour. It contains many valuable
food substances like amino acid, olico peptide, carbon fat acid, aldihide and many other minerals.
Its fragrance is unique. The authentic fish sauce has vitamin B12 that cures anaemia.
The production process: fish sauce is made from a mixture of fish and salt, put into clay
jars and tightly sealed, fermented for 3-4 months or longer until the flesh of the fish turns soft.
The first liquid seeping out has a translucent yellow colour known as Hua-Naampla or Naampla
Dib (raw fish sauce) which is of excellent quality, used in spicy salads, fried dishes or dippings.
As for the remnants in clay jars, salty water is added in to further ferment or bring to a boil.
Although factories now use modern machines for the production process, the old way is still in use:
fish from the Gulf of Thailand mixed in full in salt, packed tightly in large square-shape concrete
ponds. Add salt to expel air bubbles. Put salt or heavy stuff on top to prevent fish from floating
up. Close the lid. Leave it outside or in the shade for about 12 months, leaving protein from the
fish flesh to melt in the natural fermentation process. Afterwards, whip out the translucent brown
liquid from the pond, filter through the sifting pipe. Ripen before consumption. As for the rest of
the remnants, soak in salty water to further get the second-grade fish sauce.
Fermentation takes too long. To shorten the process, they increase the fermentation
temperature. Put in the enzyme, acid or alkaline salt to speed up the protein assimilation.
Add coloration, fragrance and savour, to make the fish sauce more appetizing.
Thailand is the worldโ€s first exporter of fish sauce. The Thai fish sauce standard is
world-wide accepted. Nowadays, to make it more convenient, there are small packages of fish
sauce as well as fish sauce in powder form. Naam-Pla or fish sauce is one of the basic ingredients
in Thai cooking. Due to its popularity, there are imitations from other countries exported and sold
in overseas markets.
The Thai government has the policy of promoting the โ€Thai Food to the Worldโ€
project. Fish sauce which is an important ingredient in Thai food should also gain the governmentโ€s
support, pushing forward and specially looking after its standard as the production knowledge
is by using existing natural resources (fish, salt, sunlight) following ancestorsโ€ knowledge
(fermentation process, suitable period of time and temperature) until Thai fish sauce with its own
fragrance and savour is developed, generating a big income for the country.
Thai fish sauce has been registered as Thai Cultural Heritage in 2011.
เธญเธฒเธซเธฒเธฃเนเธ—เธข เธกเธฃเธ”เธเธ เธกเธน เธดเธเธเธฑ เธเธฒเธ—เธฒเธเธงเธ’เธฑ เธเธเธฃเธฃเธก 105
Thai Food : Thai Cultural Heritage ๆณฐๅผๆ–็-ไผ ็ป้ฅฎ้ฃๆ–ๅ–้—ไบง
