Fish sauce is essential to Burmese cooking, similar to Thai fish sauce, nam pla. The Burmese version is slightly stronger without being pungent. A good fish sauce is said to be ‘a clear, reddish brown colour, like the colour of good whisky or sherry, without any sediments. It has a pleasant aroma of the sea, not an overwhelming fishiness, and should not be overly salty.
Thai fish sauce, salt for vegetarians
Supermarkets, Asian stores
Dried anchovies are small, salted fish with a powerful umami flavour. These tiny, silver-coloured anchovies are dried to preserve…
Made from ground mung beans, these thin noodles become transparent when cooked. Cellophane noodles are fairly bland…
Custard apples have a bumpy, greenish or red-purple skin, depending on the variety. They have a luscious, custard-like pulp inside…
Bombay duck, despite its name, is a type of dried fish also known as bummalo. The fish are hung on racks and dried in the sun…
Dragon fruit, also known as pitaya, is a visually striking fruit with bright pink or yellow skin, and white or magenta flesh containing tiny black seeds…
