It was a swank party, with wine flowing and lovely passed hors d’oeuvre prepared from recipes in David Thompson’s new book, Thai Street Food. (The gorgeous oversize book won’t be released in the U.S. until October 2010 though I managed to get a copy. Sorry.) Thompson is one of the world’s leading experts on Thai cooking and I use his work, Thai Food, as a reference book all the time. I have immense respect for Thompson, who has a dry wit that charms. The chef behind Michelin-starred Nahm restaurant in London, he is not a particularly commercial man but he has decided to become an ambassador (spokesperson) for Megachef fish sauce. His picture is on the tag around each bottle. Thompson’s endorsement piqued my interest and attracted me to the event.
While other guests nibbled and sipped, cookbook author and Sydney chef Luke Nguyen and I inquired about the fish sauce itself. Was it available to taste? Emma, a Megachef representative, procured a glass goblet of the fish sauce. We tasted and nodded in approval. Luke asked me quietly, “Do you think it’s as good as Vietnamese nuoc mam?”
Emma explained that one of the things that Megachef aimed to do was make an odorless fish sauce. “Huh? I aim to teach people that fish sauce smells good, that they should appreciate it! No one drinks fish sauce from the bottle!” I said. We all agreed and laughed, with Emmo going on to clarify that Megachef was looking to appeal to non-Asian cooks. “No need to do that,” I responded. “Fish sauce has a great smell. In fact, good fish sauce smells like dried porcini mushrooms. Do a side-by-side sniff test and you’ll see.”
It was obvious that Megachef (which Thompson says has an awkward name and I agree) spent a lot of time and money on reducing the rank aroma that many people associate with fish sauce; I associate that level of stinkiness to bad fish sauce. Rather than quibble more about Megachef’s marketing strategy, I figured that I would take one of the complimentary bottles back to the U.S. and do a taste test.
Son of Squid Tasting Notes
First off, know that Megachef is the son of Squid. That’s what one of Luke’s cooks, who is Thai and up on all the latest in Thai food gossip, revealed to us later that night during dinner at Red Lantern restaurant. Squid brand is one of the leading brands of fish sauce and the company wanted to produce a premium condiment. Bhas Nithipitikarn is the owner and son of the man who founded Squid brand. Hence, Megachef is the son of Squid.
For more information: www.megachef.co.thFragrance: We sniffed all three and they smelled fine. Not rank at all. The Megachef wasn't devoid of odor but it wasn't stinky like cheap fish sauce. (Update: In an email exchange with Thompson after this post was published, he suggested to me that the term 'odorless' may be been inappropriately used to mean not being rank. I agreed that it could have been a poor communication issue.)
Ingredients: Aside from anchovy extract and water, Megachef contains sugar and fructose; it’s pure as advertised. Viet Huong fish sauces have fructose and hydrolyzed wheat protein. Some people say that the hydrolyzed wheat protein is a chemical cheat as it’s like MSG. It’s a form of natural MSG as it contains glutamic acid but then anchovy extract does too. I’ve not heard of people dying from overdosing on fish sauce containing hydrolyzed wheat protein. All things in moderation, okay?
Color: They were more or less the same tea-like color. Megachef has a brown plastic sleeve on the bottle so as to protect the liquid from oxidizing so you have to tilt the bottle to see the actual color.
Flavor: Megachef is naturally fermented for 2 years and it has a pleasant sweet, savory quality. It’s mellower and rounder in flavor than Viet Huong fish sauces. The Viet Huong fish sauces had a slight sharp bite at the end. After dipping our demitasse spoons several times in the fish sauces and tasting, Yael and admitted that the taste differences were pretty slight and all three fish sauces were good.
Conclusion: Megachef is sold in Thailand and now available in Australia. The owners are looking for a distributor in the U.S. and I’d love to see it here. I’d buy it, especially as it’s not priced much more than other kinds of fish sauce. I’m not keen on most kinds of Thai-style of fish sauce as they tend to be rather heavy in flavor. But Megachef is exceptionally good. I’ll keep using Viet Huong but look forward to Megachef coming to America.
If you’ve tasted Megachef fish sauce, what are your thoughts?
I use a lot of fish sauce in my cooking so I can't wait for this non-fishy smelling fish sauce to hit the U.S.
Posted by: momgateway | October 21, 2009 at 08:04 AM
Hmmmm very interesting very interesting! Wish I had gone to the party now...
I have noticed that fish (and soy, for that matter) sauces that contain hydrolyzed protein do almost always have that sharp maggi-seasoning sort of bite...they are never quite as mellow as the 'naturally' made sauces.
Posted by: chris | October 21, 2009 at 10:33 AM
It is/was really interesting fish sauce. I'm hoping there will be wider distribution. Seems like they're looking for it!
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | October 21, 2009 at 10:53 AM
Very interesting. I'd been hearing about Three Crabs brand and were hoping to get it in LA when I go visit my brother (and didn't know about Five Crabs, which apparently is even better.) Please keep us posted if this ever comes to the U.S. I'd love to try it!
Posted by: Kalyn | October 21, 2009 at 11:25 AM
Wow, a fish sauce tasting party!
In mainstream Canadian markets you just have to take what you can find - but I will look out for some of your faves next time I shop at an Asian market.
Posted by: Natashya | October 22, 2009 at 09:34 AM
I enjoy using Viet Huong as well, and I quite like the slightly sharp bite at the end. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled in the even Megachef hits the U.S. market.
Posted by: FRESH LOCAL AND BEST | October 22, 2009 at 09:39 AM
Andrea-
I can totally relate with your love for fish sauce. I too am forever on the search for best fish sauce I can find. I've tried my share of variety and until recently have settled for the Tra Chang Brand. I personally think it has more depth than Viet Huong which is a little too artificially sweet for me.
Couple of weeks ago while checking out the fish sauce section (just about every time I go to the store) I found one made in Vietnam! Believe me I was skeptical at first. It's also under the Double Golden Fish Brand packed for MY A & Co labeled Nuoc Mam Nhi Phu Quoc. I had my doubts but couldn't resist since it was the first time I'd seen nuoc mam from Vietnam on the shelves in my area.
And let me tell you, I'm so glad I paid the extra dollar! My mom and I both agreed it's by far the best nuoc mam we've tasted throughout the years. This one is definitely a keeper. I just hope they keep the quality up and don't go the Viet Huong route which has slipped in terms of flavors.
Have you seen/tried it yet?
Posted by: Vi | October 22, 2009 at 04:14 PM
In Canada, look for Knorr fish sauce as it's coming from Phu Quoc island in Vietnam. It's suppose to be REALLY good and I saw some a couple years ago in Chinatown, Vancouver.
Fresh, local and best -- I like your point about the sharpness. Man we're dialing down to the details here folks.
Vi -- I'm so glad you paid the extra dollar too! I a bottle of Vietnam-made fish sauce not long ago but haven't gotten to taste it yet. I saw a brand in Australia that came from Vietnam and had different levels of intensity.
Everyone, discussions like ours here will hopefully help to raise the bar. The fish sauce producers will produce premium condiments if there's demand. We just have to let them know!
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | October 23, 2009 at 10:22 AM
I have no problems at all finding almost any kind of fish sauce here in Canada. Just go to any asian grocery shop, especially in china town...
Posted by: Alex | October 23, 2009 at 08:04 PM
I was also lucky to meet David Thompson in Sydney the other week and pinched from him a bottle each of the Mega Chef fish- and oyster- (natural) sauces.
I'm having the nam plaa right now, by itself on white rice. It has a natural-seeming sweetness and great aroma. Surely the idea of an odorless fish sauce was just a case of crossed lines. I can understand "not stinky" of course, as opposed to "fragrant." Who could think of a non-aromatic fish sauce???
By the way, many mass-manufactured sauces, from Japan through the rest of Asia, use hydrolized soy or wheat protein; in my understanding, hydrolizing anything requires lots of chemicals (like sulphuric acid) so probly not so good for you. Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong (I believe hydrolized wheat can be good in shampoo).
I'm not plugging anything and as far as I know David has no commercial interest in Mega Chef, he just reckons it's great (despite the name!), and there's no chemical hanky panky.
cheers Andrea, I'm looking forward to the delivery from Amazon. "Dumplings" looks awesome!
Mark Robinson (Tokyo)
Posted by: Mark Robinson | October 27, 2009 at 12:23 PM
Hey Mark,
Thanks for your comments from Tokyo! Shottsuru is Japanese for fish sauce no? I think there's a hot pot called shottsuru nabe.
Totally agree with you that Thompson is a reluctant spokesperson for MegaChef. The stuff is good sprinkled on rice, and the aroma is inviting, as you suggest. I've yet to use it in cooking but Thompson says that that's where we'll see/taste the difference!
We shall see but what do I do when I run out? Are you listening/reading MegaChef?!
Just ordered a copy of your Izakaya cookbook. I need a fallback plan if this writing thing doesn't work out...
A.
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | October 27, 2009 at 03:09 PM
Hey thanks Andrea! Yes, shottsuru is made from another sort of fish than anchovies, and you don't often see it in Tokyo. To tell the truth I didn't know it existed until about five years ago. It's very regional so I'm sure there are many versions. I saw on TV the other day about a very serious-looking artisan guy using fermented salmon guts (waste not want not!). It had a gorgeous hue and I bet it tastes great.
One thing that puzzles me. I thought I heard David Thompson say at his cooking demo that Squid Brand fish sauce is in fact made from squid, not anchovies. Do you think I heard right?
...BTW I don't think you're in any danger of the "writing thing" not working out! (coming home today I found an undelivered parcel notice...Must be your books from amazon! Greeat.)
Posted by: Mark Robinson | November 02, 2009 at 02:53 AM
Hello
I have never tried this before.You have given nice information about megachef premium fish sauce.Thank you very much for giving such a good information.I like this blog very much.
Posted by: magnesium | November 05, 2009 at 03:56 AM
@Mark -- I wonder if shottsuru is on the rise again? Japan excels at artisanal food production so you never know...
You can make fish sauce from many kinds of seafood and maybe they put some squid into the vat with the fish to yield Squid Brand of fish sauce. In any event, David Thompson didn't care for Squid Brand. I don't either as it lacks depth.
Well, I got Izakaya and started perusing it last night. Lovely narrative, Mark. Congrats -- though it's late coming, I know!
@Magnesium -- Thanks for visiting the site. Stay a while...
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | November 05, 2009 at 10:56 AM
Andrea, Asian Dumplings is a marvellous book! Congrats. It is gorgeous and full of knowledge. I also like how you've virtually mapped the continent. You've given us a very original common cultural thread.
The Nepali veg and cheese dumplings look great and also the Tibetan beef & sichuan pepper ones. I agree that it's so much better to hand chop than buy ready-minced meat. Had a chicken laab at a Thai place in Ginza last night, which was done by hand and really splendid. (I couldn't help taking my bottle of Megachef sauce to give the restaurant owner a taste. She didn't know about it but after trying it said exactly what we've said: it's perfectly fine on its own on hot rice with a bit of chilli! I've turned into a bit of a prosleytizer for the stuff, but considering how it's obviously made with care -- and without MSG -- I figure why not? Though I don't think it's available in Tokyo yet.)
Your xialongbao look mouthwatering too. ...My mum grew up in Harbin, northern China, and says they used to make them by freezing the soup in order to stuff it inside.
cheers,
Mark
Posted by: Mark Robinson | November 06, 2009 at 06:14 AM
Mark -- Your mom was from Harbin? No wonder it was so easy for her to freeze the soup? It's darn fahreezin' up there. My xiaolongbao recipe is really fabulous -- it's graduate dumpling maker level though.
Can't believe that you cart MegaChef around. Is David Thompson reading this??? What about the MegaChef people? My lord, we should be paid...
Thanks for the kind words on Asian Dumplings. It was such fun to geek out on one subject. I'm amazed and delighted how people have taken to making their own from scratch. America's ready for this. Just like it's ready for izakaya! Crazy and wonderful world we live in.
See you,
A.
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | November 06, 2009 at 09:56 PM
I have been waiting for a premium Fish Sauce to hit the market, preferably one that is Organic~ it's almost disappointing that MegaChef contains Fructose, which I believe is the result of Genetic Engineering. To me, a $5 bottle of fish sauce is one of the least expensive ingredient (even cheaper than Salt) in my pantry, considering its volume (it's like the same size as a bottle of wine-that's a lot of fish sauce!) In Wholefoods, I have found fish sauce produced under the brand, Thai Kitchen. I have not tried this yet because I am afraid it will not even come close to the taste of Three Crabs or Phu Quoc. Anyone who has tried this brand, please let me know or of any other brand that contains all natural ingredients.
Posted by: Jacqueline Le | November 12, 2009 at 11:07 PM
**Update** I went out to Whole Foods and purchased the Thai Kitchen Premium Fish Sauce. It was $2.99 for 7 fl. oz. (The regular 3 Crab bottle is 24 fl. oz.) It contains Anchovy extract (first pressing), salt and sugar and it is also a gluten-free product. I did a taste testing and it is quite good, I think it is good enough for me to cook with.
Posted by: Jacqueline Le | November 16, 2009 at 02:56 PM
Thanks for the update -- Jacqueline! Thai Kitchen is pricey for the small bottle but it's great to know that Whole Foods has it. Good for you.
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | November 18, 2009 at 10:28 AM
My wife and I had dinner at Nahm. The food was hot enough that neither one of us could eat any of the dishes we were served! We sent the first dish back, telling the sever it was too hot to eat. The second dish came out just as hot. We sent it back again telling the server it was too hot to eat. after the third dish was too hot to eat. we requested the check
which had all three dishes on the bill. We paid it and left.
Posted by: Richard Newhauser | November 23, 2009 at 09:06 PM
I just picked up a bottle of it in Bangkok, as well as a bottle of fish sauce from the Ben Thanh market. My wife and I are 3 Crabs users at home. I am looking forward to taste testing the three of them together.
Posted by: Michael Johnston | November 28, 2009 at 12:29 AM
"My wife and I had dinner at Nahm. The food was hot enough that neither one of us could eat any of the dishes we were served!"
Richard, with all respect, you took the trouble to visit one of the West's most authentic Thai restaurants and then complained that the food was too spicy??? I don't get it!
Posted by: Mark Robinson | December 06, 2009 at 02:55 AM
Mark -- very good point. I've never been to Nahm and wonder how they approach the heat-sinking levels of chile use. I've been told that pre-1950s, Thai food wasn't that overly hot/spicy. Some people say that it's due to the over use of sugar in modern times that cause people to counter sweet with heat.
Posted by: Andrea Nguyen | December 07, 2009 at 05:20 PM
Totally agree with you that Thompson is a reluctant spokesperson for Mega Chef. The stuff is good sprinkled on rice, and the aroma is inviting, as you suggest. I've yet to use it in cooking but Thompson says that that's where we'll see/taste the difference!
Posted by: Term papers | January 25, 2010 at 11:52 PM
Just started reading your blog (it's awesome), and getting into Vietnamese food beyond pho.
I never knew there was a difference between Thai style fish sauce and Vietnamese style fish sauce. Can you describe what the main differences are?
Posted by: Kevin | May 18, 2010 at 01:14 PM