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Shrimp paste
Shrimp paste, shrimp sauce, or prawn sauce is a fermented condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian and coastal Chinese cuisines. It is primarily made from finely crushed shrimp or krill mixed with salt, and then fermented for several weeks. Depending on the regional variations, it is sold either in its wet form or sun-dried, and either cut into blocks or sold in bulk. It is an essential ingredient in many curries, sauces and sambal. Shrimp paste can be found in many meals in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. It is often an ingredient in dip for fish or vegetables.
Shrimp paste originated in continental Southeast Asia, probably among the Cham and Mon people, from where it spread southwards to insular Southeast Asia.
In Java, fermented shrimp paste (trasi or terasi), as mentioned in two ancient Sundanese scriptures, Carita Purwaka Caruban Nagari and Mertasinga, had been around before sixth century. According to Carita Purwaka Caruban Nagari, Cirebon had angered the King of Galuh Kingdom after they stopped paying a tribute (in the forms of shrimp paste and salt, their regional products) to him. In Mertasinga, it was mentioned that Cirebon was attacked by Galuh Kingdom because they stopped sending trasi to the king.[citation needed]
Shrimp paste was one of Java's most popular exports bought by traders from neighboring islands and abroad. According to Purwaka Caruban Nagari, Chinese Muslim explorer, Zheng He of Yunnan, used to buy trasi from Cirebon and brought it back to his homeland. He was the one who introduced trasi to China, a foreign condiment which later became popular and inspired locals to make their own version.[citation needed]
In 1707, William Dampier described trasi in his book A New Voyage Round the World: "A composition of a strong odor, but it became a very tasty meal for the indigenous people." Dampier described it further as a mixture of shrimp and small fish made into a kind of soft pickle with salt and water, and then the dough was packed tightly in a clay jar. The pickling process softens the fish and makes it mushy. Then they poured arrack into the jars to preserve them. "The mushy fish remains was called trassi," Dampier wrote; "The aroma is very strong. However, after adding a little part of it, the dish's flavour became quite savory."[citation needed]
In the 1880s, trassi was described by Anna Forbes during her visit to Ambon. Anna was the wife of British naturalist Henry Ogg Forbes; the couple travelled through the Dutch East Indies in the 1880s. In her journal she describes the culture, customs and tradition of the natives, including their culinary tradition. Because of this foul-smelled ingredient, she accused her cook of trying to poison her and threw away that "horrible rotten package". Later she wrote: "Then, I observed each dish of the native or European, those that I have consumed since my arrival in the East contains this; the essence of that rotten stuff that has been used as a spice."[citation needed]
Traditional Kapi is described by Simon de La Loubère, a French diplomat appointed by King Louis XIV to the Royal Court of Siam in 1687. In one chapter, "Concerning the Table of the Siamese" he wrote: "Their sauces are plain, a little water with some spices, garlic, chilbols, or some sweet herb, as baulm. They do much esteem a liquid sauce, like mustard, which is only corrupted crayfish, because they are ill salted; they called it Capi.
Shrimp paste may vary in appearance from pale liquid sauces to solid chocolate-coloured blocks. Shrimp paste produced in Hong Kong and Vietnam is typically a light pinkish grey; while the type used for Burmese, Lao, Cambodian, Thai, Indonesian cooking is darker brown. In the Philippines, they are commonly bright red or pink, due to the use of angkák (red yeast rice) as a colouring agent. While all shrimp paste has a pungent aroma, the scent of higher grade shrimp paste is generally milder. Markets near villages producing shrimp paste are the best places to obtain the highest quality product. Shrimp paste varies between different Asian cultures in terms of smell, texture, and saltiness.
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Shrimp paste
Shrimp paste, shrimp sauce, or prawn sauce is a fermented condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian and coastal Chinese cuisines. It is primarily made from finely crushed shrimp or krill mixed with salt, and then fermented for several weeks. Depending on the regional variations, it is sold either in its wet form or sun-dried, and either cut into blocks or sold in bulk. It is an essential ingredient in many curries, sauces and sambal. Shrimp paste can be found in many meals in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. It is often an ingredient in dip for fish or vegetables.
Shrimp paste originated in continental Southeast Asia, probably among the Cham and Mon people, from where it spread southwards to insular Southeast Asia.
In Java, fermented shrimp paste (trasi or terasi), as mentioned in two ancient Sundanese scriptures, Carita Purwaka Caruban Nagari and Mertasinga, had been around before sixth century. According to Carita Purwaka Caruban Nagari, Cirebon had angered the King of Galuh Kingdom after they stopped paying a tribute (in the forms of shrimp paste and salt, their regional products) to him. In Mertasinga, it was mentioned that Cirebon was attacked by Galuh Kingdom because they stopped sending trasi to the king.[citation needed]
Shrimp paste was one of Java's most popular exports bought by traders from neighboring islands and abroad. According to Purwaka Caruban Nagari, Chinese Muslim explorer, Zheng He of Yunnan, used to buy trasi from Cirebon and brought it back to his homeland. He was the one who introduced trasi to China, a foreign condiment which later became popular and inspired locals to make their own version.[citation needed]
In 1707, William Dampier described trasi in his book A New Voyage Round the World: "A composition of a strong odor, but it became a very tasty meal for the indigenous people." Dampier described it further as a mixture of shrimp and small fish made into a kind of soft pickle with salt and water, and then the dough was packed tightly in a clay jar. The pickling process softens the fish and makes it mushy. Then they poured arrack into the jars to preserve them. "The mushy fish remains was called trassi," Dampier wrote; "The aroma is very strong. However, after adding a little part of it, the dish's flavour became quite savory."[citation needed]
In the 1880s, trassi was described by Anna Forbes during her visit to Ambon. Anna was the wife of British naturalist Henry Ogg Forbes; the couple travelled through the Dutch East Indies in the 1880s. In her journal she describes the culture, customs and tradition of the natives, including their culinary tradition. Because of this foul-smelled ingredient, she accused her cook of trying to poison her and threw away that "horrible rotten package". Later she wrote: "Then, I observed each dish of the native or European, those that I have consumed since my arrival in the East contains this; the essence of that rotten stuff that has been used as a spice."[citation needed]
Traditional Kapi is described by Simon de La Loubère, a French diplomat appointed by King Louis XIV to the Royal Court of Siam in 1687. In one chapter, "Concerning the Table of the Siamese" he wrote: "Their sauces are plain, a little water with some spices, garlic, chilbols, or some sweet herb, as baulm. They do much esteem a liquid sauce, like mustard, which is only corrupted crayfish, because they are ill salted; they called it Capi.
Shrimp paste may vary in appearance from pale liquid sauces to solid chocolate-coloured blocks. Shrimp paste produced in Hong Kong and Vietnam is typically a light pinkish grey; while the type used for Burmese, Lao, Cambodian, Thai, Indonesian cooking is darker brown. In the Philippines, they are commonly bright red or pink, due to the use of angkák (red yeast rice) as a colouring agent. While all shrimp paste has a pungent aroma, the scent of higher grade shrimp paste is generally milder. Markets near villages producing shrimp paste are the best places to obtain the highest quality product. Shrimp paste varies between different Asian cultures in terms of smell, texture, and saltiness.
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