SE Asian acquired tastes

[SobaAddict70]

Well, probably not, but as SEAsianOutpost talks about in the infamous Laab thread there are a number of foodstuffs indigenous to Southeast Asia that are, more or less, acquired tastes.

Things like fermented shrimp paste -- the composition of which varies from country to country -- and deep fried bamboo worms, Thai style. Never had the latter, although I'm told they're crispy and taste just like french fries. As for the former, the Filipino version is either fermented shrimp or anchovy paste and is called baguong. We Filipinos love the stuff, and eat it with just about anything and everything. As it's extremely salty, a little goes a long way. My grandmother taught me how to temper it by frying the paste with garlic until the baguong turns crumbly and the moisture evaporates.

Fermented shrimp paste turns up in all sorts of places, even novels. James Clavell, in the novel King Rat, goes into picaresque detail about the production of the Malaysian or Vietnamese version -- where a tiny sliver will flavor an entire bowlful of rice.

If it beats the durian test, it's in.

Soba

[maukitten]

"Petai" - those delicious smelly pungent green beans which taste so good fried in chillie paste! I don't suppose this is an appropriate forum to discuss what petai does to one's pee...

And beyond durian is "tempoyak" which is fermented durian mixed with sugar, salt and pounded chillies. I absolutely love it.

It's difficult to think of things that I've grown up eating all my life as "acquired tastes". Look forward to hearing what other people regard as their acquired tastes.

[Shiewie]

The 'pee effect' is why I don't particularly like petai... unless it's cooked in sambal with prawns or squid .

Another stinky SE Asian favourite is cincalok - fermented baby shrimp. It's usually used as a dip with a squeeze of lime, sliced shallots and sliced chillies. I like pork steamed with cincalok and pickled shallots - fatal to a low-carb diet as you'll be induced to eat plate after plate of rice with it .

[Adam Balic]

Belachan (fermented prawn paste) is like anchovies and fish sauce, in the uncooked state they are very pungent, but become quite mild after cooking and are a background flavour. Best tip I learnt about Belachan was to wrap a slice in foil and grill, rather then fry in oil. No stinky house this way.

[SEAsianOutpost]

Well, the roasted-in-foil technique reduces the stink, but there's still no doubt about what you've been up to in your kitchen. Roasting like that seems to result in a different flavor, and has the problem (imo) of leaving the paste in a very hard cake that's difficult to distribute throughout a dish. If you going to do a lot of further grinding, whirring, etc. to it anyway then it doesn't much matter, but for some dishes it is hard enough to get the shrimp paste distributed evenly even when you fry it, I find.

- Roger

[Adam Balic]

I dunno Roger, when I roast/grill/dry fry the Belachan it goes, dry and crumbly. East to turn into a powder. There are numerous variants of this type of fermented prawn paste, so maybe I just got lucky. Smell doesn't really get out of the foil either in my case.

[viaChgo]

What about natto? Has anyone acquired a taste for it yet? I can't say that I have.

[SobaAddict70]

I don't know if there are any fermented soybean dishes or natto-ish foods outside of Japan that are indigenous to Southeast Asia (defined as the region south and east of China -- i.e., Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Burma, Singapore, Borneo, the Philippines, etc.). Shiewie, anybody?

Natto is definitely an acquired taste, but not a food I would associate with this region. There may be SE Asian equivalents that I'm not aware of however.

Soba

[torakris]

What about natto? Has anyone acquired a taste for it yet? I can't say that I have.

natto is a wonderful product that has its own thread over in the Japan Forum:

http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=10215

[Sinbad]

It's not S-E Asian, it is not even Asian but my vote for worst acquired taste in the world goes to Surströmming. It makes durian smell like a rose garden, trust me. It's got the aroma of rotten fish marinated in a NY sewer. The link actually tells you most about this dish which is herring fermented in a can, but the smell has to be experienced, it can not be described.

Walk into a room where there is a Surströmming-party and see if you can stay. The party is traditionally held outdoor but due to wather we were forced to be indoors and man, that was tough enough to be in the room.

Anyway, you walk in to a room and there is the tradional accompaniement of Vodka, Aquavit, boiled potato and hard "thin-bread"(The soft thin bread is very similar to flour tortillas). On the table are a number of cans with Surströmming that after a year of storage has gone from the original flat shape to an almost round shape the size of a small volleyball due to the pressure. The cans are opened extremely carefully to avoid having the liquid that the fish is fermented in to spray all over the room. However, the "aroma" of the fish almost instantenously makes you rush to the bathroom, the stink is unbelievable.

After about 30 minutes of warming up with a couple of shots of Aquavit I finally had enough courage to actually taste the fish. I ate it in the traditional beginners way with my left hand pinching my nose, my eyes closed shut and putting the fish filet in my mouth very quickly and swallowing without chewing. Yikes. Although it did not meet my worst expectations, it was still by far the worst I have ever tasted. I quickly downed two shots of Vodka as an antidote and told myself "never again". Despite the weather, the rest of the party was spent outdoor, eating thin-bread and slowly beginning to feel like a Surströmming-can myself with the fish filet applying outward pressure on my stomach.

The next morning was spent recovering from a Surströmming-hangover and carefully cleaning my camera. While I was taking pictures, I had Surströmming-liquid on my hand making the Camera smell like a sewer the next day.

Once in a lifetime only.

[fifi]

Thinking to amaze an important New York client and the assembled board of directors with so bizarre a food, he produced the swollen can he had carried all the way from Sweden in his luggage and dramatically laid it on the table. At that moment, the can exploded.

(This from Sinbad's link to the web site.)

OK... that is my eGullet belly laugh for the day. I am surprised it didn't explode in his luggage due to the drop in air pressure. The poor baggage handlers. Or even worse, in carry-on in the cabin.

[lorea]

How about stinky/fermented tofu? Smells like garbage! But it's sooooo good deep-fried and topped with soy sauce and chili sauce...

[Shiewie]

Well, the roasted-in-foil technique reduces the stink, but there's still no doubt about what you've been up to in your kitchen.

Err...the dry roasting/grill over the stove/dry fry is supposed to enhance the stink - it makes the belacan smell more rounded and less raw (usually done for raw sambals) - similar to dry roasting / frying spices.

[Shiewie]

I don't know if there are any fermented soybean dishes or natto-ish foods outside of Japan that are indigenous to Southeast Asia (defined as the region south and east of China -- i.e., Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Burma, Singapore, Borneo, the Philippines, etc.). Shiewie, anybody?

Natto is definitely an acquired taste, but not a food I would associate with this region. There may be SE Asian equivalents that I'm not aware of however.

Soba

Am of no help here - can't think of any either.

[Shiewie]

What about balut? Has anyone tried it? A friend who tried one recently said it's no different from an ordinary hardboiled egg ...with perhaps the odd feather or two and some extra chewy bits.

But am not sure whether it's indigenous to SE Asia or whether it originated from China since it's found all over the SE Asian region.

[helenjp]

no equivalents of natto??? Different texture, but how about tempeh? Not stinky enough? But don't you love that squeaky-teeth feeling! It's also next-best to instant for quickly putting together a packed lunch.

And cubes of stinky tofu cheese in jars, oh yes, that brings back memories. I like the chili type with congee.

Having gone to the trouble of acquiring the taste for natto (it seemed appropriate on a student budget), I was pretty annoyed to find that I'm allergic to soybeans. I tell myself that anything fermented doesn't count, heh heh, so all the stinky stuff is still in my kitchen.

[Shiewie]

And cubes of stinky tofu cheese in jars, oh yes, that brings back memories. I like the chili type with congee.

Nam Yuur and Fu Yuur? Thought about them but decided they're Chinese in origin and not indigenous to SE Asian region ... (though I often get confused about what's Chinese or not since the Chinese food we eat in SE Asia has large doses of local influence). Anyone can confirm?

[Adam Balic]

Well, the roasted-in-foil technique reduces the stink, but there's still no doubt about what you've been up to in your kitchen.

Err...the dry roasting/grill over the stove/dry fry is supposed to enhance the stink - it makes the belacan smell more rounded and less raw (usually done for raw sambals) - similar to dry roasting / frying spices.

Yes, yes, heat = increase in stinkyness. But, belacan in foil traps the stinkyness in the foil.

[SobaAddict70]

What about balut? Has anyone tried it? A friend who tried one recently said it's no different from an ordinary hardboiled egg ...with perhaps the odd feather or two and some extra chewy bits. 

But am not sure whether it's indigenous to SE Asia or whether it originated from China since it's found all over the SE Asian region.

Balut or belut is definitely a Filipino dish, although one that's not usually offered to Westerners to try. The dislike factor seems to be particularly skewed even among Filipinos, along the same lines as natto and durian. My mom hates it, I gag just thinking about it, but there are people who really dig the stuff.

Belut, as you may have guessed, is a chicken or duck egg with a partially formed embryo inside. In my experience, the embryo is not fully formed (so you shouldn't get the taste of feathers and chickie/duckling bits), but that may not usually be the case as Shiewie suggests. The taste however is intensely eggy, almost gamy, with an aftertaste of nausea that almost makes me want to hurl immediately afterwards.

However, if you really DO want to try belut, you can get it at Elvie's Turo-Turo, a Filipino restaurant in the East Village (13th Street at 1st Avenue), here in NYC. Order it and be prepared to have the staff watch you as you experience your belut moment. Don't worry if they giggle at you while you eat it. Or on second thought, DO worry.

Soba

[prasantrin]

Balut or belut is definitely a Filipino dish, although one that's not usually offered to Westerners to try. The dislike factor seems to be particularly skewed even among Filipinos, along the same lines as natto and durian. My mom hates it, I gag just thinking about it, but there are people who really dig the stuff.

My mother used to eat balut, but now the thought of eating it completely disgusts her. I used to watch her, and other family members, eat it, but could never bring myself to try it. Of course, the last time I saw someone eat balut was when I was about 12 and I was much less adventurous back then. I might try it now, but that's a big "might".

I've never cared much for dinuguan, either.

[lorea]

Balut! I had no idea what you guys were talking about. My Vietnamese friend gave me that to eat (the chicken egg with an embryo inside it), and it was delicious!! I had no idea the embryo was so fully formed though...all the body parts were pretty much fully formed. I was a little grossed out right before I dug in because I had no idea it was so ...old, but once I started eating it, it was really really good. It's a little sad though, because he could have grown up to be a really big chicken.

And yes, sorry...the stinky tofu is a Chinese dish. I realized the thread was for SE Asian foods after my post.