What are the Ingredients of Worcestershire Sauce? You are here: Home / Culinary Arts / What are the Ingredients of Worcestershire Sauce? What are the Ingredients of Worcestershire Sauce? Worcestershire sauce is originally produced by Lea and Perrins. Although there are substitute and home made options these days, the exact recipe that the company uses still remains a top secret. The recipe of Lea and Perrins may remain tightly locked inside a volt but the general ingredients for concocting a delicious Worcestershire sauce is known to many. The rich flavor is achieved by using ample amount of fish. Hence it is not vegan and it is not recommended for people who are allergic to seafood. Vinegar plays an essential role in creating this delicious sauce. It gives the tangy flavor which makes it delightful for the taste buds. Because of the vinegar, this sauce becomes a perfect companion for various types of food. The generous amount of vinegar that it has provides the acidity that this sauce is known for. When there is vinegar, there should be an ingredient that balances out the taste by giving it a little sweetness, right? Molasses is the key in neutralizing the vinegar.

Aside from the sweet taste that this gives, it also improves the texture of the sauce, making it thicker and more viscous. Aside from using other types of fish as an ingredient, Worcestershire sauce also contains a specific fish: anchovies. This is essential for creating an interesting flavor which heightens the taste of the food to which this sauce is added to. This ingredient makes the sauce perfect, especially for various types of meat dishes. More Recipes? View the Recipe Index Yes, there are brands of Worcestershire sauce that contain high fructose corn syrup though most of them use natural sugar. This usually causes an alarm especially to people who aim to regulate their blood sugar level due to diabetes. The good news is that, the use of this ingredient is limited and remains much lower than those found in sodas and processed juices. Since the primary role of this ingredient is to add a little more sweetness to the sauce, people who aim to create it can find healthier sweetening substitute. The original Lea and Perrins ingredients include tamarind concentrate. Tamarind is a type of fruit which can be seen in Africa and Asia. This is known to have a distinct combination of sweetness and sourness.

Adding this to the sauce allows it to have a more natural combination of the two flavors and regulates the strong flavor caused by mixing vinegar and molasses. Of course, the sauce would not be complete without adding some more spices. Onions, salt and garlic are all staple ingredients for making this sauce. Because of this spices, even dishes which taste a bit bland will automatically have an exciting flavor once the sauce is used. Adding all those ingredients together would result to a pasty sauce which might not be pleasing to use on dishes, especially because it involves the use of molasses. Hence, it is important to dilute the concoction with ample amount of water. This is the key in achieving a smooth and consistent texture which makes the Worcestershire sauce the perfect companion for a myriad of dishes. How to Make Worcestershire Sauce — Nourished Kitchen This post contains affiliate links and links to sponsors. As a die-hard DIYer, my pantry is filled with little things I make myself: ketchup, mayonnaise, barbecue sauce, flour mixes. And my freezer is always home to a few homemade items that are easy to pull out in a pinch for last minute meals: pizza crusts, pie crusts, biscuits and more.

These pantry items and kitchen staples not only help me to maintain my grocery budget while still purchasing otherwise expensive foods like grass-fed meats, raw dairy and organic produce. The DIY Pantry So when The DIY Pantry by Kresha Faber landed in my mailbox, I was thrilled. Not only did she include recipes for many things I happen to make myself (like sour cream, yogurt, and breadcrumbs), but also many pantry items that I hadn’t yet tried my hand at making. Among them, this Worcestersauce which has quickly become a happy staple in my family’s kitchen. A brilliant and useful book, The DIY Pantry includes 150 recipes for very simple, wholesome pantry favorites that come together in thirty minutes or less. Easy. And for families looking to clean up their diets or to avoid allergies, The DIY Pantry makes it not only practical to begin making your own pantry basics, but also easy and affordable. I’ve long loved Kresha’s approach (she blogs at Nourishing Joy ) to foods which, in many ways, mirrors my own: whole foods, prepared at home, with emphasis on wholesome fats, and back-to-basics cooking.

Her approach in The DIY Pantry is one that makes cooking from scratch easy and attainable, and, most importantly, it provides readers an opportunity to not only come back to the table, but also to avoid tricky ingredients like refined sugars and vegetable oils, dyes and other additives that lurk in the bottles and boxes that line grocery store shelves. While this Worcestershire Sauce recipe is certainly a favorite, she also includes recipes for dressings, chutneys, spice mixes, chocolate syrup and ice cream, as well as super simple baking mixes for yellow and chocolate cakes. There’s a lot in this book. Homemade Worcestershire Sauce Worcestershire Sauce offers a wonderful sweet-sour-salty flavor owing to its many ingredients that include traditionally fermented fish sauce and anchovies, spices and even fresh lime. Together they blend into a wonderful simple, lovely sauce that, in small quantities, adds a lovely depth of flavor to marinades, dips, salad dressings and other sauces. One bottle lasts a long time, because you typically use so little in each recipe. What is fish sauce? | Table Matters by Dana-Leigh Formon Few ingredients have chilled me to my core like fish sauce once did. Even the name made my skin tingle.

Before I even ever opened a bottle, I was convinced it would smell like liquid death. Hoisin, mirin, soy, plum sauce, ponzu… you could have given me any other Asian condiment out there, but I didn’t think I could have been paid enough to try fish sauce. My fish sauce avoidance was so intense that I needed to almost give myself a twelve-step introduction before even considering a grocery store purchase. I researched, I read, I collected recipes, I even had nightmares of being chased by a bottle of the brown liquid… But eventually I gave in, committed to a recipe that called for fish sauce, held my nose, and gave it a whirl. Surprisingly, it actually wasn’t so bad. It still smelled like death, but from what I later gathered, that’s one thing every fish sauce user agrees on (some even said it smelled like wet cat, which my cat-loving friends actually confirmed for me). Smell aside though, using it was completely worth it. I had tasted something within this recipe that I had never experienced before; there was this extra, subtle flavor, meaty yet fishy in a pleasant way.

Turns out, with the right amount of knowledge, creativity, and a healthy dose of reality orientation, fish sauce can be more than a nightmare-inducing condiment. It doesn’t have to be that ingredient you’re hesitant to buy “because you’re only going to use a tablespoon of it once and never touch it again” (I tried that excuse, twice). So throw aside your doubts and reservations and take a leap of faith here. Yes, fish sauce will make you feel worldly when your friends come over and see you using it, but it will also allow for a completely new food experience that you’ll wish to enjoy over and over again. WHAT IS IT? Fish sauce is composed of three ingredients: whole fish, salt, and water. These three main ingredients are placed into barrels and sit for 12-18 months. The less time it spends fermenting, the fishier the taste. The longer it spends, the nuttier it gets. While your first thought might be “Holy bacteria, Batman!” the salt used in the fermentation process completely kills any and all bacteria that could ever have hoped to grow.

Sometimes, companies add sugar to help calm the pungency of the sauce, and some Western producers will also add hydrolyzed wheat protein or sodium benzoate (similar to MSG) to replace the traditional slow fermentation process, though I’ve yet to find the latter in any bottle of fish sauce I’ve come across. WHO MAKES IT? It probably comes as no surprise that fish sauce is most commonly related to (and most used in) Thai and Asian cuisines. Who is producing the fish sauce (i.e., which region) affects its composition as well; Southeast Asian producers use anchovies for their fish sauce, as do Korean and our “Western” producers. Japanese producers use the more expensive sand lance fish and may also use squid and other fish, creating very specific blends of fish sauces that can only be used with certain dishes. Don’t get too caught up in Asian cuisine though – archaeologists and scientists have found evidence that ancient Romans produced fish sauce in the Mediterranean, where their product was called garum. WHERE DO I GET IT? Don’t knock a standard grocery store bottle – it still offers everything a fish sauce should, and can take the emotional beating of being left in your cupboard for months on end.

If you’d like to travel to an Asian market to complete your experience of buying fish sauce for the first time, go right ahead, but it certainly isn’t necessary. You can find fish sauce right down the Asian foods aisle of your local grocery store. Does buying it at a grocery store mean anything different than buying it at a specialty market or culinary store? At specialty stores and markets you might find multiple brands of fish sauce, and you have a smaller chance of finding a sauce that deviates from the ingredient trinity. Most regular grocery stores have only one brand sitting on their shelves. The darker the fish sauce is, the stronger the flavor, so at specialty stores you may also find brands with varying shades of brown based on potency. When it comes to buying fish sauce, many culinary resources in general tend to say it doesn’t really matter where you buy it, because when it comes to taste, the difference between a “good” and “better” sauce is negligible. Internet-based home cooks agree, saying not to knock a standard grocery store bottle because it still offers everything a fish sauce should and can take the emotional beating of being left in your cupboard for months on end. WHEN DO I USE IT?

Obviously fish sauce can be used whenever a recipe calls for it, but another general consensus says you can incorporate it into any recipe that requires Worcestershire sauce (using the same amount), like in steak marinades, stews, and meatloaf mixes. You can also substitute soy sauce for fish sauce if you’re feeling hesitant (again, in the same amount) but there is a caveat to substituting fish sauce for soy in equal amounts due to fish sauce’s pungency. The rule of thumb seems to be “a little goes a long way,” and to always start with less if you’re wary. You can also feel safe adding fish sauce to a recipe that also requires lime, because the lime helps to tame fishiness. More Americanized uses for fish sauce include its use in Bloody Marys and marinades, to season hamburger meat, in bouillabaisses, and as a few confess, as their “special something” in guacamole. You can also swap in fish sauce for any recipe that calls for anchovy (starting with a small amount first).

Try fish sauce in a Caesar dressing by starting with ¼ cup of mayonnaise and whisking in 1 tablespoon of EVOO, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, a small minced garlic clove, and 1 teaspoon of fish sauce, finishing with a couple of healthy grinds of fresh black pepper. WHY SHOULD I USE IT? Fish sauce’s usefulness extends beyond Asian cuisine, past the horizon, and then some. You don’t have to dust off your wok in order to use it. Fish sauce is synonymous with “umami,” the fifth taste element, and is known for adding an incredible depth of flavor to practically any recipe, where appropriate (don’t add it to ice cream and then blame me for anything gross). Professional chefs and kitchens laud fish sauce as their secret ingredient in many recipes. Another plus is that it pretty much lasts forever and essentially can’t go bad because of the amount of salt used in fermentation. To back that up, there is no legal requirement for producers to list an expiration date on fish sauce, although many companies do to make consumers feel better. Heading back to general consensus, a bottle should last you at least two years and the Association for Science Cooperation in Asia cites a shelf life of 5 years.

As with any other food or condiment though, fish sauce should never be used if it’s moldy or has turned cloudy (signs of third-party spoilage). Keep it in a cool, dark, temperature-stable environment that isn’t your refrigerator, which can lead to the crystallization of the salt within the sauce. Dana-Leigh Formon is a part-time food blogger , modern dancer, and distance runner from Drexel University. She is committed to fresh, locally made, good-for-you food and making as many things from scratch as possible. Her psychology background meets food when she explores how foods and flavors can affect your mood. Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients and Uses - An English Tradition | Delishably Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients and Uses - An English Tradition Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients and Uses - An English Tradition Updated on October 04, 2015 Joined: 6 years agoFollowers: 1,256Articles: 431 42 Worcestershire sauce bought in Canada | Source Advertisement What is Worcestershire Sauce?

Worcestershire sauce is a tasty, dark brown liquid traditionally used to flavour meats, fish, Welsh rarebit (toast covered with a cheese and beer sauce) and Caesar salads. It’s also added to certain cocktails, such as the Caesar and the Bloody Mary. The sauce is a complex mixture of many different ingredients, including anchovies, tamarind extract, molasses, onions, garlic, spices and vinegar. Its rich taste is produced by fermentation. The first commercial Worcestershire sauce was created in 1837 by two chemists named John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins. They lived in the city of Worcester in England. The most common brand of the sauce today is known as "Lea and Perrins" Worcestershire sauce. It's the brand that I grew up with and that I nearly always have in my kitchen. The city of Worcester is located in the county of Worcestershire, which is situated in the west midlands region of England. The pronunciation of the word "Worcestershire" is a puzzle for many people, since it doesn't match the word's spelling. The word is generally pronounced woo (as in WOOf) -ster-sher.

How to Pronounce "Worcestershire Sauce" Advertisement Although the pronunciation of Worcestershire given in the video above is common, according to the Lea and Perrins website the word can also be pronounced WOOS-ter-sheer and WUST-ter-shire. History of Worcestershire Sauce There’s a nice little story about the history of Worcestershire sauce which appears on the Lea and Perrins website and in other places, although some people have doubts about its accuracy. Lord Sandys had been traveling in Bengal, where he had eaten a delicious sauce. When he returned to his home in Worcester, he gave Mr. Lea and Mr. Perrin a list of ingredients found in the sauce and asked the chemists to create it. They did so, but the resulting liquid tasted horrible. The containers of sauce were placed in a cellar and ignored. Much later - eighteen months to several years, according to different sources - the chemists rediscovered the sauce. The liquid had fermented and tasted delicious. Lea and Perrins sauce was born. The Lea and Perrins company was started to make and distribute the sauce. The manufacturing plant in Worcester is still very active, although it's now owned by Heinz.

The sauce is shipped around the world. The exact recipe is carefully kept secret. Today other companies create their own versions of the sauce. Advertisement Worcester - The Home of Worcestershire Sauce Worcester, England - The city of Worcester in England is the home of Worcestershire sauce. {"lat":52.193638,"lng":-2.221575,"zoom":11,"mapType":"ROADMAP","markers":[{"id":33275,"lat":"52.193638","lng":"-2.221575","name":"Worcester, England","address":"Worcester, UK","description":"The city of Worcester in England is the home of Worcestershire sauce."}]} In 1839, John Duncan of New York brought some Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce to the Unites States. The product was an immediate success. Over the next few years, Duncan imported large quantities of the sauce into America.

Advertisement Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients The ingredients listed on a bottle of Worcestershire sauce - at least on the form of the sauce that is available in my local stores in Canada - are malt vinegar, spirit vinegar, water, molasses, sugar, salt, anchovies, tamarind extract, onion, garlic, spice and natural flavour. In order to make the sauce, the ingredients are mixed and the resulting liquid is fermented in wooden casks for eighteen months. The ingredient list varies slightly depending on the country where the sauce is sold. For example, the British Lea and Perrins website lists cloves and chili extract as ingredients and leaves out the malt vinegar. The ingredients which the Lea and Perrins company tries to keep secret are the spices and the natural flavours. In 2009, it was reported that a company accountant named Brian Keogh had found some leather-bound books in a skip outside the Lea and Perrins factory. The books contain information dating from the mid 1800s and early 1900s.

The information suggests that originally soy, lemon essence, cayenne or chili peppers, cloves, pickles and shallots were added to the anchovies, tamarind, garlic, salt, sugar, vinegar and water in the sauce. The books are now kept at the Worcester City Museum. The King of Queens Tries to Pronounce "Worcestershire" Advertisement Anchovies Anchovies are always present in Worcestershire sauce, which is essentially a fermented fish sauce. This type of condiment has been popular for a long time. For example, garum was eaten in Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Garum was a sauce made from salted fish that were left in the sun to ferment. Anchovies are small, silvery fish that have blue tints on their surface. They live in schools in temperate oceans. Like salmon, sardines and some other fish, anchovies contain an oil that is rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Nutritionists tell us that we should all be eating this type of oil. It seems to have important health benefits, including helping us to maintain a healthy heart. Fresh anchovies have quite a mild taste, but after the fish are processed and packed in oil and salt they develop a strong flavour.

Anchovies and olives (in the foreground) as part of a meal | Source Tamarind Tamarind extract is an important component of Worcestershire sauce. Tamarinds are bushy, tropical trees that are native to Africa and are cultivated in many countries, including the southern United States. They are slow growing and long-lived plants. The flowers are yellow with orange or red streaks, Unlike the inconspicuous flowers, the large, pod-like fruits are very noticeable. The fruit contains a pulp and seeds. The pulp is edible and is brown or red brown when the fruit is ripe. It's said to have a "sweet-sour" taste. It's high in both sugar and acid and is a good source of calcium, which is unusual for a fruit. It's also a good source of magnesium and potassium. A tamarind tree with fruit | Source Molasses Molasses is a by-product of the sugar refining process. It's a thick, dark syrup with a rich taste. It's often made from sugar cane juice but may also be obtained from sugar beets. There are three types of molasses. Their name and properties depend on how often they have been boiled.

To make light molasses, the juice of sugar cane plants is boiled to make the liquid more concentrated. Solid sugar crystallizes out of the solution and is removed. The syrup left after this first boiling and extraction is called light molasses. If light molasses is boiled and more sugar removed, the remaining syrup is called dark molasses, or simply molasses. Dark molasses may be boiled and concentrated so that even more sugar can be extracted. The final syrup is known as blackstrap molasses. It's the darkest in colour of all the syrups and the least sweet (although it still contains dissolved sugar, or sucrose). It also contains the highest concentration of dissolved nutrients. Blackstrap molasses | Source Vinegar There are many types of vinegar. Common varieties include white, malt, wine, rice, apple cider and balsamic vinegar. There are many other kinds that can be explored. All varieties consist of a dilute solution of acetic acid in water, but the presence of other chemicals gives the different types distinct flavours. The basic process of vinegar production starts with the production of alcohol when yeasts ferment sugars. Bacteria then convert the alcohol into acetic acid.

Slight modifications of these steps as well as variations in the starting material produce the different kinds of vinegar. Fish and chips, Guinness and malt vinegar | Source Malt and Spirit Vinegar Malt Vinegar Malt vinegar is made from malted barley. During the malting process, the barley grain germinates. As it germinates, its starch is changed into maltose. The germinated grain is then dried with hot air and is known as malted barley. Malted barley is mixed with water and yeast and brewed (fermented) to make ale. The ale is used to make a flavourful vinegar. Malt vinegar is dark brown in colour and is traditionally sprinkled on English-style fish and chips. Distilled, Spirit or White Vinegar Distilled, spirit or white vinegar is made by the fermentation of distilled alcohol. It's colourless and is the most common type of vinegar bought by most people. The presence of acetic acid gives the vinegar a tangy taste, but the product lacks the extra flavour components of malt vinegar. A Welsh Rarebit Recipe Uses of Worcestershire Sauce Worcestershire sauce is a great addition to many types of meats and seafood. It goes well with burgers, grilled meats and stir-fries.

It's also a good addition to marinades and dipping sauces. Some people add it to beans or salads. In addition, the sauce is an essential ingredient in Welsh rarebit and some cocktails. Lea and Perrins says that their Worcestershire sauce is free of gluten. This claim applies to the British version of the sauce, which doesn't contain malt vinegar. Barley contains gluten, but there is a controversy about whether enough gluten remains in malt vinegar to harm people with celiac disease. The malting and fermentation processes may remove the gluten. Expert advice should be sought if someone who is intolerant to gluten wants to use a version of the sauce that contains malt vinegar. Lea and Perrins also says that their sauce is free of preservatives and that the only potential allergen in the ingredients is the anchovies. The sauce is quite high in salt, but it contains much less salt than soy sauce. The product is sold in a reduced sodium version, although I've never seen this in my local stores. Celiac disease is a disorder in which gluten ingestion causes damage to the small intestine. Untreated celiac disease can be serious. The symptoms of the disease and the intestinal damage can generally be eliminated if the person avoids gluten in their diet.

These are the remains of an ancient garum factory in Spain. Like Worcestershire sauce today, garum was a fermented fish sauce. | Source Introducing Worcestershire Sauce into the Diet If you've never tried Worcestershire sauce before, it's a good idea to start with a small quantity. The sauce has a strong and assertive taste. I love it, though. It's a great condiment to keep in the kitchen because it adds flavour to many different kinds of food. Since Worcestershire sauce is quite high in salt, it's not something to add to every meal. Still, it's very useful in a kitchen that has a collection of herbs, spices and condiments. The right combination of these can provide a delicious and very interesting taste to foods. Worcestershire Sauce Worcestershire Sauce © Denzil Green Worcestershire Sauce is a commercially-made seasoning sauce. The sauce is brown, and thin. It has a somewhat tart, meaty taste with a pungent vinegary smell. The most well-known brands include French's and Heinz, and Lea & Perrins.

Different brands will use different ingredients; some of the ingredients commonly used often include cloves, garlic, tamarind, paprika or chiles, soy sauce, treacle and/or molasses, vinegar (or lemon juice), salt, onions, garlic, anchovies, shallots, malt vinegar, and tamarind. Lea & Perrins is the oldest brand, and the original. Those who like Lea & Perrins will turn up their noses at the others. Lea & Perrins will barrel and age theirs for 3 years, and not all the other brands will do that. Lea & Perrins is made in a factory on Midland Road in Worcester, England. The ingredients in the recipe for Lea & Perrins are a closely-guarded secret, known only to those who manage the company and to those who trouble to read the list of ingredients on the side of the bottle: Malt vinegar (from barley), spirit vinegar, water, refiner's molasses, sugar, salt, anchovies, tamarind extract, onions, garlic, spice, and natural flavour. The onions and garlic are pickled for a minimum of 12 months in malt vinegar before use.

Eventually, the ingredients are combined, then aged in blue fiberglass maturing tanks (aging used to be done in oak barrels), strained, the flavour checked, then pasteurized and bottled. The British factory supplies the entire world except America. The reason is that Americans are the world's largest consumers of Lea & Perrins, which justifies their own factory in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. The ingredients there are slightly modified: vinegar, molasses, high fructose corn syrup, anchovies, water, onions, salt, garlic, tamarind concentrate, cloves, natural flavorings and chili pepper extract. Brian Keogh, a Lea & Perrins accountant who retired in 1991, found what he believed were original leather-bound recipe books for the sauce in a trash skip used by the company. (No word on why he was rooting through the skip.) He died in 2006; his daughter Bonnie Clifford donated the books to the Worcester City Museums. The recipes he found seem to indicate that the "spice and natural flavour" could be cloves, soy sauce, lemon essence, peppers, and pickles. Knowing the ingredients, of course, doesn't give away the secret to how they are assembled.

For instance, it is known that the onion and garlic are pickled first in vinegar for a minimum of 12 months before being used in the recipe, and the anchovies are fermented in salt for three to five years. The sauce is pasteurized before being bottled. In Canada, the Lea & Perrins sold there is imported from Britain by Heinz. The label is modified to fit French on. Heinz also sells its own make of Worcestershire Sauce in Canada, under its own label. Cooking Tips Worcestershire Sauce is very useful in quick recipes where the flavours don't have time to marry and develop a body of their own. Substitutes There are recipes floating around out there for making your own Worcestershire sauce which have you "brew" it in the refrigerator before straining and using, but since you could more quickly walk to the corner shop, that hardly seems in the nature of a substitution, which has more to do with what do you have to hand right now. Some people suggest substituting soy sauce, but that would change the nature of the taste too much.

Given that Worcestershire sauce lasts indefinitely in the bottle and that a bottle costs so little, there's no reason not to keep a small bottle around as part of your staples. Nutrition Is Worchestershire Sauce Gluten Free? Whether or not a bottle of Worcestershire Sauce is considered gluten free will depend on: the brand; what country it was made in by which country's law are you making a gluten-free determination? You need to contact the company whose brand you are considering buying and ask them directly, or, look for a bottle that is certified gluten-free. Reports as to whether Lea & Perrins is gluten-free vary wildly by time, by geographic location and by jurisdictional definitions, so contact them directly for your country if this is a concern to you. If you see malt vinegar as an ingredient, then in North American it is generally not considered gluten-free. Storage Hints A bottle of store-bought Worcestershire sauce does not require refrigeration after opening. Some people, feel, however, that refrigerating it may extend its shelf life beyond that posted on the bottle for those who only use it infrequently. History Notes The British weren't the first to make such commercially-prepared sauces a staple in their kitchens.

The Romans did it before them, with their liquamen and garum fish sauces. John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins were born within a few years of each other in the early 1790s. Both became chemists, and partnered on opening a few chemist shops (pharmacies) together starting in 1823 in Worcester, in the shire of Worcestershire in England. How exactly two pharmacists decided to go into the food sauce business is unclear, but one version with lots of promising details (such as names and dates) goes that in 1835 a fellow named Marcus, Lord Sandys, had returned from India, where he had been governor of Bengal. He had a recipe for a brewed sauce that he asked his local chemists (who happened to be Lea & Perrins) to have a go at making. They brewed it up, found it tasted awful, put the cask of it in the cellar, and got back to their regular jobs. A year later, on a lark before finally clearing the cask out of their basement, they had a taste of it. It had aged into a really tasty sauce.

So tasty, that they paid Lord Sandys for the recipe, and were bottling and selling it out of their stores by the following year, 1837. Brian Keogh, who found the recipes books, went on to write a book called "The Secret Sauce - A History of Lea & Perrins", published 1997. He felt that the story was untrue. He said he found that the male line of the Sandys ended in 1797 - 38 years before they were said to have met him. Nor did his research turn up any Lord Sandys having ever travelled to India, let alone been a Governor of Bengal. There actually was however a Lord Sandys during this period. Arthur Marcus Cecil Sandys, 3rd Baron Sandys (1798 - 1863), was born as Lord Marcus Hill. In 1860, under Royal license, he changed his title to Lord Sandys. He was a member of parliament from 1832 to 1852.

Another version of the invention story was given by a writer named Thomas Smith in 1885: "We quote the following history of the well-known Worcester sauce, as given in the World. The label shows it is prepared "from the recipe of a nobleman in the county." The nobleman may be Lord Sandys. Many years ago, Mrs. Grey, author of The Gambler's Wife and other novels, was on a visit at Ombersley Court, when Lady Sandys chanced to remark that she wished she could get some very good curry powder, which elicited from Mrs. Grey that she had in her desk an excellent recipe, which her uncle, Sir Charles, Chief Justice of India, had brought thence, and given her. Lady Sandys said that there were some clever chemists in Worcester, who perhaps might be able to make up the powder. Messrs. Lea and Perrins looked at the recipe, doubted if they could procure all the ingredients, but said they would do their best, and in due time forwarded a packet of the powder.

Subsequently the happy thought struck someone in the business that the powder might, in solution, make a good sauce." [1] In any event, by 1839, Lea & Perrins were exporting their product to America. In the 1880s, the Perrins family was rich enough to build a six bedroom stone holiday mansion, which they named "Plas Mynach" on Cardigan Bay in Wales. The house now rents out as a holiday home. In 1892, Lea & Perrins registered their name as a trademark. In 1904, Lea & Perrins received a Royal Warrant, which they have held since. Other companies that at one point or another made Worcestershire Sauce in Worcester have included Courtney's, Four Flags, Stretton and Co., Mellor & Co. and Waldren and Co. In 1906, Lea & Perrins took the Holbrooks company of Birmingham to court to try to prevent them from selling a sauce called "Worcestershire Sauce".

Lea & Perrins lost, but were granted exclusive rights to the phrase "Original and Genuine." The Lea & Perrins company was sold to the HP company (which makes HP brown sauce) in 1930. HP sold it to Heinz in 2005. The Lea & Perrins company was originally Bank Street and Broad Street in Worcester; in 1897, they moved to their present-day location on Midland Road. Lea & Perrins was made without sugar during the Second World War. Literature & Lore The ingredients listed in the book found by Brian Keogh were written out, with costs beside them, in order for company accountants to work out costs and profit margins. This process was repeated and recorded over many years. Here is the list for 1907: water - 20 1/2 gallons essence of lemons - 8 oz peppers - 5 lbs tamoraide - 14 lbs pickles - 40 lbs The pickle was made from shallots, garlic, and vinegar.

It is unclear why both "vinegar" and "acetic acid" are listed, unless perhaps it was to draw a distinction between two types of vinegar, such as malt vinegar and spirit vinegar. Scanned pages of the books can be seen online at the BBC site: (link valid as of October 2010). The book notes that in 1908, the weight of peppers used was reduced to 4 pounds and put back up to 5 pounds in 1909. Also in 1909, acetic acid was dropped. In 1917, the sauce started to be made without sugar. Language Notes Worcestershire is pronounced "wus - tuh - sher". Pronounce the "wus" part as you would "puss", except with the "w" at the front. The correct spelling is "Worcestershire", not "Worchestershire", with a "h". Sources [1] Smith, Thomas Successful Advertising, (1885 7th edition) Alexander, Harriet.

Secret Worcestershire Sauce recipe found: Historians believe they have found the original recipe for Lea and Perrins' Worcestershire sauce, which could be 150 years old. London: Daily Telegraph. 2 November 2009. Apple, R.W. Don't ask what makes Lea & Perrins Worcestershire so special -- they won't tell. New York Times. 30 August 2000. BBC.Recipes for secret sauce emerge. 2 November 2009. Retrieved October 2010 from Bowles, Tom Parker. Worcestershire Sauce: a rare legacy of the Empire that nearly never happened... London: Daily Mail. 27 March 2010. Schlesinger, Fay. It's out after 170 years, the secret of Worcestershire Sauce... found in a skip. London: Daily Mail. 3 November 2009. Worcestershire Sauce - The Rivals. Worcester City Museums. Retrieved October 2010 from See also: Pantry Essentials: All About Fish Sauce | Serious Eats Pantry Essentials: All About Fish Sauce Fish sauce.

[Photograph: Paul Hillier ] Get the Recipes Steak Salad With Cucumber, Peppers, and Spicy Fish Sauce Vinaigrette The anchovy is not a universally loved fish. In fact, that may be understating the matter. A lot of people hate the pungent, bottom-of-the-ocean flavor of anchovies, and they're very vocal about it. The very suggestion of anchovies on a pizza may make them dump the Italian take-out menu and switch to Chinese instead. Of course, people who love anchovies are often just as passionately outspoken. The humble anchovy is food that divides a room. I find myself in the odd position of having crossed from one side to the other, and all because of a sauce. I used to hate anchovies, but I'm a convert, thanks to fish sauce. Actually, my conversion started with Worcestershire sauce, that divine savory liquor of vinegar, tamarind, and, yes, anchovy. As a lad, I liked to put Worcestershire sauce on almost everything, from shepherd's pie to cheese on toast.

I had no idea that it contained the hated anchovy, and my world almost fell apart when I discovered the terrible truth, cunningly hidden in plain sight on the ingredients on the back of the label. I didn't give up Worcestershire sauce, but I also didn't rethink my position on anchovies. It was only when I tried to make my first Thai green curry that I really had to give the matter serious thought. Andy Ricker of Pok Pok shopping for fish sauce with SE [Photographs: Max Falkowitz] Thai cooking relies heavily on fish sauce, as do the cuisines of Vietnam, Indonesia and southern China. Called nam pla in Thai, fish sauce is the seasoning that provides much of the saltiness in Thai recipes. It also has a very short ingredients list. It's essentially just anchovies and salt. It can be made with other fish, but it's unusual. On a visit to my local Asian supermarket I saw bottles labeled with pictures of squid, crab, and whole cornucopias of aquatic life, but they all contained the same ingredients: anchovies and salt. Nam pla is made by layering those two ingredients in big barrels and leaving it to ferment under the hot sun over the course of several months.

The anchovies break down in their own juices, and the resulting liquid is extracted, filtered, sweetened with a little sugar, and bottled. The sauce may have originated as a by-product of preservation. Anchovies are small, delicate and oily, and not naturally very salty, so they don't keep well. Curing them in salt used to be a necessity, which is why we're used to eating them that way. By using salt to cure anchovies and then extracting the sauce to use in cooking, the Thai people were able to use the same salt twice. Fish sauce has the same acrid fishy smell as cured anchovies, but what I learned when I made my first Thai green curry is that it also has a delicious savory depth of flavor. It's that flavor that lingers when fish sauce is used in a dish, while the pungency seems to waft away. Fish sauce brings tremendous complexity to a dip, a marinade or a salad dressing. It's also a perfect substitute for soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, or even for salt, and once you've tried a few dashes in a stir fry you'll probably never go back to the wok without it. Nam phrik pla.

[Photograph: Paul Hillier] You can also kick your fish sauce up by making nam phrik pla (pictured above). Nam phrik pla is a mix of roughly equal parts fish sauce and Thai bird's eye chiles. Throw in some brown sugar, lime juice, and some shallots or garlic according to taste, and the result is an intensely spicy condiment for rice dishes that's ubiquitous on the tables of Thai families and in Thai restaurants. A little fish sauce goes a long way. I find that a little nam phrik pla goes a really long way. Using fish sauce in my cooking made me realize that anchovies aren't so bad after all. In fact, one can use anchovies in much the same way—they dissolve into a pasta sauce or a salad dressing (Caesar salad being the classic example), infusing the dish with glorious umami and not a trace of fishiness. Using fish sauce is really a short cut to the same result. Mind you, I'm still not sure I want any anchovies on my pizza. About the author: Andrew Wheeler is a freelance writer born in England and based in Toronto. You can find him on Twitter @Wheeler .

Get the Recipes Fish Sauce Fish Sauce Fish sauce is made by packing small fish and/or fish blood and innards into large barrels or jars layered with salt and setting the barrels out in the hot sun for around a year. The fish is digested by its own digestive enzymes and a clear salty liquid is eventually drained off and bottled. It is quite essential to several cuisines, particularly those of Southeast Asia today and of the Roman Empire. Today, fish sauce is an important component of the "Pacific Rim Cuisine" rooted in Southern California, and is slowly entering the North American mainstream, particularly through innovative chefs who have found it a wonderful flavoring ingredient. Roman Fish Sauces Fish sauce was so important to the cuisine of the Roman Empire that almost all known Roman recipes call for it. People attempting to recreate dishes from those times often suggest substituting anchovy paste, an ingredient certain to ruin the dish entirely - then tell you it must be "an acquired taste". Actually, quite suitable fish sauces made by methods very similar to those of ancient Rome are easily available in any market catering to a Southeast Asian community. Also, a fish sauce called Colatura di Alici is produced in Italy today, though it's more concentrated than the original Roman or Southeast Asian products.

Originally, a fish sauce called "garos" was brought from Greece to Rome. The Romans took to it and established factories to produce it in quantity. This became a major industry, particularly in Spain, just as it is in Thailand and Vietnam today. Some fish sauce was still being made in Spain during Moorish times. Whether there is any connection between the Greek fish sauce and Southeast Asian products can not be known, but the naturalness of its development from salt preserving fish requires no such technology transfer. The basic difference between the Roman fish sauce and the current Thai product is the Thai practice of using only fresh whole anchovies. The Romans sometimes used other fish and enhanced the mix with extra fish blood and guts, or for higher grades may have used mostly the blood and guts. This would produce a faster fermenting product of higher concentration. Note that in southern Thailand a fish sauce called Tai pla is made entirely from mackerel entrails - and it is definitely stronger than regular Thai fish sauce. The Romans had different grades of fish sauces and used several names for them.

To the best of current knowledge this is how it shakes out: Garum: A high grade fish sauce made from the guts and blood of a single kind of fish, generally anchovies, mullet or mackerel. Subst: use a premium brand Thai fish sauce like Squid or Tra Chang. Liquamen: This name appears in the 4th century CE and detailed recipes have been found. Whole fish is used with added blood and guts. It is not definitively known if liquamen denotes a difference in formula or simply a change in name over time, but some think liquamen denotes the everyday sauce and Garum the costly extra-premium product. Subst: use an everyday Thai fish sauce like Tiparos. Muria: An ordinary quality sauce made from tuna guts, or a third quality sauce made from any fish or shellfish that had no other use at the time. In the Roman provence of Judaea certified kosher versions were made excluding all shellfish or fish without scales. Subst: Philippine Patis fish sauce. Allec: This was a paste formed in the bottom of the barrels, a byproduct of making fish sauce. Allec was not used for cooking but served as a condiment.

Subst: try the Philippine sauces Bagoong Monamon or Bagoong Terong - if you dare - or Vietnamese Mam Nem for something a bit less pungent. We really don't know which is closer. Oxygarum: Garum mixed with vinegar, similar to Southeast Asian dipping sauces. Meligarum: Garum mixed with honey. Colatura di Alici This fish sauce is made in Italy today, but it's not known if by an ancient process or one just a few hundred years old. It does differ substantially from the original Roman product where the end objective was fish sauce. The name means "filtration of anchovies" and it's a byproduct of salting anchovies in barrels. Made this way the quantity is small and it is highly concentrated and quite expensive. A price of about $7.50 an ounce makes it quite attractive to chefs at fancy restaurants, but that isn't to say it isn't worth it. Just a couple of drops per serving will do in any case. Thai fish sauce is of similar strength as drawn from the barrels, but is diluted to about 20% when bottled.

Southeast Asian Clear Fish Sauce These sauces are heavily used in Thailand and Vietnam taking the place soy sauce holds in China and Japan. It is both a flavoring element and provides the salt for the dish it is included in. The great majority of Thai and Vietnamese recipes include at least some fish sauce. This type of fish sauce is also important in the Philippines, but is less used in other countries of Southeast Asia. Fermented shrimp paste, fish paste and other similar condiments are more prevalent in those countries. Subst: There is no truly satisfactory substitute for fish sauce. A fermented yellow bean sauce is about as close as you can get, and that would be suitable for strict vegetarians, but it is not clear. Lacking that, you would have to use plain salt but an important flavor element will be missing. Thai fish sauce is now common in Southern California because of the many Asian communities here, but it's also being adopted into the famous "California cuisine" - expect it to spread. Here are the national names for it, as best I could find them, anyway.

California - nampla (easier to say than nuocmam) Thailand - nam pla Burma (Myanmar) - ngan byar yay Japan - shottsuru China - yu lu Fish sauce is made by layering salt and freshly caught anchovies in large barrels or crocks and setting the barrels out in the hot sun for a year or up to two years. The fish are digested by their own digestive enzymes. The clear fish sauce is then drained through a tap at the bottom of the barrel, filtered and diluted with water to the desired strength, usually about 20%, and bottled. Some bottles carry designations like 30°N, 40°N, 50°N. This is a measure of the nitrogen content, which correlates with the amount of protein in the fish sauce. Lower numbers indicate a lighter sauce. The "first extraction" provides the top grade sauce. The barrels may then be refilled with salt water for a second extraction but that "cooking grade" product isn't commonly exported to the US. The process of making fish sauce is time consuming and expensive, so some manufacturers add hydrolized wheat protein, acids, MSG and other additives to speed digestion and mask defects.

Check the label. Buying: Look for a perfectly clear light amber color and an ingredient list including only Anchovies, water, salt and sugar. Most shipped to North America has some sugar, which may not be included in the same brand as sold in its home market. Price as a guide is rather unreliable here in Southern California, so it's probably even less reliable elsewhere. There are probably at least 30 brands sold in Los Angles. Most come from Thailand and the Philippines but Vietnamese is becoming more common. Some Thai sauces are "Vietnamese style" and have Vietnamese lettering along with Thai. This is said to indicate they are slightly lighter and less salty than normal Thai practice. Philippine fish sauces are considered heavier and undesirable for Thai and Vietnamese cooking. They are generally made from a number of different fish rather than just anchovies, harking back to the Roman practice of using a single fish species for the top grades and just about any fish for the lower grades. Here are a few notable brands. Red Boat 40°N: This is a newcomer (2015), heavily marketed as a super-premium Vietnamese fish sauce.

It is sold by Trader Joe's and other high end markets at a super-premium price - 2016 US $4.49 for 8.45 ounces ($0.53 / ounce) at Trader Joe's, and the same price at the large Asian market where I buy most of my fish sauces, but higher at Sur le Table and Whole Foods. Vietnamese fish sauces are supposed to be lighter and less salty than Thai brands, but Red Boat is noticeably darker, stronger and saltier than any Thai fish sauce I have on hand, and tastes to me a little harsh. Comparing to Golden Shell and Newtown (see below), I seriously question if this sauce is actually suitable for Vietnamese cuisine. I also question how a tiny "family secret" can go into huge volume production almost overnight. Nonetheless, it is seriously challenging Three Crabs as darling of the foodie set. Megachef: Another newcomer (2015), a super-premium 30°N Thai fish sauce developed by the people who make Squid brand. It sells in Los Angeles for a reasonable price, 2016 US $2.95 for 23.6 ounces ($0.13 / ounce).

In my opinion it is smoother and less harsh than Red Boat, and light enough for Vietnamese cuisine as well as Thai. I have recently been using this sauce in dips and other places where the fish sauce itself is emphasized. Tra Chang: (Scale) A top premium brand from Thailand, considered one of the very best by experienced Thai cooks. Not the easiest to find here in Los Angeles. I will comment more when I find some. Golden Boy: Another Thai premium brand that's highly recommended but experienced cooks, but a little hard to find here in Los Angeles. Squid: This is a well regarded premium brand from Thailand that is very available. I have used this product for years, as it's widely accepted by Thai cooks, available, and attractively priced: 2016 US $0.06 / ounce at the Asian markets (or an incredible $0.44 / ounce plus shipping from Amazon). The only real downside is that the thoroughly American label lacks exotic mystique. It's a shaker bottle, very inconvenient for me, so I run the point of a small knife around the plastic restriction to remove it. Tiparos: A widely available fish sauce by one of Thailand's leading food companies.

It's put up in cheap seeming plastic bottles, but is considered a very good fish sauce. It's a big seller in Thailand and its "trade dress" is widely imitated by knock-offs. Tiparos is very modestly priced at 2016 US $06 per ounce. Golden Shell: This premium Vietnamese fish sauce is "100% pure first press extra virgin", made from Anchovies and Salt, no other ingredients. It is a lot lighter and less salty than Red Boat, but Vietnamese fish sauces are supposed to be lighter and less salty than Thai. It costs 2016 US $0.12 per ounce at an Asian market in Los Angeles (San Gabriel), vs $0.53 for Red Boat. Newtown: This premium Vietnamese fish sauce is "100% fresh first native extraction", made from Anchovies and Salt, no other ingredients. It is a lot lighter and less salty than Red Boat, but Vietnamese fish sauces are supposed to be lighter and less salty than Thai. It costs 2016 US $0.09 per ounce at an Asian market in Los Angeles (San Gabriel), vs $0.53 for Red Boat.

Thai Kitchen: This fish sauce is put up in small bottles at a high price, and is not considered in the top ranks - but it may be the only fish sauce available in some regions. Thai Kitchen is an American brand that's been well marketed and is carried by many grocery chains. The 7 ounce bottle in the photo above cost more than the liter of Squid, a better fish sauce. Three Crabs This one has had a cult following in North America for having been recommended by some TV chef or other. Part of its appeal is doubtless the exotic Asian label, but its flavor is quite decent. Among actual Asian cooks, it is more favored by Vietnamese than Thai, and it is recommended by Korean cooking maven Mangchi. On the other hand, it says "Product of Thailand" and "Processed in Hong Kong", and it contains fructose and "hydrolized wheat protein" (a "concealment name" for Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)). All this indicates the possibility it is manufactured by chemical hydrolysis rather than natural digestion. In any case, it's kind of hard to fully trust anything "processed" in the land of lead and melamine.

The manufacturer has several other brands (Flying Fish, Flying Lion, etc.) with similar fine print on the label. The price is above average at 2016 US $0.14 per ounce in the Asian markets. Rufina Patis A typical Philippine fish sauce made from various scads, herring, sardines, mackerels, water, salt and Sodium Benzoate added as a preservative. Vegetarian Fish Sauce: These come from Vietnam, which has a stricter form of Buddhism than Thailand. They are not easy to find in Southern California, which is just as well, because the ones I've sampled were truly awful. If you don't need a clear sauce, use Yellow Bean Sauce (Healthy Boy is good), and if you need clear, just use salt, or perhaps soy sauce. I would like to point to a comparison of 13 fish sauces on a Web site named "Our Daily Brine". There were only two tasters, neither with any Asian credentials, nearly all their comparisons were straight from the bottle, and their results are very much at odds with expert Thai and Vietnamese cooks.

They placed Red Boat at the top, and brands preferred by highly experienced Asian cooks (Golden Boy, Squid and Three Crabs) at the bottom. I suggest this review be disregarded. England - Worcestershire Sauce This is a blend of ingredients apparently intended to bring Asian flavors to England in a convenient to sell and use bottled form. It appeared about 1830 but several cute stories of its creation are in conflict with each other and with history. All are probably false. Since the first real ingredient after vinegar and sweeteners is "anchovies", actually salt digested anchovies, I'm including it here in the fish sauce category. The current Lee & Perrins ingredient list is: vinegar, molasses, sugar, anchovies, water, hydrolyzed soy and corn protein ("concealment names" for MSG), onions, tamarinds, salt, garlic, cloves, chili peppers, natural flavorings, shallots. Fish sauce, tamarind, chilis and shallots are often used in various combinations with each other in Southeast Asia, though never put up in a single sauce.

Laos - Pla Daek & Pla Som Pla Daek is a pungent fish sauce considered the signature element in the cuisine of Laos and the adjacent northeast corner of Thailand. It is made by fermenting freshwater fish, a number of species being used. Pla Som is a sour version of the sauce. I haven't yet located either in Southern California markets but I haven't looked really hard yet. Bagoong Terong This sauce is very popular in the Philippines, particularly the northern Iloco region. It is pretty much what's left in the bottom of the barrels after the patis fish sauce is drained off. It might be similar to the Roman allec but we're not sure. It may be ground smooth or it may have whole anchovies in it as the photo specimen does. Monamon Dilis is made from anchovies but Bagoong Terong is made from a fish called "bonnet mouth fish". This sauce is very strong, extremely salty and the smell is way stronger and fishier than regular fish sauce. Now we're definitely getting into that "acquired taste" space.

Vietnam - Mam Nem | Thailand - Naam Pla Raa This very pungent sauce made with anchovies and salt similarly to regular fish sauce, except it still has ground up anchovies in it. It may be similar to the Roman allec , we don't know for sure. It is very common here in Southern California in small but tall 7 ounce bottles under the name Mam Nem. I haven't seen it under the Thai name (which may be variously spelled). For recipes be sure to check the label for sugar - there should be none. The sugared ones are table condiments. This sauce is most widely used with pineapple and other ingredients to make the popular Mam Nem Dipping Sauce (recipe). Worcestershire Sauce recipe | The Taste of Aussie The Taste of Aussie Bringing the best recipes to you Search for: The Cook Leave a comment Worcestershire sauce, usually shortened to Worcester sauce, is a fermented liquid condiment. It is often an ingredient in Welsh Rarebit , Caesar Salad , Oysters Kilpatrick , and sometimes added to Chilli Con Carne , Beef Stew , Hamburgers , and other Beef Dishes . Worcestershire sauce is also used to flavour cocktails such as a Bloody Mary or Caesar .

Known as salsa Inglesa (English sauce) in Spanish, it is also an ingredient in Michelada, the Mexican beer cocktail. Worcestershire sauce is made with anchovy and therefore may not be suitable for special diets. History of Worcestershire Sauce A fermented fish sauce called garum was a staple of Greco-Roman cuisine and of the Mediterranean economy of the Roman Empire, as the first-century encyclopaedist, Pliny the Elder writes in Historia Naturalis and the fourth/fifth-century Roman culinary text Apicius includes garum in its recipes. The use of similar fermented anchovy sauces in Europe can be traced back to the 17th century. The Lea & Perrins brand was commercialised in 1837 and has continued to be the leading global brand of Worcestershire sauce. Lea & Perrins Lea & Perrins Origin The origin of the Lea & Perrins recipe is unclear. The packaging originally stated that the sauce came “from the recipe of a nobleman in the county”.

The company has also claimed that “Lord Marcus Sandys, ex-Governor of Bengal” encountered it while in India under the East India Company in the 1830s, and commissioned the local apothecaries to recreate it. However, author Brian Keogh concluded in his privately published history of the Lea & Perrins firm on the 100th anniversary of the Midland Road plant, that “No Lord Sandys was ever governor of Bengal, or as far as any records show, ever in India.” “Lord Marcus Sandys” may refer to Arthur Moyses William Sandys, 2nd Baron Sandys (1792–1860) of Ombersley Court, Worcestershire, who was a Lieutenant-General a member of the House of Commons at the time of the legend. The first name may be a confusion of his brother and heir, Arthur Marcus Cecil Sandys, 3rd Baron Sandys (1798–1863), although he did not succeed to the title until 1860, when the sauce was already established on the British market.

The barony in the Sandys family (“sands”) had been revived in 1802 for the second baron’s mother, Mary Sandys Hill, so at the date of the legend, in the 1830s, “Lord” Sandys was actually a Lady. No identifiable reference to her could possibly appear on a commercially bottled sauce without a serious breach of decorum. A version of the story was published by Thomas Smith: We quote the following history of the well-known Worcester sauce, as given in the World. The label shows it is prepared “from the recipe of a nobleman in the county.” The nobleman may be Lord Sandys. Many years ago, Mrs. Grey, author of The Gambler’s Wife and other novels, was on a visit at Ombersley Court, when Lady Sandys chanced to remark that she wished she could get some very good curry powder, which elicited from Mrs. Grey that she had in her desk an excellent recipe, which her uncle, Sir Charles, Chief Justice of India, had brought thence, and given her. Lady Sandys said that there were some clever chemists in Worcester, who perhaps might be able to make up the powder. Messrs.

Lea and Perrins looked at the recipe, doubted if they could procure all the ingredients, but said they would do their best, and in due time forwarded a packet of the powder. Subsequently the happy thought struck someone in the business that the powder might make a good sauce in solution. The profits now amount to thousands of pounds a year. According to historian and Herald for Wales, Major Francis Jones, 1908–1993, the introduction of the recipe can be attributed to Captain Henry Lewis Edwardes 1788–1866. Edwardes, originally of Rhyd-y-gors, Carmarthenshire, was a veteran of the Napoleonic wars and held the position of Deputy-Lieutenant of Carmarthenshire. He is believed to have brought the recipe home after travels in India. The article does not say how the recipe found its way to Messrs Lea and Perrins. Manufacture When the recipe was first mixed at the pharmacy of John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins, the resulting product was so strong that it was considered inedible and the barrel was abandoned in the basement.

Looking to make space in the storage area a few years later, the chemists decided to try it again, discovering that the sauce had fermented and mellowed and was now palatable. In 1838 the first bottles of “Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce” were released to the general public. On October 16, 1897, Lea & Perrins relocated manufacturing of the sauce from their pharmacy to a factory in Aston on Midlands Road where it is still manufactured. The factory produces ready-mixed bottles for domestic distribution and a concentrate for bottling abroad. In 1930, the Lea & Perrins operation was purchased by HP Foods, which was in turn acquired by the Imperial Tobacco Company in 1967. HP was sold to Danone in 1988 and then to Heinz in 2005. Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients The ingredients of a traditional bottle of Worcestershire sauce sold as “The Original & Genuine Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce” are malt vinegar (from barley), spirit vinegar, molasses, sugar, salt, anchovies, tamarind extract, onions, garlic, spice, and flavouring.

The “spice, and flavouring” is believed to include cloves, soy sauce, lemons, pickles and peppers. Special diets Gluten concerns Although many alternative brands are prominently labelled “gluten free”, Lea & Perrins declare that their traditional version is also gluten-free. Distillation of barley malt into vinegar removes gluten peptides that would harm coeliacs. Soy sauce normally includes a wheat base so Lea & Perrins must either be using a gluten-free soy sauce or the “flavourings” do not in fact include soy sauce. Anchovy concerns Many Worcestershire sauces contain anchovies, which is of concern for people with fish allergies and those who choose not to eat fish. The Codex Alimentarius recommends that prepared food containing Worcestershire sauce with anchovies include a label warning of fish content although this is not required in most jurisdictions. The US Department of Agriculture has forced the recall of some products with undeclared Worcestershire sauce (e.g.). Several brands sell anchovy-free varieties of Worcestershire sauce, often labelled as vegetarian or vegan. Orthodox Jews refrain from eating fish and meat in the same dish, so cannot use traditional Worcestershire sauce to flavour meat.

However, certain brands are certified to contain less than 1/60th of the fish product and can be used with meat. Around the world Holbrook’s Worcestershire Sauce In Australia, there are several manufacturers of Worcestershire sauce, including Holbrook’s and Crockershire. In Brazil, Worcestershire sauce is referred to as molho inglês (literally English sauce). The original Lea & Perrins brand is difficult to obtain in Brazil, and so local producers are the primary distributors of the sauce in supermarkets and other food shops, as well as restaurants. In Canada, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce is identical to the standard British version. It is imported from England and has the same bottle. The label is similar to the British version, but modified to include French text. In Denmark, Worcestershire sauce is commonly known as Engelsk Sauce, meaning English sauce. In Indonesia, the name for Worcestershire sauce is kecap inggris meaning “English ‘fermented sauce’ “. In South Africa, Minnies Food Enterprise manufactures Worcester Sauce under its Minnies brand.

Thai Worcestershire Sauce In Thailand, the Lea & Perrins Original Worcestershire sauce on sale is, according to its label, imported from England. In Cantonese cuisine and Hong Kong cuisine, Worcestershire sauce was introduced in the 19th century via Hong Kong and is today used in dim sum items such as steamed beef meatballs and spring rolls. The Cantonese name for this sauce is gip-jap (Chinese: 喼汁; pinyin: jiézhī; Cantonese Yale: gip jāp). It is also used in a variety of Hong Kong-style Chinese and Western dishes. In Shanghai cuisine, the use of Worcestershire sauce spread from European-style restaurants in the 19th and 20th centuries to its use as an ingredient in ubiquitous Eastern European-inspired dishes, such as Shanghai-style borscht, and as a dipping sauce in Western fusion foods, such as Shanghai-style breaded pork cutlets. It is used for Chinese foods such as the shengjian mantou, which are small, pan-fried pork buns.

In Shanghai, Worcestershire sauce is called la jiangyou (Chinese: 辣酱油; pinyin: làjiàngyóu; literally “spicy soy sauce”). As imported Worcestershire sauce became scarce in Shanghai after 1949, a variety of local brands appeared. These are now in turn exported around the world for use in Shanghai-style dishes. Lea & Perrins has in recent years established a plant in Guangdong, China, thus increasing availability of the original variety in China. However, it does not have a dominant market share compared to the native-grown varieties. In Japanese cuisine a thick sauce is manufactured under brand names such as ‘Bulldog’, which reflect its English origins, but this is a brown sauce more similar to HP Sauce rather than any type of Worcestershire Sauce. A thicker variety of the sauce, although labelled Worcester (rather than Worcestershire) in katakana, is commonly known as Tonkatsu Sauce and most often used as a condiment for Tonkatsu (fried, crumbed pork cutlets). Both the dish and the sauce are thought to have derived from English cuisine imported into Japan in the 19th century.

Japanese Worcester sauce (pronounced as Usutā sōsu) is made from purees of fruits and vegetables such as apples and tomatoes, with sugar, salt, spices, starch and caramel. It commonly accompanies western-influenced yōshoku dishes such as the aforementioned tonkatsu and Korokke . Yakisoba sauce, and okonomiyaki sauce are also variants of Worcestershire sauce, often thicker and sweeter than the original. In United States cuisine Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce differs from the British recipe. Its ingredients are listed as: vinegar, molasses, sugar, anchovies, water, onions, salt, garlic, tamarind concentrate, cloves, natural flavourings and chilli pepper extract. The main difference is the use of distilled white vinegar in place of malt vinegar. Nonetheless, the United States version tastes almost the same as the British recipe, although some people claim the US version is slightly sweeter, less spicy, and has less depth. A thicker variety is also sold for the US market. The US version is packaged differently from the British version, coming in a dark bottle with a beige label and wrapped in paper.

Lea & Perrins USA claims this practice is a vestige of shipping practices from the 19th century, when the product was imported from England, as a measure of protection for the bottles. The producer also claims that its Worcestershire sauce is the oldest commercially bottled condiment in the US. For years, the US version contained high fructose corn syrup, but sugar was used to replace this ingredient in early 2011.

Question: Which fish is included in the ingredients of Worcestershire Sauce?
Answer: Anchovies