Stinky sauce undergoes a country makeover

Mr Supawut says the popularity of pla ra fish sauce swelled the past few years when Thai salad menus became signature dishes at some restaurant chains.

Pla ra, a traditional Thai seasoning produced by fermenting fish with rice bran or roasted rice flour and salt in a closed container for at least six months, has been an indispensable ingredient and flavour enhancer for Thais, particularly in the Northeast.

This smelly ingredient may be one of the oldest in Thai history as there are shreds of evidence such as in Du Royaume de Siam by Simon de La Loubère as well as the discovery of clay pots with fossilised fermented fish, indicating pla ra has been around in Isan culture for at least 6,000 years.