Nuoc Mam: Fish Sauce or Wet Dog Sauce?

A colleague and I hit Argyle Street tonight and headed for Cafe Nhu-Hoa. We ordered goi cuon, beef satay, catfish cooked in a clay pot and a shrimp dish. I had brought a bottle of Gruner Veltliner too. Everything was good -- the beef satay was really tender. But I just can't get used to the smell of nuoc mam, which was in the catfish. The smell is really off-putting, like that of a wet dog.

Tonight was only the second time I've had Vietnamese. The first was at Le Lan (French-Vietnamese) and I encountered the exact same dilemma.

Am I alone on this? Will I eventually get used to the smell? My friend didn't notice the aroma, which seemed impossible but leaves me with a little hope.

The first time I experienced it in its raw form was about 15 years ago, when I picked some up to try out a curry recipe. Upon opening the bottle, I strongly considered the possibility that it had gone bad.

Now I happily slurp it down by the spoonful.

If it isn't something you're used to, it's a bit of a shocker at first, but as with most foodstuffs, your palate (or nose) adjusts. I suspect you'll come to love it.

Personally, I find it pretty vile on its own, but combined with an acid, either vinegar, lime or lemon, it's what makes SE Asian food, and is quite good.

Should this get moved to Shopping and Cooking?

I believe this to be true as I think it came out of the Lonely Planet Guide to Viet Nam.

It is forbidden to transport Nuoc Mam on any of the flights of Vietnamese Airways, as they have had serious problems when bottles broke or leaked on planes...

Yes like so many things it stinks, and stinks really good.

You may get used to it, you may not. Some tastes definitely need time to adjust to. For me, it was Marmite. First time I had Marmite, I thought I was going to vomit. Second time, not so bad. Third time, hey, this stuff is good! Now, I'm addicted to it.

So, since I came from the Marmite perspective, fish sauce has never been much of a challenge to me (I absolutely love nuoc mam[/i], and have been known to drink it straight out of the bottle to sate a salt craving.)

All I can say is, keep trying it. If you don't take to it, so what? Plenty of other good food to go around.