The History of Fish Sauce - Garum and Beyond!

[@TastingHistory]

Thank you all for sticking with me for another year! Happy new year to everyone! Use code TASTINGHISTORY50 to get 50% off your first Factor box at bit.ly/3Sjb0KR!

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

You're the Best max! Love your content 😊😊😊😊❤❤❤

[@kariannecrysler640]

I’ve been waiting for this one. Using your garum 😁✌️💗🤘

[@16mopey]

@ tasting history. Have you considered ever covering any meals that can't be made anymore either due to parts being missing or unknown I know you couldn't make them but it would be interesting to hear about them maybe you could even guess as to what the missing parts are

[@ZepHezR]

Congratulations on over 2 million subscribers!

[@graysoncampbell3459]

Of course! Still my favorite KZbin channel. So wholesome!

[@goukeban6197]

Gotta love how far the Garum storyline is going. It may not turn into a running joke like hardtack, but it's making its own chapter in the Tasting History saga.

[@samsanimationcorner3820]

Right! It's a tradition at this point. One of my favorites, too. Would honestly take a 2 hr movie at this point.

[@therongjr]

Every time hardtack (clack clack) makes an appearance, it makes me happy. 😊

[@axelhopfinger533]

It all began with Garum and with Garum it will end! Not too soon, hopefully.

[@meacadwell]

@@therongjr Everytime I see the word 'hardtack', I see and hear him clacking them together from that video. Lol

[@Swindle1984]

He needs a recipe where the two intersect.

[@nathandomier1157]

Max, you have the opportunity to be the first person to ferment locusts in who knows how long. I think you know what you need to do.

[@MrVovansim]

This. When he said "I'm not going to do that", I was like but... But... You must! 😂

[@GermanSausagesAreTheWurst]

Locusts!?! Ewww! Who would want to eat locusts? Cicadas are much more juicy and tasty.

[@leprachaun69]

Im sure Max's butcher has had some strange requests from Max, but locusts might take the cake.

[@GermanSausagesAreTheWurst]

@@leprachaun69 Mmm, locust cake.

[@grutarg2938]

They eat chocolate covered crickets on the Snake Discovery channel.

[@charleston1789]

Who knew I’d be so invested in fermented fish juice! Thanks Max

[@TastingHistory]

My sentiments exactly

[@GracieValenti1]

@@TastingHistory Or "scent-iments" am I right? Happy New Year to you Jose and the kitties!

[@invisiblehearths]

My sediments exactly. 🎣

[@odinfromcentr2]

@@invisiblehearths Well played.

[@morrigankasa570]

​@@TastingHistory Nice Feebas by the way:)

[@champagne.future5248]

It’s so cool that Max knows what ancient Roman cooking tastes like to the point where he can taste a dish and say “ah yes those familiar Roman flavours”

[@SueK2001]

“Garum Yum!” I’m imagining Max’s new line of condiments and sauces. 😂

[@wiederganger1959]

Oh hell yeah! Max, make it happen! *Whips out bank card and gets in line*

[@ttt5020]

Max's Mackerel Garum Yum, order today!

[@odinfromcentr2]

SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY 💵

[@alantremonti1381]

Lol, imagine if Max spearheads the resurgence of fish juice in the "west" loool!

[@mikefarnan931]

I’ll take one of everything!

[@DIRTJS]

I think the reason there are two arabic cook books named "Kitab al-Tabikh" is because that literally translates to "Cook Book" 😅

[@TastingHistory]

Yep. Thoroughly unimaginative. It’s the same in 18th and 19th century England. Half of the cookbooks are called “The book of household management”.

[@ragnkja]

And that’s why most cookbooks until fairly recently are most commonly referred to by their author rather than title.

[@Seattlegal2]

I’m so tempted to make my own Garum but I also don’t want to be known in my family as “the aunt who died by condiment.” 😅

[@clockworkmonsters8590]

Or was killed by her neighbours for making said condiment! XD

[@PhotonBeast]

Think of it as potentially being "the aunt who has a great story to tell"

[@Walkdplankfrank]

I have fish sauce so I can make the recipe😊

[@SingingSealRiana]

At least IT would Not BE boring😅

[@konokiomomuro7632]

If you just want the finished product, buy fish sauce from Asian store.

[@grovile444]

MAX! THANK YOU! For my whole life, my family would serve an appetizer for holidays called, well said as, "spaghetti a leech" that I had no clue what the proper spelling or origin was. It was made with a small tin of anchovies, sliced garlic, and pepper flakes fried together for a minute before being tossed in pasta. That brief mention of colatura di alici cleared everything right up, and now I know where it came from! Even the smallest details you put into your videos are important and appreciated, so thank you again.

[@jcortese3300]

Regarding fermented fish, you can find them in North America, too. Indigenous Americans from way north, Alaska and thereabouts, will make something called -- I am not joking -- stink heads. You take the heads of fish, bury them at the water's edge, leave them there for a while, then come back and eat them. It's not that popular with younger people anymore, but the elders still like it, so it still gets made. (When grandma wants her stinky fish heads, she gets her stinky fish heads.) Actually, indigenous foods from that area might be kind of interesting. A decent amount of that cuisine has survived -- agudaq is an interesting thing to try as well. It's not dissimilar to other European sweet-savory things where you take fat, fruit, and animal of some kinds and combine them. In England, it was suet, currants, and beef. In Alaska or Canada, it was blubber, berries, and fish. (A lot of times nowdays, people replace the blubber with crisco.)

[@2degucitas]

Are they buried in soil, ice or in a jar?

[@lenabreijer1311]

Also "fermented walrus" in the far north. The government has been trying to develop a cheap and easy botulism test kit.

[@jcortese3300]

@@2degucitas Soil -- a hole in the ground lined with grass. People do it in jars, but they end up at the ER. Apparently, it's easy to do it wrong.

[@2degucitas]

@@jcortese3300 Interesting. How did they prevent animals digging it up?

[@leannsmarie]

And that reminded me of a song from the 1980's. "Fish Heads" by Barnes & Barnes. It's on KZbin if anyone cares to look it up. That's what I get for listening to the Dr. Demento Show as a teen.

[@gigiroelant7299]

Your book= Christmas win. My mum is a history professor and a wonderful cook, my dad loves experimenting with food in the kitchen. Dad's hasn't arrived yet, but Mum loves the book. Spent half of Christmas morning reciting excerpts from various pages. 🎉

[@AC-ni4gt]

She is a very dedicated reader. I love her enthusiasm. A beautiful thing.

[@sumlem]

That's so sweet!

[@gab.lab.martins]

Tip that probably wasn't done in the original recipe, but will make it better: after mashing the pears, strain and squeeze them dry in a cheesecloth, collecting the liquid into a saucepan. Then reduce the liquid into a syrup, and add it back into the mash. That prevents it from being too watery, while still keeping the flavour.

[@mushroomsamba82]

I'm picturing Max with various containers of fermenting fish in his backyard and the neighbors complaining daily 😅

[@odinfromcentr2]

Would they still be complaining if they each got some of the finished product? 🤔

[@highviewbarbell]

​@@odinfromcentr2yes. Keep garum factory far from people 😅

[@beckstheimpatient4135]

Honestly, he could become the US's prime manufacturer of garum varieties with all the research he's done.

[@revilogo]

US still bans unpasteurised cheese, doubtful FDA will ever allow garum to go to market 😂

[@LupeFenrir]

I tried making this for new years eve and it turned out really good! I used an Asian fish sauce (1½ tsp, 60% salt, anchovies) and couldn't really taste it in the final dish. I don't have the most refined taste-buds but maybe it added something, I would have to make it again with just salt or something else to know the difference. Due to a mistake, the only pepper I had available was a pepper mix with what I believe was black, white, green and rosé peppers. It worked surprisingly well. The pears where boiled in some cheap white box wine, and the sweet desert wine added was called Sauternes. The wines where provided by a family member so I don't know much about them. I served it with some whipped cream and everyone liked it. In conclusion; It was tasty, I learned a lot, and I would love to make it again. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[@ninabritschgi]

omg sauternes is a really nice dessert wine! It's my favorite, I think it gets it's flavor from a fungus (a good mold), and some of them can get quite expensive. Santé!

[@Sriram-ve4ge]

Long pepper in Tamil is called Thippili/pippali(this is where the word pepper comes from) which was used to make Thirikadugam - a mixture of long pepper, regular pepper, and dry ginger thought to cure all kinds of ailments. The Tamil cuisine uses pepper and dry ginger a lot and when you mentioned long pepper I realized that India, despite being the land of origin of long pepper uses very little of it nowadays. On a side note, the Mulligatawny soup which is popular in the West is actually Milagu(pepper) thanni(water) popularly known as Rasam. Today we make Rasam with regular pepper, garlic, and cumin. I wonder how it would taste if I substituted long pepper with regular pepper. Max, I wish you make a video on this.

[@2degucitas]

Yes! Please Max do this!

[@Sriram-ve4ge]

@@2degucitas you like Indian food?

[@telebubba5527]

I have it in my cupboard. It does have a kind of medicinal aftertaste to me. It depends on the dish I make which kind of pepper I use. Tellicherry pepper is also a favorite of mine.

[@2degucitas]

@@Sriram-ve4ge Yes! Very much! When I lived in West Africa a very nice Bangladeshi woman married to a German showed me how she made her curries. Very fond memories.

[@MrGksarathy]

Yeah, I grew up on rasam, but since I'm from a Brahmin family, no garlic whatsoever. Also, yeah we don't really use long pepper these days, do we? Even traditional wedding food pretty much only uses black pepper.

[@skyllalafey]

"Someone just had to be brave enough to taste it" is probably a big part of the origin story of a lot of foods 😆

[@kathy5483]

Super brave in fact! So many foods can kill you or make you sick.

[@marshawargo7238]

My sister said a lot! "I wonder who the First person to say, after smelling a strawberry, I wonder how this tastes?" I don't think they smell bad, I would have tried it after smelling. However Mushrooms are another story! I love them but where you get them & how they smell even how they feel! Would have made me leary of them! 😢Sadly if nobody had ever researched them, I would never have known how good they are!

[@juliegolick]

@@marshawargo7238I imagine the knowledge of which mushrooms are good or not was the sort of deep history that's passed down through the generations, perhaps even from before we were evolved humans. Somewhere along the lines, some monkeys ate bad mushrooms and died, and the rest of the monkeys realized "don't eat that one!" And so it goes, down through history, that people *would* try them, and *would* die, and then everyone else would know, "not that one!"

[@metachirality]

A lot of delicacies have their origins in famines or as food for the poor

[@chriswilson7211]

Oysters, for sure...

[@kariannecrysler640]

Please do plan for the pear garum! I’m completely curious about how it will turn out and what uses you can find for it.

[@sassanada]

Yes! It sounds like one I could actually see myself making - but I’d like to see Max do it first. 😂

[@1jugglethis]

​@@sassanadaVery curious about this, as well, as the amount of salt would seem to prevent spontaneous yeast/bacterial fermentation, unlike the digestive enzymes responsible for true Garum.

[@sarahwatts7152]

Heck yes, I definitely want to know what I could be in for

[@AngelavengerL]

Yes, I'd love to see this!

[@themushroominside6540]

In vietnamese vegan cooking, pinapple is traditionally used to make an extremely convincing fish sauce, it legit tastes the exact same as fish sauce and is used in all "chay" versions of dishes though most people simply use soy sauce. I am certain you can get a similar taste using pears instead if you follow the recipe, it also reminds me of pear kimchi, a less spicy but more sweet kimchi made for kids.

[@advertiserfriendlyusername5362]

Paige: "Everything's a condiment, if you're brave enough!" Everyone: "PAIGE, NO!!!"

[@inisipisTV]

"Remember, you can eat anything at least once!"😅

[@2degucitas]

I live in a grass hut. WHO Is Paige?

[@ProvostZarakov]

​@@2degucitas I think it's a reference to Pat's wife from the super best friends

[@christaverduren690]

@@ProvostZarakov I googled it (I don't live in a grass hut, but I'm older Gen X LOL same thing pretty much haha) what a rabbit hole that was! Only to get to the end and see it ended in 2018.........uff!

[@ProvostZarakov]

@christaverduren690 they each have their own channels honestly it's good they ended things that way rather than the usual blowout

[@marktroiani5401]

I bought your book for my sister for Christmas. We are doing an entire meal from the different recipes. It will be epic. Thank you Max and Jose and of course the cats. We love you.

[@TastingHistory]

Hope she enjoys it! And hope you enjoy the meal.

[@Kremit_the_Forg]

Whenever I think about "HOW on earth did anybody see THAT and thought: I'm gonna taste that!" I remind myself that people are all children at heart and somebody at some point looked at this abomination of fish sludge they propably had forgotten, looked at his friend and went like "5 Schmeckles if you taste it!"

[@brucelee3388]

'Hold my beer, Enkidu'......'I've been talking to the Gods and they say its OK'

[@SA-xf1eb]

​@brucelee3388. 😂

[@WobblesandBean]

I'm convinced that is exactly how stinky tofu and bearded tofu came to be.

[@DoomedPaladin]

Pear garum would be cool, but locust garum would be _fascinating._ I'd love to see some insect-based cuisine in general too.

[@Pyxis10]

I second this. DO IT MAX! DOOOOOO IT.

[@Kabup2]

Oh no, please

[@Cara-380]

​@@Kabup2 I'm actually surprised Max hasn't dragged us up this scary path already!

[@octaviasandridge2955]

My bf gifted me the Tasting History SIGNED cookbook and I went completely fan girl screaming "I GOT THAT MAX MILLER!!!!!!" I'll tumble for ya Max! Never stop doing what you do boo!

[@ohariana3150]

Ancient Roman recipes making Max guess almost everything is still one of the best parts about this channel 🥚🐠🇻🇦

[@mypal1990]

Garum is gonna be in the next line of Tasting History merch down the line.

[@odinfromcentr2]

DOO EET MAX

[@scorpioninpink]

Hopefully.

[@poweredbymoonlight9869]

I suggest "Oh My Garum!" as instead of "Oh My God".

[@romulus7412]

the FDA is gonna have a field day with that one

[@scaper8]

​@romulus7412 Eh, if it's made in food safe facilities under food safe practices, it actually wouldn't be a problem. Some East Asian style fish sauces are made in the United States and none of the East Asian, Italian, nor Spanish ones made outside the U.S. have much trouble being imported and sold.

[@katescaringcorner6765]

I got your cookbook when it first came out. My nephew has lived with me to go to nursing school and worked through Covid on a Covid unit of our hospital here. He suffered PTSD from all that happened when he donned the PAPR and had to transfer to the cancer unit to heal. I wanted to get something really special for him. He absolutely loves that I got your cookbook for him. He is thrilled. Of course, we will have to wait to make something in it as he is leaving for a week to visit his boyfriend. I have waited a long time to cook from the book. He told me that I can test something while he is away. ❤ Thank you so much for all you do. We enjoy your videos so much. 🤗

[@Firegen1]

A full journey of taste From piscatorial to saccharine A condiment embraced By all wide channel fandom A peared dish for dinner With Garum used for finesse The central theme is innovation History's greatest test

[@Grak70]

I love the meter you used for this.

[@2degucitas]

Thank you, Thoreau.

[@Firegen1]

​@@2degucitasI'll take it. Walden is great!

[@cg9952]

I once had neighbors that made their own Vietnamese fish sauce. I would leave town for the day. Or two.

[@ragnkja]

Didn’t want to be around the day they strained it?

[@AnniCarlsson]

As a swedish person that have eaten fermented herring or had neibors eat it not sure why soy or garum would smell alot worse

[@kelseyjaffer]

i bet it tasted AMAZING though!

[@juniebaricua7026]

If this garum smells anything like the "patis" we have here in the Philippines, be careful using it and not get them on your clothes. For as the joke here goes: you'd smell like pussy all day.

[@oldschoolzone5711]

Locusts are the only bug considered Kosher, considering the originating region and the different civilizations known to have done the same. It seems pretty safe to say that the ingredients have a long and convoluted history. Very thought provoking, excellent. Thank you Both

[@anishgupta1719]

Hi Max, you may already be aware of this but you mentioned the wierd coincidence of the two Kitab al Tabikhs centuries apart somewhere around 12 minutes in and I got curious because Kitab itself means book in Arabic. So I did a very cursory google search and found that Tabikh itself can translate from arabic to cusine or cooking. Given that I think it might be likely that they both could share the same name Kitab al Tabikh because they are both "Books of Cooking". Hope you have a nice day!

[@neskey]

for context. "kitab al tabikh" literally translates to "book of (for the) cooking", most books of the era had similar descriptive names, as written works were, generally speaking, known more by their author's name.

[@glaciergardner1505]

You definitely should make grasshopper garum. The NOMA fermentation guide has a recipe for grasshopper garum. Apparently it’s pretty good. I definitely want to try it.

[@mariedavis3888]

NOMA Fermentation is an Excellent text!

[@FrikInCasualMode]

Honey and fish sauce - surefire way to recognize a Roman dish.

[@KINMANPUMP]

My father was making this one time and didn’t tell me, and I was home for the holidays. Went out for a cigarette in the backyard and knocked the damn thing over. I could smell it on me for weeks

[@alfiocaldelari9930]

Max, in regards to Passum, there‘s actually a sweet wine in Italy called Passito. The most famous one in my opinion is Passito di Pantelleria. Now I can‘t be sure, but Passito probably comes from Passum in Latin. Anyways… it‘s a very sweet wine, especially drank with desserts.

[@lellab.8179]

That's exactly what I thought, because any "passito" wine is made from naturally or forcedly (obviously not fully) dehydrated grapes (uva passa/passita). Vinsanto is, actually, a "vino passito".

[@alfiocaldelari9930]

@@lellab.8179 I think that you are right, Lella. Thank you!

[@sparagnino]

Passito di Pantelleria, Vinsanto, Moscato Passito, Zibibbo, Erice Passito, Malvasia Passito, Amarone, Sciacchetrà.. you can find a passito in almost every region but most of them are from Sicily

[@MerihemXx]

I always thought that Garum looked and sounded a bit like Worcestershire sauce. I use Worcestershire in a lot of my cooking, but I do a lot of the American and English stuff that we're all used to.

[@PhotonBeast]

It has a few more add-ons but Worcestershire sause is a fish sause and a descendant of garum!

[@vanguardiris3232]

Worcestershire sauce is to garum as a greyhound is to a wolf

[@cannett8966]

Blessings to dear Jose who worked in the garden with fermenting fish. He is a wonder! Cee from the little haunted cottage in ireland 💚💚💚🍀🍀🍀🎄

[@KarynHill]

When I was a kid, I had wondered what crazy person thought up the recipe for Worcestershire sauce. I only heard of garum when I was close to 30 so finding out how old it actually is, I'm vaguely comforted by the thought it was created by people far closer to our origins. Someone had to be the first to try everything we eat and all of the spices we use so yeah, fermented fish oil doesn't seem like such a stretch!

[@2degucitas]

I think fish sauce is the natural result of salting fish stored in a jar instead of air drying. So many cultures discovered it independently. Worcestershire sauce is an English version of the tasty chutneys coming from India as is HP sauce. You probably already knew this.

[@inisipisTV]

Legend has it, the Lord of Worcestershire brought a sauce recipe from the SE Asia and asked 2 local Chemists Lea and Perrin to recreate it. The batch that they made tasted awful, so they hid the barrel in the cellar and forgot about it, until a few years later they saw the barrel again and after tasting it again, it tasted great. Personally, I find the story more quaint than real. At that time in the 19th century, practically all academics and cooks, and obviously chemists, know the science behind Fermentation and the chemical reaction of breaking Amino-acid/Proteins from food would convert into Glutamates, to bring forth Fermented food like cured meats, wines and cheese their stronger and refined taste. Most likely, they tried many recipes. Fermented multiple batches with records of precise measurements of ingredients. Then selected the best tasting one and then Lea and Perrin marketed it with that fanciful story later when it became a big hit.

[@telebubba5527]

@@2degucitas Indian chutneys are a whole different thing. They look in no way even closely similar. Chutneys don't need to be fermented and contains sugar, which makes it sweeter. Worcestershire sauce does need to ferment and contains fish (anchovies). It is also much saltier. Therefore, it is a replacement of fish sauce and not chutney.

[@2degucitas]

@@telebubba5527 I thought I'd get that response, understandably. The English liked chutney, but wanted a sauce, they were accustomed to them. So they were inspired by chutney's flavors in making these sauces. A thin Worcestershire sauce and a thicker HP sauce for steaks, etc.

[@maddieb.4282]

@@2degucitasif you knew you’d get that response then you must have known that your original comment isn’t clear enough

[@NancyHuntington-zj9op]

I will never cease to be amazed by how you FLAWLESSLY go from American English to absolutely any language/culture pronunciation of any word/phrase without even taking a breath. And multiple cultures in one video!! Absolutely incredible, I will never tire of it. You are a Master.

[@chadreese9501]

A truly magical Christmas gift! Thank you Max and Jose!

[@paulahillier1390]

I had a very 😊Merry Christmas because I got TWO copies of your book. I will pass one on to another fan. Happy New Year to you and Jose!🎉😊

[@TastingHistory]

Two! Happy new year!

[@cathoderaytube7497]

The descriptions of garum remind me of a fermented shrimp paste that would come with the dishes at a Filipino restaurant I sometimes go to. I looked it up and it's called baloong alamang. The first time I smelled it, the odor turned me off and I didn't use it in the dish. But when I tried it mixed in, boy what a game changer😋. Now I want to go back to that restaurant just for that shrimp paste.

[@ElijsDima]

Hey Max. On the closing note, about "ancient roman flavours"... perhaps you could do a dedicated video on putting together a (representative) "ancient roman spice mix", "ancient greek spice mix" and suchlike.

[@takeagalbythehand]

Filipina here! I was so happy to hear patis mentioned as I've been thinking that it was our version of garum! Thanks for the shoutout, Max! I also got your book for Christmas and it's such a wonderful read. ❤ Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm and hard work with us. Wishing you the happiest of holidays! 🍰

[@Wavygravydressedinnavy]

Santa brought me your book for Christmas, Max, so I’m enjoying browsing through it this afternoon!

[@TastingHistory]

Yay! Hope you enjoy it!

[@Wavygravydressedinnavy]

@@TastingHistory it’s excellent thanks! 👌🏻 Hope you’re having a wonderful Christmas.

[@bethwhitmore-stolar5820]

The look of sadness and regret when talking about the jellyfish dish 😅

[@casondrastinson8525]

I just bought colatura di alici in livorno, modern day garum! I'm going to try it tonight with some market fish & produce - I'm so excited!

[@lellyt2372]

Sounds like perhaps a bit of mild cheese in this might be a nice addition but only if you are not interested in a pure ancient Roman taste profile. I cannot tell you how much your videos inspire me and wake up my imagination. They also make me feel comforted, like a bowl of my favourite comfort food on a winter's evening. Thank you Max and happy New Year to you and yours

[@intractablemaskvpmGy]

The circle is now complete. Max's first garum video earned my sub when it came out. Been watching ever since. I expect more garum-themed recipes in the future!

[@alliewhitlock621]

The murri reminds me of the "hooch" I get on my sourdough starter when I haven't fed it yet.

[@AngelavengerL]

That looks so good. I love pears. I never get tired of the Roman and Greek history episodes. It was interesting though how this one actually took us all over the world. Great job Max!

[@daveratledge]

Man.. I love your content. The work and imagination that you put into your KZbin is phenomenal. I'm a history freak so to me this is fantastic. Food connects all people's. Your channel connects all people to history. Kudos to you.

[@invisiblehearths]

Ooo, I've been interested in trying this recipe! Thanks for the continuing adventures of garum--you inspire us all.

[@mamero8140]

Thank you for all your amazing videos this year, Max! I gifted your cookbook to my dad for Christmas and he loves it! It's so much more than a cookbook, I love reading through it with him.

[@JustinAlexander1976]

There are actually companies you can source grasshoppers (and other dietary insects) from. And they'd probably even sponsor you. I've had grashoppers, they were fried; they look awful but basically taste like extra extra crispy french fries.

[@jenl2530]

Happy New Year, Max! Yes on the pear garum. Your vegetarian audience (me+) will love it.

[@Zelmel]

I'd love to see a mushroom ketchup episode, possibly with a cameo by Jon Townsend, which could have some similarities to this!

[@annteather2826]

So would I

[@ThinWhiteAxe]

Hope you and Jose and the kitties had a good Christmas❤

[@HayTatsuko]

Red Boat 40°N fish sauce became a permanent fixture in my cooking arsenal a year or so ago. I'm so happy that it's available at Walmart, of all places, for a fairly reasonable price. It's been fascinating watching your exploration (and creation!) of Roman fish sauces and I'm glad you expanded that journey to include the rest of Eurasia. Thanks for putting in all the work you do to make this one of the most consistently fun, informative, and engaging food channels on the Tubes.

[@JesseNenninger]

I bought some Garum for my mom for X-mas, so the timing on this could not be better! Thanks Max!

[@ozza4496]

12:26 That's because "Kitab At-tabkh" simply translates to "cookbook"

[@nathanielgreer2764]

I toured the Pompeii exhibit at The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago and they had an excavated mosaic advertising Garum.

[@DankBurrito420]

Hey Max! Just wanted to say, I've been watching your channel since 2020. Almost 4 years of watching! I absolutely love the history lessons with each episode. It's so refreshing to find entertaining and educational content these days. You fully captivate my interest every time I watch your videos. Thanks for all you do. I hope you and Jose have a great New Year!

[@billthorne1]

Thanks, Max. And a Happy New Year to you and Jose! We hope there'll be new episodes of Ketchup with Max and Jose in 2024. It's been too long since we've seen Jose...

[@jessecunningham9924]

Fantastic video, as always. Also, major props to you Max for all the foreign pronunciations in this video. It’s obvious you worked very hard not only on research, but finding out the proper pronunciations of a food items in a half dozen different languages. This type of effort and quality is why we all love you 😃.

[@christaverduren690]

If the person who "thought up" garum is like me, it just sat in the back of the pantry as they suffered the guilt of food wasting away but couldn't bring themselves to throw it away and serendipity struck and poof, fish sauce! The guilt was assuaged and they went on to feel guilty about something else...

[@nahnnan1265]

As someone from Southeast Asia, I’m so fascinated by the history of the fish sauce I eat almost every day.

[@TheFall777]

I'd imagine garum to be something similar to my local shrimp paste, it is not about the taste but the smell. it conquers like a raging ocean against the shore.

[@2degucitas]

Where do you live and how is shrimp paste used?

[@TheFall777]

@@2degucitas asia. its used as a condiment to asian style pan-fried meat or vegie dishes. Hong Kong is famous for it but frankly I did not acquire that taste at all. it was used in HK restaurant haute cuisine widely. but i do not know if people still like it nowadays.

[@lenabreijer1311]

I loved cooking with Indonesia shrimp paste to make peanut sauces. Very pungent but works so well. Unfortunately I now live with people who are allergic to both peanuts and shellfish.

[@TheFall777]

@@lenabreijer1311 ty for letting me know. i will see if i could find a way to adapt to that taste.

[@lenabreijer1311]

@@TheFall777 like garum it is a background umani flavour. You use only a tiny bit. The overall flavour is peanut and chilli with this hint of darkness? Homemade peanut sauce is so much nicer then the bottled variety. You can control the heat for different applications and people.

[@willmanning1215]

Hope everyone watching this had a Very Merry Christmas and have a blessed New Year.

[@furiousdestroyer2.050]

Hey Max my mom just got my your cookbook and it’s actually my first “celebrity” cookbook. I can’t wait to start making stuff!!!

[@rachaelpoulin1997]

Got your cookbook AND Covid from my dad for Christmas this year, but looking over the recipes and reading your research will cheer me up as always!

[@LindaB651]

Would absolutely love to see a pear garum project!

[@ArliQuinn]

Yes!! First work break and I get a treat from my fav channel!

[@zukeboy11yeet]

I don’t know why but I am obsessed with this ancient Roman fish sauce

[@JemilMarcosTyC]

Master Miller does it again! This channel is gold!

[@TastingHistory]

Thank you! 😊

[@Blondie42]

Thanks for another great video. Happy holidays to you and Jose

[@fraserwrobb3075]

Thank you for your fun and interesting videos. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

[@FlaviusJuliusItalicus-vb5gx]

Not sure it's the right niche but if anyone's interested in Roman military food including garum occasionally used I strongly recommend Schwerpunkt's videos series

[@napoleonfeanor]

He's a bit long winded

[@nikkiewhite476]

Wonderful video Max and thank you for the captions José! I am allergic to boney fish so I can't have any sort of fish sauce 😢. I did notice this recipe when I read your cookbook. It is one I want to try once i figure out a replacement for the garum. I might just add salt and MSG to try to mimic it. I hope you and your families had a fantastic Christmas and be safe new years eve!

[@Feuerhamster]

So the ultimate Tasting History meal would be hardtack with garum.

[@supergeek1418]

Another excellent video. Thank you. Thank you *AND* Happy New Year!

[@TastingHistory]

Happy new year!

[@markjuckenburg6006]

Babe wake up! There’s a new tasting history episode!

[@Courier1018]

We love fish paste here in the Philippines. I remember my grandmother teaching me how to eat silog by breaking the yolk on top of the rice and adding a few splashes of the fish sauce to mix. And it was way better than I thought it would be, the umami and saltiness adding to the creaminess and richness of the yolk.

[@williamrobinson7435]

Excellent! I'm wondering if there may be a syntactic link between the word 'garum' and 'garam' as in 'garam masala' in that here 'garam' means 'mix(ed)', as in 'mix of spices'.. This would be corroborated by the fact that garum can be made using a variety of different ingredients, even not including fish.. A v interesting recipe; Nice one Max! 🎄⭐👍

[@betodax]

One of your best episodes Max! Fascinating research and a very interesting choice of recipe. Will definitely try it!

[@fegato2]

One one the closest things you can find to passum wine is italian "passito", a popular dessert wine made with overly ripe grapes. It's very sweet and aromatic

[@zenjubo9884]

Hey Max, I just wanted to thank you for all the interesting videos. I got your cookbook for Christmas and just wanted to thank you for the recipes and getting me to like history a little more than before. Keep it up

[@brycetheviewer9986]

yeeey❤ love me some stories from Max❤❤ every episode is a small holiday for me really thank you man for what you're doing✊🏿

[@yourfavoriteflavor]

Max, I find myself binging your videos during the holidays. Thanks for all the work you do. Happy New Year to you and yours!

[@MrWordcat]

I LOVE long pepper because it does have that lovely floral note to it and is way more complex than pondicherry pepper. Problem is, A: I'm out.B: is really fracken expensive. And C: the last time i used it, i ground it in my mortar and the BAREST of dust got into my eye and undereye and it BURNED!!! BURNED LIKE THE FIRES OF HELL, I TELL YOU! So now I'm scared to use it ever again. *scene*

[@PhotonBeast]

Here lies MrWordCat. They died as they lived - cooking with peppers.

[@MrWordcat]

@@PhotonBeast died again because that reply was so perfect. 💀💀💀

[@slwrabbits]

Goggles, my friend. Proper defensive measures and you can enjoy it again!

[@MrWordcat]

@@slwrabbits haha that's not a bad idea! I know I've got my old chemistry goggles around here somewhere...

[@mecahhannah]

Awesome as always thanks hope everyone had a good Christmas

[@Nixx0912]

Acctualy out of weird places to buy long pepper I got it on Yggdrasil festival in Lyon, among things concerning the fantastic themes like Harry Potter wands, light sabers or dices for RP games you can find some discent amount of food items like honey and spices. I brought three kinds of pepper and honey from that particular stand.

[@klila16]

I’ve been following the Garum saga for years now. I have no idea why I’m so fascinated by it. But keep making these they are great!

[@aymericvanderschueren5246]

Very interesting and well presented, as always !

[@Legacies15]

I love how informational this and the other videos on the channel are, between both the cooking notes and the historical aspects. This sounds like an interesting dish to try

[@coconutcore]

Petition for locust garum!

[@GwydionAE]

Was gifted your cookbook for Christmas, and, funny enough, the recipe you make in this was one of those that caught my eye, specifically because the pears and fish sauce combo threw me for a loop, lol. Nice to see it covered here! Sounds just weird enough we might have to give it a try!

[@yinthe32]

This episode made me wonder about the origin of "ketjap", a sauce easily available in the Netherlands. Its name is similar to what you descibed when talking about how fish sauces from Asia inspired ketchup. Ketjap for me is associated with Indonesian food, or rather, the Dutch version of it... Interesting!

[@PhotonBeast]

From what I can quickly find, it is either directly of or descended from a similairly named sauce from Indonesia!

[@michaellyndon6982]

Ketjap actually evolved into Tomato ketchup in the English speaking world (which called it ketchup). It used to be made with fish, but tomatoes were cheaper.

[@2degucitas]

Seeing how you Dutch were world traders in the 1700's and 1800's it probably came back on a ship from the far east. The Dutch were responsible for spreading batik cloth into Africa and the Polynesian islands from buying it in Indonesia. The typical African "muumuu" type top and wrap skirt was a result of missionaries influence in the Hawaiian islands. Since nakedness was frowned upon a simple item call the Mother Hubbard dress was introduced. It was a long dress that had a yoke and long sleeves. A shortened version became the muumuu. This design was probably brought from Polynesia to Africa as finished items traded for goods along with batik fabric. The ketjap was bought and traded on the way back from Indonesia. The Dutch traders really opened up the world.

[@hooraayy]

Ketchup not being Indonesian kecap confused me when i was a child learning english 😆 thank you for this info!

[@helenag.9386]

Max - anchovy has been very popular in the U.K. For decades before Lea and Perrins sauce - 'Gentleman's relish' or patum peperium ' and even Bloater paste - an incredibly salty fish paste my dad used to love. Fishpaste may be a dying breed but you can still get them in supermarkets here in the uk.

[@amybisbee]

Great video! More kitten cameos, please. ❤

[@shanehall98]

Hope your having a nice Christmas