Fermented fish

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title: "Fermented fish" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["fermented-fish", "inuit-cuisine", "seafood-in-native-american-cuisine", "umami-enhancers"] description: "Fish cured by fermentation to reduce spoilage" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermented_fish" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Fish cured by fermentation to reduce spoilage ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Bornayjars.jpg" caption="''burnay'' jars]] sealed with [[bottle gourd]]s containing fermenting fish (''[[bagoong]]'') in the [[Philippines"] ::

Fermented fish is a traditional form of preserved fish. Before refrigeration, canning, and other modern preservation techniques became available, fermenting was an important preservation method. Fish rapidly spoils, or goes rotten, unless some method is applied to stop the bacteria that produce the spoilage. Fermentation is a method which inhibits the ability of microbes to spoil fish. It does this by making the fish muscle more acidic; bacteria usually cease multiplying when the pH drops below 4.5.

A modern approach, biopreservation, adds lactic acid bacteria to the fish to be fermented. This produces active antimicrobials such as lactic and acetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, and bacteriocins. It can also produce the antimicrobial nisin, a particularly effective preservative.

Fermented fish preparations can be notable for their putrid smell. These days there are many other techniques of preserving fish, but fish is still fermented because some people enjoy the taste.

An archaeological find from 2016 provides evidence for fish fermentation dating back to 9,200 years ago.

TOC

Risks

Alaska has witnessed a steady increase in cases of botulism since 1985. It has more cases of foodborne botulism than any other state in the United States of America. This is caused by the traditional Inuit/Yupik practice of allowing animal products such as whole fish, fish heads, walrus, sea lion, and whale flippers, beaver tails, seal oil, birds, etc., to ferment for an extended period of time before being consumed. The risk is exacerbated when a plastic container is used for this purpose instead of the old-fashioned, traditional method, a grass-lined hole, as the botulinum bacteria thrive in the anaerobic conditions created by the air-tight enclosure in plastic.

Preparations

::data[format=table]

Name	Image	Country	Notes
Bagoong	[[File:Bagoong 1.JPG	120px]]	Philippines
Bekasang		Indonesia	Fermented offal, or only stomach of tuna.
Bottarga, poutargue, boutargue, botarga	[[File:Bottarga.jpg	120px]]	Mediterranean, Mauritania
Burong isda	[[File:9750Foods Fruits Baliuag Bulacan Philippines 29.jpg	120px]]	Philippines
Chêpa Shũṭki		Bengal, Bangladesh	Literally "pressurized shũṭki" or "pressurized dried fish". Puti Fish are used to prepare Chepa Shutki. They are sun-dried for 12 to 14 days, then kept in a jute sack for one month, after which it is washed and placed in a pressurized earthenware pot for 3 to 4 months.
Colombo cure		Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh	Fish are gutted, washed and salted together with dried fruit pulp or tamarind. The fish are kept covered in brine with the help of weighted mats and are fermented for 2 to 4 months.
Dayok	[[File:Dayok_Ayana%27s_Baganga_Davao_Oriental_textureB.jpg	120px]]	Philippines
Fesikh, fassikh, fassiekh, terkeen	[[File:Fesikh of Desouk.JPG	120px]]	Egypt, Sudan
Fish sauce	[[File:Thaifishsauce0609.jpg	120px]]	Asia
Funazushi	[[File:Funazushi 鮒寿司 Maibara City Shiga Japan 2022-10-06.jpg	120x120px]]	Japan
Garum	[[File:Garum Mosaik Pompeji.JPG	120px]]	Ancient Greek and Rome
Guedj	[[File:Guedj.Salt-curing. Fish.jpg	120px]]	Senegal
Hákarl	[[File:Hakarl near Bjarnahöfn in Iceland.JPG	120px]]	Iceland
Hentak		Manipur, India	Made from powdered, sun-dried Indian flying barb and the petioles of aroid plants
Hongeohoe	[[File:Korean cuisine-Samhap-01.jpg	120px]]	Korea
Jeotgal	[[File:Myeolchijeot (fermented anchovies).jpg	frameless	120x120px]]
Kusaya	[[File:Niijima kusaya.JPG	120px]]	Japan
Lakerda		Greece	Steaks of bonito are boned, soaked in brine, then salted and weighted for about a week. They are then ready to eat, or may be stored in olive oil. Sometimes large mackerel or small tuna are used instead of bonito.
Lanhouin		Ghana, Togo, Benin	Lanhouin is salted fermented dried fish produced in the coastal regions of the Gulf of Benin using croaker (Cassava fish, Pseudotholithus sp.) or West African Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus tritor). Lanhouin is widely used as a condiment.
Lumlom		Philippines	last=Fenix
Mahyaveh		Iran	Mahyaveh is produced in the southern part of Iran, especially in Larestan and Hormozgan, from sardines (Sardinella sp.) or anchovies (Stolephorus sp.), salt, spices and water. The fish – fresh or dried – are headed, washed, mixed with salt and warm water and packed into earthenware or glass jars. After a month the mixture is mashed into a slurry and filtered. The resulting brown liquid is then mixed with mustard (Brassica juncea) and other spices, such as cumin (Cuminum cyminum), coriander (Coriandrum sativum), fennel seeds (Foeniculum vulgare), black pepper (Piper nigrum) and thyme (Thymus capitatus). After another 10 to 15 days the desirable taste and aroma are produced and the sauce is ready.
Matjes (maatjes) herring	[[File:Haring 03.jpg	120px]]	Netherlands, Germany
Momone (momoni)		Ghana	Momone is produced in Ghana from various fish species and also from squid and octopus. The fish is gutted, washed, rubbed with salt and packed in layers in barrels, alternating with layers of salt. After fermentation for 7 days the fish are dried in the sun. Pieces of momone, together with ground red pepper, tomato, onion and palm oil are boiled to a sauce to accompany pounded starchy staple foods.
Ngachin		Myanmar (Burma)	Pressed and fermented fish eaten in Burmese cuisine
Ngapi	[[File:Raw ngapi.JPG	120px]]	Myanmar (Burma)
Ngari		Manipur, India	Ngari is a traditional fermented food of Manipur. It is prepared by fermenting smaller freshwater fishes with mustard oil and salt. The dried fish are then tightly packed them in a big clay urn which is made airtight. The urn is buried for 30–40 days. Ngari is roasted lightly prior to consumption, and then added in many Manipuri dishes, such as eromba.
Pekasam		Malaysia	Fermented half/fully fried mild coarse rices made by pickling several varieties of almost all fresh water fish, mainly Anabas testudineus, Tinfoil barb, Snakehead, Catfish, Leptobarbus hoevenii sometimes in Borneo, they ferment Macrobrachium rosenbergii, Freshwater prawn farming. Slightly different recipe and process of making Pla ra, the fish is also cleaned, cut into pieces if the size is too big and preserved with salt for several days and then mix with half fried Rice bran plus palm sugar or brown sugar. The sugar is claimed as starter to the rice bran to become brewed as result the pekasam have nicer sweet sour smells and salty taste. Sometimes tamarind juice also added to make the more sour effect. This is then left(traditionally) in a clay crock covered with a cheesecloth lid, to ferment for at least a week and up to a year.
Prahok	[[File:Prahok Ang detail.jpg	120px]]	Cambodia
Pla ra	[[File:Pla ra96.jpg	120px]]	Thailand
Rakfisk	[[File:Rakfisk.jpg	120px]]	Norway
Sikhae	[[File:Gajamisikhae (fermented righteye flounders).jpg	frameless	120x120px]]
Shiokara		Japan	Fermented offal.
Surströmming	[[File:Surströmming.jpg	120px]]	Sweden
Tepa		Yup'ik	Tepas, also called stinkheads, are fermented whitefish heads. A customary way of preparing them is to place fish heads and guts in a wooden barrel, cover it with burlap, and bury it in the ground for about a week. For a short while in modern times, plastic bags and buckets replaced the barrel. However this increased the risk of botulism, and the Yupik Eskimos have reverted to fermenting fishheads directly in the ground.
Tinapayan		Philippines	Fish (usually snakehead or catfish) is dried beforehand for a few days before being covered with tapay (cooked rice fermented overnight in banana leaves), with ginger, chilis, and other spices. It is allowed to ferment further for another week. The results are shredded and deep-fried in oil before serving (usually on white rice). It originates from the cuisine of the Maguindanao people.
Tungtap		Meghalaya, India	Sun-dried, salted, fermented Indian flying barb fish
Trassi (terasi, terassi) (Indonesia) Belacan (Malaysia)	[[File:Trassie oedang.jpg	120px]]	Indonesia, Malaysia
::

References

References

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