1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey 2 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:11,080 Speaker 1: brain Stuff, Lauren bog Obam Here it's that brown sauce 3 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:15,240 Speaker 1: with a ni unpronounceable name. It looks on paper like 4 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:20,880 Speaker 1: war kester Shire. It's a tangy, tasty addition to red meats, soups, 5 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:24,479 Speaker 1: and pretty much anything that needs braizing. And according to 6 00:00:24,520 --> 00:00:27,840 Speaker 1: the company that originally created it, Lee and Parents, it 7 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:34,879 Speaker 1: can be pronounced Worcestershire, Woostershire or wooster sheer. Wooster shear. 8 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:38,080 Speaker 1: Sauce is used to make good things even better because 9 00:00:38,080 --> 00:00:41,400 Speaker 1: it packs a lot of savor nous is sometimes called umami. 10 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,120 Speaker 1: The word umami, by the way, was coined in the 11 00:00:44,120 --> 00:00:46,239 Speaker 1: first decade of the nineteen hundreds as a way of 12 00:00:46,280 --> 00:00:51,240 Speaker 1: marketing the then newly isolated flavor compound monosodium glutamate or MSG. 13 00:00:52,159 --> 00:00:55,400 Speaker 1: But back to the sauce. We spoke by email with 14 00:00:55,480 --> 00:01:00,440 Speaker 1: Shamous Mullen, chef at the Institute of Culinary Education. He said, 15 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:03,720 Speaker 1: in recent years there's been a newfound interest in umami 16 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:07,039 Speaker 1: for the fifth taste after salty, sweet, bitter, and sour, 17 00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:12,200 Speaker 1: often described as deliciousness, the umami brings out the natural 18 00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: flavorings and food makes steak taste, more steaky mushrooms, more 19 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:20,200 Speaker 1: shrewmy Worcester shear sauce is made up of a lot 20 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 1: of flavorful ingredients, including anchovies, and that's right, it's not 21 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:28,520 Speaker 1: generally vegan plus red onion, molasses, garlic, tamarind and malt 22 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:32,839 Speaker 1: and or cider vinegar. Mullen said. The vinegar and tamarind 23 00:01:32,840 --> 00:01:35,679 Speaker 1: bring a punchy ascidity to the sauce, and the molasses 24 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:39,920 Speaker 1: an onion balance out the sweetness. But the true magic 25 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:44,080 Speaker 1: happens during the lengthy fermentation process, which takes eighteen to 26 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:47,920 Speaker 1: twenty four months. This last and most critical step was 27 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,040 Speaker 1: something of a happy accident when, supposedly in the early 28 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:55,080 Speaker 1: eighteen hundreds, two chemists based in Wooster, England, John Lee 29 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:58,640 Speaker 1: and William Parents, were charged with duplicating a recipe that 30 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:01,560 Speaker 1: one British nobleman or an other had enjoyed in Bengal. 31 00:02:02,960 --> 00:02:06,240 Speaker 1: Their first effort was an utter failure, however, and the 32 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:09,079 Speaker 1: chemists left it to languish in jars and their seller. 33 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:12,440 Speaker 1: A few years later, they rediscovered the batch and were 34 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: thrilled to realize that fermentation had turned it into the 35 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:19,600 Speaker 1: perfect savory sauce. They started selling it in eighteen thirty seven. 36 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: It came to the US in eighteen thirty nine and 37 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:26,160 Speaker 1: is sold in over seventy five countries today. When that 38 00:02:26,240 --> 00:02:30,359 Speaker 1: original Leon Parents product was shipped overseas, its glass bottles 39 00:02:30,400 --> 00:02:33,320 Speaker 1: often broke as a result of rough waters, so the 40 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:37,160 Speaker 1: company began wrapping the individual bottles in paper. The tradition 41 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:40,519 Speaker 1: continues today more as a way to distinguish the brand, 42 00:02:40,680 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 1: rather than a need to keep the product whole. The 43 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: company lost the copyright to the name in eighteen seventy six. 44 00:02:48,240 --> 00:02:51,520 Speaker 1: While the Lion Parents recipe remains a closely guarded secret, 45 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: many competitors have sprung up to make similar versions. The 46 00:02:55,080 --> 00:02:58,720 Speaker 1: BBC counted at least thirty others in Worcester alone. You 47 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: can even try making it yourself at home, Mullen said, 48 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:05,000 Speaker 1: while the aging and fermenting process might be a bit much. 49 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: To undertake it home, you can make a very tasty 50 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:12,280 Speaker 1: approximation of oyster sheer sauce by simmering soy sauce, mustard powder, malt, vinegar, 51 00:03:12,440 --> 00:03:17,680 Speaker 1: tamarind paste, garlic, anchovy paste, tomato paste, ginger molasses, and spices. 52 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:22,120 Speaker 1: Those spices, he said, can include coriander seed, mustard seed 53 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: and clove, as well as orange peel and black pepper. 54 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:28,080 Speaker 1: He explained that you simply mix all the ingredients and 55 00:03:28,160 --> 00:03:32,080 Speaker 1: simmer to sauce consistency, then strain and store the liquid. 56 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:35,720 Speaker 1: There are lots of recipes online, including several for those 57 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:38,080 Speaker 1: of us who have been playing around with home fermentation, 58 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 1: and of course, the beloved sauce isn't relegated to steaks 59 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:45,440 Speaker 1: in such either. It can be added to pretty much 60 00:03:45,480 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: anything that needs singing, be it a bloody mary fondue, 61 00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:52,840 Speaker 1: cheese sauce, eggs, popcorn potatoes, salad dressing, or a grilled 62 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:56,240 Speaker 1: cheese sandwich. Lee and Parents even recommends a splash of 63 00:03:56,280 --> 00:03:58,800 Speaker 1: it in place of your normal dashes of salt and pepper. 64 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 1: The continuing enthusiasm over Ummmy Flavor is carrying over into 65 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:06,520 Speaker 1: the Worst of Shire market, and this recent uptick is 66 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:11,680 Speaker 1: expected to continue projected through at least Mulin explained O 67 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:14,800 Speaker 1: Mommy hounds have been on the hunt for heritage condiments, 68 00:04:14,920 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: likely in Paren's original recipe, and there's an ever increasing 69 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:22,760 Speaker 1: trend towards finding new applications for the sauce, from marinades 70 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:25,719 Speaker 1: to cocktails, most to shear sauce is having a moment. 71 00:04:30,960 --> 00:04:33,279 Speaker 1: Today's episode was written by Aliya Hoyt and produced by 72 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:35,440 Speaker 1: Tyler Klang. For more in this and lots of other 73 00:04:35,520 --> 00:04:38,640 Speaker 1: savory topics, visit has to Works dot Com. Brain Stuff 74 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:41,559 Speaker 1: is production of iHeart Radio. For more podcasts my heart Radio, 75 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:44,440 Speaker 1: visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 76 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:45,760 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.