Fish Paste Varieties and Speeding Up Fermentation
A good fish paste has a slightly fishy, cheesy odor with fish that's partially or completely broken down. It should have a pasty (not watery) consistency, ash to reddish color, and a pleasing taste that isn't too bitter, sour, or salty. Fish paste has regional names including trassi (Indonesia), belacan (Malaysia), and buro in the Philippines.
Buro represents a special category of fermented products with added carbohydrates like cooked rice. Burong Isda contains fish while Burong Hipon alsocalledbalao−balao contains shrimp.
You can speed up fermentation through several methods. Physical means include using elevated temperatures 37−42°C, regular stirring with wooden paddles, and grinding the fish to increase surface area for enzymes to work. This is why some traditional methods involve specific tools and techniques!
Science Connection: Temperature matters in fermentation! Warmer temperatures 37−42°C significantly speed up the rate at which fish flesh breaks down during fermentation.