Launched in 2011, Red Boat fish sauce has become the brand of choice for home cooks and professional chefs alike. It really is a “secret weapon” of sorts to punch a dish up to the next level - adding that intangible umami “funk” that’s noticeable, yet a challenge to define. We’ve been fans for several years and were delighted when this book arrived. The recipes within the book cover a wide manner of dishes, from Breakfast to Appetizers to Sweets & Drinks - all featuring their signature fish sauce. Depending on your individual taste, you may need to adjust the amount - as the recipes are not timid with the addition of this funky nectar. Here are the dishes we chose:• Broccolini with Very Delicious Garlic Sauce - We’ll start things off with this quick and easy side dish. Just as the recipe titles assures you, this is a tasty sauce! Simply prepared, it consists of fried garlic, fish sauce and sesame oil. The recipe instructs you to blanch the broccolini. We took it a step further and oven-roasted it prior to serving - creating a pleasing, crunchy char. Any extra garlic sauce can be refrigerated for up to 10 days and used on a variety of greens (spinach, collards, cabbage or bok choy).• Walnut Pesto with Shrimp - Swapping the traditional Parmigiano-Reggiano for fish sauce makes sense. Both are umami flavor bombs. We also appreciated the mix of basil and parsley - which creates a bright, herbaceous sauce (basil can be expensive and temperamental if using by itself). We always find walnuts to lean too bitter. Per usual, we chose pecans instead. Even though the recipe list includes spaghetti, the accompanying photo shows a different pasta type (perhaps fusilli?). We chose linguine (and by “we” I mean me because my wife, unfortunately, is allergic to shrimp).• Grilled Pork Meatballs - Not only will this recipe allow you to enjoy street food in the comfort of your home but, because it yields about 35 meatballs, you can likely feed your entire street too! Rather than use the suggested food processor, we busted out the meat grinder attachment for our Kitchenaid mixer - which made quick, strangely satisfying work of the pork belly. Be forewarned: the suggested portion of Red Boat salt will result in an assertive umami flavor. You may want to reduce the amount if you prefer a more subtle profile. In addition to the brown sugar, minced garlic and splash of white wine, we added fennel seed, chili powder and garlic powder to our ground pork belly. After grilling, we laid these skewers atop a bed of rice noodles, tiny bok choy, kimchi, pickled daikon & carrots and generous bunches of fresh herbs (Thai basil, mint and Ngo Gai - which is a close cousin of cilantro).• Malai Kitchen’s Five-Spice Pork Belly - We always love a big comforting bowl of noodles in a rich broth with lots of “accessoraries” (to quote Lizzo). Here, pork belly is treated to a four hour braise before adding tofu and shiitake mushrooms. Jammy soft-boiled eggs are added during final assembly.• Chicken Tinga - While we certainly weren’t expecting to make tacos while working our way through a Vietnamese cookbook, we can’t say we were disappointed!What’s the connection? Fish sauce is added to the braising liquid for an bold umami punch. While it may only be a supporting role in this recipe, it’s a welcome addition. Remember all of the jewelry and accessories Mr. T wore? This dish is kind of like that. You’ve got thinly sliced red onion, a lime yogurt, avocado, cilantro, cabbage, some coconut rice. Lots of flair!