about garums

Garum is originally a fish sauce with roots in the Mediterranean, with a history dating back to antiquity, when salted fish was left to ferment in vats in the sun for almost a year. Since then, the enzymes for fermentation are supplied by a noble fungus and it is not only fish or meat that is fermented, but also crickets, egg whites, bee pollen or mushrooms. Denmark's Noma, the world's best restaurant of the last decade, has gone furthest in experimentation, and we've taken inspiration from it too.

Vegan garum is a kind of amino-sauce. It's like a cross between soy sauce and fish sauce. Literally packed with umami flavour and will complement any meal divinely. It can add a "meaty" flavor even to 100% vegan meal. It is used in small quantities as a kind of "final touch" to individual dishes.

It is not for nothing that garums have long been available only to the chefs of the finest restaurants. We're trying to change that, and while they still belong primarily to restaurants, we're bringing them to all cooking enthusiasts and flavour lovers, wherever they cook.

The production of garum is quite demanding, fermenting for three months at just under 60°C, allowing a range of biochemical reactions to take place to blend a unique cocktail of flavours. Thanks to enzymes from koji, proteins are broken down into amino acids, polysaccharides into simple sugars and fats into fatty acids. These interact with each other in a complex process called the Maillard reaction, and this process contributes significantly to the resulting umami taste.

We do not use animal ingredients (except honey) in our production, so our choice fell mainly on mushrooms as a great source of protein and attractive flavours, but not only on them. We are also experimenting with ingredients left over from oil pressing, such as caraway.

But it doesn't end with the filtration of the garum sauce itself. At the bottom of the barrels there remains a fermented paste that is just as delicious. We are not throwing this treasure away, but we are using it to make an equally attractive product - garum paste, which can be used in mushroom soups, spreads, stews, sauces and who knows where creative cooks will find a use for it.

So don't be afraid to experiment with umami flavours in the form of vegan garums and pastes. You can season your meals fantastically with literally just a few drops.