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Fish and seafood from Myanmar

Ngachinငါးချဉ်

Ngachin ("sour fish") is a Burmese fermented fish product. Raw freshwater fish is pressed with a mixture of cooked rice gruel and salt as it ferments, and is traditionally packed in taungzun leaves.

A short entry: the sources we found record only what is said here about Ngachin itself. Its own sources do not record how it is made, so the steps and scenes below are those of Plaa-som, the closest documented fish and seafood ferment, shown as a guide to the method, not as a record of Ngachin.

Short entryFish and seafood

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo recipe with amounts, times or temperatures was found in a source that could be read.
Raw freshwater fishBronze featherback is typical; other freshwater fish such as rohu can be substituted[wp]
Cooked rice gruelMixed with the fish and salt[wp]
Salt[wp]
Taungzun leavesTraditional wrapping for the pressed fish[wp]

Total time across the steps of Plaa-som: 5 days – 7 days

Start
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What changes: Starting material: cleaned freshwater fish, whole or cut

Step 1 of 4 · steps of Plaa-som
Clean the fish
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria

Whole fish are de-scaled and gutted; fillets, pieces or strips are also used.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Ngachin ("sour fish") is a Burmese fermented fish product. Raw freshwater fish is pressed with a mixture of cooked rice gruel and salt as it ferments, and is traditionally packed in taungzun leaves. Salt is 3.4–6.6 % (Nant Kay Thwe Moe 2015).

Key numbers
Salt3.4–6.6 %Measured[moe2015]Press and ferment, packed in taungzun leaves
AciditypH 4.5–4.9Measured[moe2015]Press and ferment, packed in taungzun leaves

What makes this one different

Ngachin is a rice-and-fish ferment soured by lactic bacteria, where Japanese funazushi takes half a year or more. It is lightly salted (3.4–6.6 % NaCl) and relies on the soured rice.

Related ferments

Variants

  • Ngagyin-chinMade from mrigal (Cirrhinus mrigala).
  • Ngaphae-chinMade from featherback (Notopterus notopterus).
  • Shan vinegar ngachinFish firmed in vinegar and mixed with rice: a quick ferment, like Japanese hayazushi (Ishige 1986).
  • Ngachin-gyinFish pieces and small shrimp wrapped tight in leaves with rice as travel food (Ishige 1986).
  • BazunchinThe version made with shrimp instead of fish ("sour shrimp").

Safety

Ngachin starts from raw freshwater fish, and it can be made from rohu, a carp-family fish. A 2024 paper says many carp-family fish host the liver fluke Opisthorchis viverrini, and rates pla-som, a Thai fish-and-rice ferment usually fermented within a week, as a high infection risk. It did not test ngachin. A 2019 survey in Yangon, Myanmar, found this fluke in freshwater fish and its eggs in 0.7 % of residents tested. WHO says botulinum toxin has been found in fermented and salted fish, and forms most often in lightly preserved foods. The measured pH of 4.5–4.9 and 3.4–6.6 % NaCl are not a safety limit, so do not count on them to make ngachin safe.

Hazards the sources name: Opisthorchis viverrini (liver fluke) in carp-family fish; a 2024 study rates pla-som, a related Thai fish-and-rice ferment, a high infection risk (not tested in ngachin).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

At the Irrawaddy mouth it is made with non-glutinous rice in jars, and in Shan State with glutinous rice (Ishige 1986).

  1. [moe2015] Nant Kay Thwe Moe 2015, Study of beneficial microorganisms in Myanmar's fermented fishery products, doctoral dissertation, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technologypaper
  2. [ishige1986] Ishige N. 1986, Narezushi in Asia (Study of Fermented Aquatic Products 2), Bulletin of the National Museum of Ethnology 11(3)paper
  3. [senasri2024] Senasri N., Chumnanka N., Talkul W. et al. 2024, Temperature and preparation time intervals on survival of Opisthorchis viverrini metacercariae in pickled fish (Pla-som), International Journal of Food Science 2024:4817012paper
  4. [sohn2019] Sohn W.-M., Jung B.-K. et al. 2019, Low-grade endemicity of opisthorchiasis, Yangon, Myanmar, Emerging Infectious Diseases 25(7):1435–1437paper
  5. [who-botulism] World Health Organization, Botulism, fact sheetgov
  6. [wp] Wikipedia, Ngachinwiki