The Lowly Shrimp Paste (Terasi,Bagoong) Can Be A Good Sandwhich Spread

No one would buy the idea that the lowly shrimp paste can be made into an excellent sandwich spread,on toast.

Asian countries are blessed with long stretches of beaches which fishermen and the seaside folks used as their jump off point to any place in the country that are near the sea. These fishermen sometimes have an abundance of marine products caught. One of these are the shrimp fries which are made into paste and used as seasonings of various Asian foods. Some entrepreneurs had some interesting ideas to manufacture and bottle these shrimp paste and sold in the markets nationwide and some are exported to various countries where there are thick Asian population. Various flavors sprouted and became a household favorite. Asians used it in their menus as condiments and flavorings. Others use it as a substitute for MSG or seasoning in the local dialect. The bottled version is  ready to use after its opening.  That cuts its preparation time-saving considerable minutes of heat and sweat.

But among those uses which are not yet discovered by numerous users of the product is to use it as a spread in sandwiches.

I was looking for any spread in the refrigerator when this spicy flavored bottled shrimp paste which sits at the corner of the ref caught my attention.  So, I thought, why not?  I’m going to use this as my sandwich spread.

I toasted pieces of American bread. I put a generous amount of margarine and spread lightly with spicy flavored bottled sautéed shrimp paste. Just an addition of Mayonnaise or sandwich spread will be okay. But still it lacked a little bit of spiciness. I added a little of hot sauce and it was all over. And Voila! It tasted like no other spread! . Not yet perfect but it was good. You can adjust the flavor according to your taste. Or you can  mix all the ingredients then spread it. Except for the margarine which should be spread right after the bread has been toasted.

You can invent your own taste with the shrimp paste. Try and discover it.

• Asian foods
• Asian population
• condiments
• fishermen
• flavorings
• margarine
• Mayonnaise
• refrigerator
• sandwich spread
• sauteed shrimp paste
• seasoning
• shrimp paste