People who are not used to the smell and taste of this sauce, find it very offensive and why not! it smells like rotten, putrefied garbage. But to those that know how this sauce tastes like and is served, find it heavenly. It’s all in the mind! Once I served it to very good friend – Denise Bellini (an Australian), and he found it tasted like cheese and liked it. In Pampanga, where this is a common sauce for fried or grilled or roasted fish, and for steamed vegetables (eggplant, okra, ampalaya (bitter melon), sitao (long pole bean)) or fresh mustard leaves, the meal is incomplete without this sauce. There is also a version where fish is used instead of shrimps, maybe you could try that out too. Usually this is made in large quantities because it is used frequently. I have made this Sydney upon the request of my Filipino ladies group and our home’s architect – Ton Jaucian. It just takes a bit longer to ferment due to the cool weather of Sydney. Fermenting Ingredients: 5 cups cooked rice – boil rice with 10 cups of water till cooked; you come up with a soft kind of cooked rice; cool rice thoroughly 500 grams very fresh shrimps – alive if possible, the 2-inch long size; do not peel. In Sydney where you do not find shrimps that are alive, I use small, fresh prawns that are peeled and sliced in half – lengthwise. If you want to use fish, I use filleted fish and slice into 1/2-inch cubes or in small strips. In the Philippines, you can use whole small fresh gurami or tilapia, de-scale, debone and cut into finger sized strips. Do not use head of tilapia. Some even use the mud fish for this. 250 grams young, fresh bamboo shoots – sliced very thinly and blanched for 5 minutes in hot water and drain well and cool down 1/2 cup salt Procedure: Get a well washed, dry, 1 to 2 gallon glass jar. Rinse the shrimps/fish with water and drain well. Pat dry to ensure dryness. In a large bowl, place shrimps and sprinkle with the salt, and mix thoroughly. Using rubber gloves, spread cool rice in a large bowl. Mix the bamboo shoots with the shrimps. Mix the shrimp/bamboo with rice using gloved hands. Put the mixture inside the jar, in layers, packing well each layer. You want to avoid air pockets in the jar. Cover the mouth of the jar with a clean sheet of plastic and close with lid. Some times it is hard to find glass gallon jars and I use a glass bowl that has a lid. Set aside in...