Anchovy Substitute - CHOW Tip

Chowhound Jed Kolko loved the flavor that anchovies gave to cooking, but didn't like the hassle of having to make sure the fish had fully dissolved. Now he frequently uses fish sauce instead to add depth to sauces and braising liquids.

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TRANSCRIPT
Anchovies are one of those secret ingredients that end up giving lots of different types of dishes flavor. Pasta sauces, brazing liquids, even sauteed vegetables, but anchovies are sometimes a pain to use and if you don't dissolve them all perfectly you might end up with little chunks of fish where you don't want them. Instead you can try using Fish Sauce. What you want to be sure to do though is taste so you don't put in too much and hold back a bit on the salt in cooking because Fish Sauce is quite salty. Don't be afraid that it's called Fish Sauce. Unless you put in too much, it won't make your dish taste fishy. The fishiness cooks out and what you're left with is a depth of flavor that's hard to get any other way.