Meet Third Coast Superior’s Creative Development Director, Steven Peyer
This time, I sat down to chat with Third Coast Superior’s Co-Founder, Steven Peyer. It was time to learn about the “other half” of the two-man fish sauce company.
Fish Sauce Mastermind
Steven is Third Coast Superior’s Creative Development Director.
Steven’s interview was laced with wit, depth, and passionate creativity. I left feeling like I should offer a tip for either his food knowledge or infectious energy—or both.
When first asked to share about himself, he stated,
“There is no way to tell his story without telling my own. And if his story is really a confession, then so is mine.”
Another prolific quote. “Is that from Margaret Atwood,” I asked. (I LOVE Atwood and might have felt my heart skip a beat.)
“No, it’s from the movie Apocolypse Now,” Steven said.
For the record, we were both right.
I invite you to enjoy the rest of our interview. as Steven shares parts of his journey with food energies, his own awakening, and this new endeavor with partner, Chad Landry.
Before we dive in, can you explain exactly what fish sauce is and how it is used? Would I be able to buy and use a bottle if I’m not an expert chef?
How much time do you have?
When you ask, “What is fish sauce?” you are sniffing around Pandora’s box. The answer depends on the depth at which you choose to look.
Most generally, and simply speaking, fish sauce is a biomass of ultra-high oil-content fish, usually anchovy or sardine, but in our case, freshwater Herring, fermented with salt.
Looking more closely, fish sauce has an adventurous “tail” and a history that is as mysterious and interesting as its mycelial-like spread has been prolific.
Fish sauce is truly idiosyncratic, similar to the shapes and styles of dry pasta of Italian villages, but on a much, much grander scale.
Village to village around the developing world, you will find variations of fish sauce and their generations-old sacred little secrets.
Third Coast Superior only uses Lake Superior herring from Bodine Fisheries in Bayfield, WI, and sea salt from Jacobsen Salt Co on the Oregon Coast.
A few commonalities are unavoidable: some type of sea or freshwater creature, salt, and either the intestines of said creature or… for purposes of “Autolysis.” Autolysis is the process by which the cells or tissues digest themselves using enzymes. Thus, it frees the aminos or monosodium glutamates (not the fake stuff).
We love freeing aminos!
Some think that fish sauce was at least on a recognizable scale, first developed in pre-Roman Italy and referred to as “Garum.” This practice then spread out from there.
Whatever the reality of the history of Garums and fish sauces, perhaps my Sardinian blood allowed me to see past the Thai and Vietnamese labels so easily, the noxious stench, and say to myself, “Wow! Now that is so much.”
The perfect Umami delivery system, and an obvious opportunity to make that delivery system better.
This brings me to your question: How is it used?
Fish sauce is one of the most essential items in your pantry. Period. Our fish sauce is Umami, which is mid-palate. It is the warm smile and the gentle, unnecessary guilt behind it like you have just eaten the canary.
Fish sauce is balanced and deep and can be both hedonistic and elegant simultaneously. It represents the fifth, or as I see it, sixth taste, and without allowing the other five tastes to collude harmoniously, your cooking is simply unhinged.
I use our fish sauces in almost everything, ice cream withholding.
In fact, last night, while making dinner, I realized we were out, and I had forgotten to bring home more. I was… well, not unhinged, but I wasn't pleased with myself.
I use it instead of salt unless when seasoning origin/lifestyle-known animals, which is becoming exceedingly rare. But I really use it to connect with other tastes and to balance what I am cooking.
Phew, o.k.
Now, let's move on to the third part of your question. I would be cautious about using “expert” and “chef” in the same sentence.
I have known and know very few professional chefs that are also experts at anything more than being expert bullshitters.
They are a tight and quiet bunch. Quiet professionals, if you will.
That said, in humor, the answer is Absolutely!
As I have said before, our fish sauce is the perfect delivery system for Umami. It's ultra-convenient, as it is a liquid and easy to measure.
There is no need for the extensive and dirty process of frying anchovy or working with ugh dry shrimp paste.
It is literally a bottle of awareness sitting on your countertop. You support regenerative practices while enjoying the ease of adding everything to your cooking.
So Steven, what do you specialize in? What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
Steven’s lovely, new bride, Heather. :)
I suppose if this is the present tense, I specialize in surrendering to the flow, staying on the beam as much as possible.
In being a good and real human, continuing to learn what it means and takes to be the father that I was unfortunately not in my earlier life and that my children deserve and I desperately want to be.
I want to continue to learn how to be the best equal in an authentic and healthy relationship.
And to indeed be a friend and partner with someone I respect and love while operating a business.
All you need is a little more cowbell.
To balance while fulfilling my purpose with family and our non-profit.
I am definitely most proud of my ability to dramatically turn my life around and to have the awareness to take hold of such a profound gift of purpose, the gift of service.
Ooh, what sets me apart? That’s also easy. It’s my signature Bjorn Borg headband from his 1978 win in Rome.
Do I have your attention?
Talk about your role in Third Coast Superior's development, how the inaugural process has gone, and when to expect to see your fish sauce on store shelves.
The primordial beginnings of what is now a living and evolving project date back almost a decade. To the peak of my ego-centric, arrogant, and self-medicating life in Coastal Sonoma County.
Simply by the grace of the Universe, the darkest of hours, and now constant and relentless work to contribute to my journey of enlightenment has the seed survived.
In finding my purpose, I am always willing, open, and listen.
Through this process, I could see a way back into the realm I had once loved, absolutely sworn off, and all but turned my back on.
Our food system is not a system.
Whatever it is, in its interconnectedness, it is not only in peril; it fuels the most evil of all evils- complacency.
I was always impressed with my close friend Chads’ ability to retain such admiration, genuine interest, and real love of food. His pragmatism and his apparent ability to navigate start-up-induced stress.
But mostly, his childlike fancy, his zeel, gave me the confidence to connect again with my creative self.
I would have never considered revisiting the creation of a domestically produced fish sauce without Chad, and it would not have the synergy or capacity to evolve as freely as it has this first year. It is our first year, right?
Honestly, I don't recall even discussing the company's ethos; it was an unspoken reality of who we both were now and yes, it is adorable.
We never see obstacles or barriers, just the constant challenges we choose. We naturally continue to find or create innovative processes to further our contribution and commitment to the regeneration period.
Chad, like myself, is an action, and results-driven individual, so we have accomplished quite a lot in year one. And our scalability was built in and a natural flow, so I really couldn't be more grateful for what we have created and the team we are.
Regarding when we will be releasing, I have to give a quasi-deflective answer…”Wasn't it a fantastic winter on the third coast?”
So, it is a highly allocated release for a few reasons. First, our initial production is limited, which is now moving forward on a scale metered only by our allocation of Jacobsen Sea Salt and the abundance of Herring.
Bodin Fisheries, Bayfield, WI
So we are on schedule to reach an acceptably large production (I can't tell you how much) later this year.
Second, our core values, mission, and vision align closely with the Whole Foods Market brand. Their purpose is to nourish people and the planet.
We also know that their high standards for responsible sourcing, to say the least, make them our obvious choice to have a maximum impact on our communities while helping them fill a crucial gap in a specialty that truly boasts their commitment to sustainability.
We want to put the ‘Ability’ back into ‘Sustainability.’
So, as a nod to them for a time, we are only allocating a small amount to a select number of restaurants around the world.
As a caveat, we will be bottling our Method De Sagnee ‘23 in midsummer and our barrique-aged ‘23 in Autumn.
I’ve heard that you have a profound passion for food energies and regeneration. What tips can you offer that increase awareness and help people have a better experience with food while supporting the planet?
I do very much. My awareness of food energies came to me early in my career when I first dared venture out of the nest of my very, very astute mentor, Jordi Vilades.
One of the most amazing humans to visit this planet and a man I owe a great deal of gratitude to.
Like most cooks with a natural connection to food energies, he did not have the linguistic abilities to communicate this very ethereal and nuanced reality.
You could only learn of it from watching their every movement, over and over, as I did.
When you have it, you have it.
You can not teach this quickly or en masse. It is very much like meditation; it is unique to the individual and involves letting go.
Letting go of everything you think you know, letting go of your perception of time and space, and connecting as a mushroom does to the mycelial network that fruits it.
What a long, strange trip it’s been.
Through my nearly 25 years as a professional chef, I have heard other chefs speak of parts of this, of pieces, but never as a whole.
You have to see the whole picture, the journey, in its infinite form. And that is big.
My advice is to start small. Be willing to learn, and be open to new concepts, especially ones that scare you.
Accept what is real, and know or realize what is bullshit.
Always purchase the very highest quality ingredients that you can afford.
Food is expensive. Responsibly produced, farmed, raised, butchered, harvested, and packaged food is very expensive to produce. See and accept the whole picture.
You want the dishwasher at the restaurant you just ate at to be able to A- have a home and B- feed their children healthy food.
You want the fisherman to pay more for non-plastic, hand-sewn nets, and you want the cannery to pay them more than $1.25 lb. for hand caught King or Sockeye Salmon in Alaska if you are going to eat it.
They may need to heat their home or buy ALL of their goods from the lower forty-eight, which on average costs 175% more than we pay in the lower forty-eight.
The choice starts with your purchasing power.
Choose with empathy, with kindness, and without greed. You always have a choice.
Listen to your nose, taste what you hear, smell what you touch. And that feeling in your gut, yes, that one, hear it, follow it.
Surrender to the flow. Put on Phish, moderately loud, and move around your kitchen with purposeful grace, like a ballet.
And if you find yourself wondering, “I wonder when I will recognize my connection to food energies?”
You already have.
Do you anticipate regeneration endeavors outside of Lake Superior herring and fish sauce?
Absolutely!
We, as a company, will constantly evolve in this way.
It was my only quandary going into a for-profit business model: how can we not only give back but pay forward to regenerate?
My big beef is sustainability. Sure, it’s better than nothing, but let us be honest.
Third Coast Fish Sauce, coming Summer 2024
Can you sustain any system that is in decline?
NO. You must take measures to regenerate what was, not what is. It can grow again, but it can not stay the same.
Our first venture outside our traditional fish sauces is a move to land-based garums.
With our Regenerate Third Coast Foundation, we aim to preserve an unbound amount of coastal lands for regeneration.
It is here that we will farm shiitake and other fungi for use in our first line of vegetarian garums.
An explosive and earthy Umami nectar that funds the preservation of our native forests. We are very excited about this and hope you will join us in celebrating soon.
Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?
I would not be able to do what I do or be who I am without the love and support of my beautiful family and tribe of fabulous friends. Thank you all with all of my heart,
Big Love and Light!
-SP
Steven with his daughter, Lucia.
Keep an eye out for updates on Third Coast Superior's fermentation process as it nears completion, leading to the creation of a beautifully bottled fish sauce.
Always,
Heather N. Wilde, Regenerative Fish Sauce Supporter
To read other Third Coast Superior blog posts, including Steven’s recipes, visit: Third Coast Blog.
