Why does fish sauce smell so awful, yet it makes Thai food taste so good?

Hey,

you know, ….somethings that taste very vinegary and salty are never good on theirselves. Examples are like various vinegars like basalmic vinegar, white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, cider vinegar, salt, etc.

BUT, when you combine them with other stuffs, it balances the pungent saltiness out to like acceptable level. For example, salad dressings always use OLIVE OIL to balance the vinegar in order to make the dressing.
Vinegar can be used with fresh cream and a dash of soy sauce to make a very good vegetable sauce.

But I’ve heard…from my friend’s friend’s uncle’s dad’s friend, who is not me by the way so don’t blame me for saying this…but I hear that some indians use their sweat to cook that’s why the curry tastes so flavorful…I dunno……….remember it’s not from me…i know nothing!!

Thai Food Cooking : Steamed fish with spicy sauce (Pla Nueng)