Worcestershire Sauce

Worcestershire sauce is a fermented condiment invented by the pharmacists John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins in Worcester, England, in the first half of the nineteenth century, and commercially launched by their Lea and Perrins company in 1837; company lore holds that the original batch was so strong it was set aside and forgotten, only becoming palatable after about eighteen months of fermentation, with the first bottles sold in 1838. It typically contains malt and spirit vinegar, anchovies, tamarind, garlic, onions, molasses, sugar, salt and spices, though many regional versions omit fish for vegetarian and vegan diners, and after an 1876 court ruling found Lea and Perrins could not trademark the name, the term became a generic one for the style of sauce. It is used on steaks, hamburgers and other finished dishes, to flavor cocktails such as the Bloody Mary and the Caesar, and in recipes including Welsh rarebit, Caesar salad, deviled eggs, beef stew and baked beans.