h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Very interesting post. As a L&P Worcester Sauce fan, I've tried others such as Worcester Sauce made in the USA and continental Europe, among others. So far, none of the others really deliver the unique delicious taste of L&P. As mentioned in the article, it's meant to add an accent to food, not subsume it by drowning it.
I also love English horseradish sauce and remember as a kid (in the 50s and 60s) this being made (in the summer) from fresh horseradish from my grandparent's garden. It can be as hot as chilli.To bring back the Japanese connection: I also like wasabi sauce which is also a type of horseradish and the similarity between the English and Japanese varieties is easy to taste. I wonder if English horseradish has ever been recommended as a fish condiment?

I don't know. I've not heard of English Horseradish being used in Japan, although I wouldn't mind betting some of the English pubs in Tokyo have it for the menus. Wasabi is easily cultivated in Japan and cheap to obtain, so English Horseradish would be a premium product from the outset. I can't see it ever being more than a niche product but who can say?

I'm not saying English horseradish is used in Japan, I'm saying that one of the major components of wasabi is a horseradish (Japanese? Korean? Chinese? Alaskan?) type plant which is easily identified as such (horseradish taste) when you eat it. Another novel (to me at least) taste is the Japanese pink, pickled ginger: another pleasant taste bomb.

I've not tried that. I saw some pickled ginger in the Asian supermarket the other week but I didn't get any, I didn't really notice the colour. I still have some sliced sushi ginger in the fridge that I need to use up before I buy in any more. Ginger doesn't tend to get used very quickly by me, I'm not a huge fan of it.

Ginger can be nice. Add some to the receipe for carrot jam.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/A823286