Although chillies are a beloved Thai ingredient and used intensively, they, too, are not native to the region, but are introduced from the Americas. Thai cuisine cannot even lay claim on its most essential flavoring ingredient – fish sauce, which really has roots in Mediterranean cuisine. The ancient Romans cherished this salty extract of anchovies and doused a wide variety of dishes with its flavor and aroma. Aside from these notable examples, there are numerous other foreign ingredients, as well as styles of cooking, which have been absorbed into the cuisines of Southeast Asia. Thai food is already “fusion food” and is what it is not because of the individual ingredients, but because of the particular flavor balances that set the cuisine apart from others.