Xiamen's most momentous contribution to world cuisine began as a ubiquitous fish brine sauce, used by locals as a must-have additive to classic seafood and meat dishes.
As Xiamen's Minnan traders extended their influence towards the Indonesian islands and even further afar, the simple fish brine sauce collected new and more flavourful ingredients.
In Malaysia, anise, ginger and brown sugar are added, while the Indonesians added cinnamon and cloves. But it wasn't until the English passed their tomato-based version on to the Americans that the fish brine sauce took on global proportions as ketchup, the condiment every Western restaurant has in stock.
Today's Xiamen restaurateurs stick to the original fish sauce, especially in the seafood establishments that ring the city and the port, but ketchup in its modern form also exists throughout this modern and bustling city.
The red sauce should be the furthest thing from your mind, however, if you are headed to Xiamen on business or for leisure.
The Minnan cuisine of southern Fujian, based in Xiamen, is a rich and colourful celebration of the ocean, which is never far away, no matter where you stand in this city of more than 5 million people.