So, what
IS Worcestershire sauce anyway? According to the
Lea and Perrins site, Worcestershire sauce contains mostly
vinegar,
molasses,
anchovies,
tamarind,
shallots,
garlic,
onion,
cloves and
chili peppers.
Everything is thrown together, aged, strained, and aged again in wooden casks. Strain it once more and bottle it, and you've got yourself some sauce.
Apparently you can cut down on preparation time by cooking it at some point, however Lea and Perrins suggests that this is the technique of infidels.