This sauce was the gateway into my obsession with Vietnamese cuisine. It’s sweet, salty, spicy, garlicky, gingery perfection. While recipes differ based on personal preference, the core ingredients stay the same: fish sauce, rice vinegar, lemon or lime juice, sugar, and fresh chili. The rest is up to you really.
I like my nước chấm with fresh garlic and ginger and double the amount of citrus juice than usual. I’ll also throw in things like scallions, cilantro stems, and lemongrass if I have them lying around. While this is typically made with Thai chilis, my recipe calls for jalapeños simply because I am more likely to have them on hand. Also, Thai chilis are significantly spicier and my friends and family aren’t always down for the heat, so it’s just safer for me to go the jalapeño route. I also enjoy the vegetal flavor you get from the jalapeño.
This sauce is very similar to Prik Nam Pla (พริกน้ำปลา) a Thai condiment that also consists of fish sauce, lime juice, and fresh chili. While they’re similar in flavor and composition, they’re used differently in their respective cuisines.
I love to drizzle Nước Chấm over grilled proteins, like steak, shrimp, and chicken, with a bed of hot rice or rice noodles, crunchy veg, and loads of cilantro and mint. It’s also used as a dipping sauce for Vietnamese spring rolls and egg rolls.
If this recipe has you eager to cook more Vietnamese, I recommend the book Vietnamese: Simple Vietnamese Food to Cook at Home by Uyen Luu. Not only is it filled with fabulous recipes, it’s also the prettiest cookbook I own.
