Nuoc Mam Sauce (Vietnamese Dipping Sauce)

If you love to cook and eat Vietnamese food, you will love this recipe. Nuoc mam sauce is a staple condiment in Vietnamese cuisine and can be used in many different dishes. If you’ve ever ordered egg rolls, summer rolls or vermicelli bowls from Vietnamese restaurants, you’ve likely enjoyed this classic Vietnamese dipping sauce!

This dipping sauce has a sweet, sour, salty, spicy, and fermented tang all at once and it adds a bold, complex flavor to any dish. It is perfect for dipping spring rolls, savory pork pancakes, or adding to green mango salad!

You can enjoy it in so many different ways best of all, it’s incredibly simple to make at home.

What is Nuoc Mam Sauce?

Nuoc mam sauce (in Vietnamese, nước mắm), is a traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce that you can find in any Vietnamese restaurant.

The main ingredients for this sauce include fermented fish sauce, water, fresh lime juice, garlic, sugar and chili.

Nuoc mam (or nuoc mam cham) means “fish sauce” while “nuoc cham” (nước chấm) means “sauce,” and can apply to a variety of dipping sauces used in Vietnamese cooking. Depending on who you talk to or which restaurant you ask, the words are often used interchangeably.

❤️ Why This Nuoc Mam Recipe Works

It’s the best fish sauce with a tangy, savory flavor that’s a bit on the sweeter side. It has a complex flavor that your taste buds will love!

Nuoc mam sauce:

• is a fast and easy recipe to make
• adds flavor to Asian dishes
• is incredibly versatile! Use as a dip, salad dressing, or marinade.

? The Ingredients

The main ingredients in nuoc mam sauce (sometimes spelled nuac mam) are:

• Fish sauce. Fermented fish sauce has a savory, salty, umami flavor. It is the primary ingredient in this sauce. The amount of pungency and saltiness varies with the different fish sauce brands.

• Water. Using hot water will help dissolve the sugar. 

• Sugar. We used regular white sugar, but you can use honey or brown sugar if you want. 

• Fresh lime juice. Use fresh limes so you can scrape some of the lime pulp out of the fruit. 

• Lime pulp. Use a fork to scrape some of the pulp out of a lime.

• Minced garlic. Use a garlic press to get very fine bits of garlic. 

• Chili paste. Adjust the amount of chili paste to get the level of heat that you desire. 

• Chili peppers. Sliced red chili peppers (Thai chili peppers) give the sauce an authentic look but the chili paste makes it easy to adjust the spice level.

?‍? An Easy Nuoc Mam Recipe

Here is a quick overview of our Vietnamese dipping sauce recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card to see all the details and ingredient amounts.

1. In a small bowl, add the sugar to the hot water. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients.
3. Mix well to combine.

Tips and Tricks

For the best Vietnamese fish sauce:

• Use hot water to dissolve the sugar. 
  
• Adjust the flavor of the nuoc mam sauce to suit your personal preference. If you want to add more of the fermented fish sauce, add a very small amount. A little bit goes a long way. Too much fish sauce will overpower the end result.
  
• Crush the garlic as finely as possible. A garlic press works well. So does a mortar and pestle.
  
• You should usually be able to find all of the ingredients at a larger grocery store in the Asian foods aisle. An Asian supermarket will also stock different brands of fish sauce and the Thai chilis.
  
• Store this simple Vietnamese dipping sauce in an airtight container like a mason jar or a similar airtight jar.

Substitutions and Variations

You can swap lemon juice or vinegar for the lime juice. We like the flavor that lime brings to this dish but if you don’t care for the slight bitter flavor of lime then try lemon or white vinegar.

If you can’t find Thai red chiles you can use serrano peppers or jalapeno’s.

Adjust the flavor to your own palate. You can add extra sugar or chili paste or mellow the flavors a bit more by adding a splash of water.

Nuoc mam sauce is a versatile dipping sauce that’s a staple in Asian cuisine! While there are many different ways to make it, we know you’ll love the ease and flavors of this delicious nuoc mam sauce recipe!

Helpful Tools:

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• Fermented fish sauce
• Chili sauce
• container to store the sauce

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