Vietnamese Dipping Sauce
4.0
(13)
Nuoc Cham
Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Mai Pham's book Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table. Pham also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page.
This recipe originally accompanied Crispy Spring Rolls.
Nuoc cham is a must at every Vietnamese table, no matter what is served. You can use this condiment for dipping meat, seafood and vegetables, and for drizzling on rice. When serving it with steamed meats (such as steamed chicken), I often reduce the water by half so the sauce is more concentrated.
You can often determine a family's roots just by looking at and tasting their nuoc cham. If it's clear and dotted with chopped chilies, the cook is probably from the central or northern regions, where a simple and straightforward version is preferred. But if it's diluted with water and lime juice and sweetened with sugar, one can surmise that the cook is from the verdant south.
Although it will keep up to two weeks in the refrigerator, nuoc cham is best when freshly made. I prefer the intense flavor of the tiny Thai bird chilies, but any hot chilies will do.
· The Thai bird chile, a short, narrow, pointed, green or red variety, is not exclusively Thai — it's also the Vietnamese hot pepper of choice. "In Vietnam, we just call them peppers," says Pham. Thai bird chiles can be found at Asian grocery stores and better supermarkets, or ordered from Asian foods supplier Uwajimaya at (800) 889-1928. If you can't find them, Pham suggests substituting fresh red serrano chiles, which are hotter and sweeter than their green counterparts.
· Fish sauce (nuoc mam), a pungent, salty liquid made from fermented anchovies, adds depth and flavor to numerous Vietnamese dishes. For best results, choose bottles priced at $3 to $4 rather than $1, and pass on jars that are dark, which indicates oxidation or the presence of additives. "Look for fish sauce in glass jars. Avoid plastic," says Pham. "The fish sauce should have a nice, even color, like iced tea." She suggests Three Crabs, Lobster Boy, and Phu Quoc brands. When cooking with fish sauce, always add it to other liquids: Never place it directly in a hot, dry pan, which would broadcast its pungent, fishy odor throughout your kitchen in a less-than-pleasant way. Soy sauce is an acceptable vegetarian substitute, though it does lack fish sauce's smoky complexity. • Pham recommends using a mortar and pestle, rather than a knife, to mash the aromatic ingredients. This will help release their essential oils, giving the dish a fuller, "sparkling" flavor.
