Add serious Southeast Asian flair to any salad or Buddha bowl with nuoc cham, the easy, no-cook sauce of Vietnam found in every meal!
Properly speaking, you only need 4 ingredients to kickstart a nuoc cham! Just make sure you have some fish sauce in the pantry. A little fish sauce goes a long way, but you’ll always find a use for it, in both cooked, uncooked, vegetarian, and meat dishes!
Essentially, it replaces soy sauce in this recipe, lending a more complex, fishy, sweet, and slightly sour taste that can’t be replaced! You’ll find it all throughout Vietnamese, Laotian, and Thai cuisines.
Here are the essential ingredients for Nuoc Cham:
Really, that’s it!
With just 4 ingredients, you’re off to the races, but if you wanna stop and bring in some spicy intrigue, definitely try the classic additions of minced Thai chiles (or any fresh hot chiles you have), and a few tablespoons of shredded carrots and daikon radish.
Rice bowls, salads, and grilled meats everywhere will be thanking you.
With the extra veggies, you’ll end up with something a little like this!
Additionally, feel free to substitute most of the lime juice with rice vinegar, if desired. I like Mizkan brand unseasoned rice vinegar.
However spicy or vinegary you decide to make it, this staple Vietnamese dressing is ready to enjoy.
Because garlic, lime, and chiles are fresh ingredients, you’ll want to use this within 2-4 days. There’s gonna be so much dipping action going on, you’ll probably be whipping up a new batch in no time anyway.
Yummy recipes that could benefit from a little nuoc cham love!
Ping Gai Chicken – Laotian “Grilled Chicken Chicken”
Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Slow Cooker Pork
Vietnamese Dressing (Nuoc Cham)
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice about 3 limes
- 3 ½ tablespoons Vietnamese fish sauce, or more to taste
- 2 tablespoons sugar, brown or white
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Thai chile, minced (optional)
- ½ cup warm water
Instructions
- Mix lime juice, sugar, garlic, chile, and water until sugar is dissolved. Taste and add more fish sauce as desired.
Notes
Use within 2-4 days.
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This is great I always get tired of having plain bowls (or seasoning with the same old salt, pepper and sriracha haha). Just curious how long this sauce lasts in the fridge? Or if it makes sense to make a bunch and freeze it? Thanks!