Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam Dipping Sauce & Dressing

Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam is a wonderfully moreish and delicious Vietnamese dipping sauce and dressing for fresh spring rolls, banh xeo and a whole host of Vietnamese recipes. But did you know that you can make this easily using just 4 ingredients plus water? I learned the secret to the best Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam from a Vietnamese chef and today I am sharing the recipe for restaurant quality Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam! This is a pushy recipe Dear Reader.

I love Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam so much that I always keep a jar of it in my fridge. I used to use creamy mayonnaise style dressings on my salads but now that the weather is heating up I love using Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam as a salad dressing. It is light, fresh and versatile and best of all is super easy to make.

What is Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam? It is a classic Vietnamese dipping sauce that is salty, sour, sweet and spicy at the same time. You can serve it with dishes like spring rolls, grilled meats and noodle bowls.

Secrets to Making The Best Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam

1 - I learned how to make Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam from Chef Huy at the Anantara Quy Nhon. It has 4 ingredients (okay 5 if you count water haha). You just need fish sauce, sugar, lime juice, chilli and water.

2 - The first tip is to dilute the fish sauce with water. Chef Huy dissolved the sugar in the fish sauce and water in a saucepan on medium heat but my version is slightly different as I don't like to wash up so I do it all in a jug.

3 - Chef Huy said not to add the hot fish sauce to lime juice as it turns it bitter. If your mixture is warm though it will be fine.

4 - A variation that Chef Huy mentioned was adding 2 tablespoons of finely chopped pineapple to the Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam. It adds a sweet sourness to the Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam. You can also add some threads of carrot or green papaya or slices of lemongrass.

5 - Nuoc Cham or Nuoc Mam can be stored in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. It actually improves its flavour over time as the flavours meld.

6 - If you want to make a vegetarian or vegan version of this, use Maggi seasoning instead of fish sauce.

Nước Mắm or Nước Chấm

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Preparation time: 5 minutes plus 15 minutes cooling time

Cooking time: 1 minutes

Makes enough for 1 large jar

• 150ml/5flozs water boiled straight from the kettle
• 135g/4.7ozs white or caster/superfine sugar
• 150ml/5flozs fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons/45ml/1.6flozs lime juice
• 5-6 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
• 1 small red chilli, finely diced

Step 1 - First whisk the sugar into the hot water in a large jug until completely dissolved. Cool. Whisk in the fish sauce and lime juice. Then mix in the garlic and chilli. Store in the fridge in a jar for up to 4-5 days.