BEST FISH SAUCE RECIPE!
My Vietnamese Fish Sauce Recipe aka Nước Mắm
Being of Vietnamese heritage fish sauce is a staple in my household, I love this stuff so much I can literally drink it! I use it for rice paper rolls, salad dressings, noodles, grilled meat, practically everything and anything! I even use fish sauce with fruit (green mango yummm)!
Today I am sharing my Nuoc Mam recipe, it's simple as it only uses a couple of ingredients but complex in that it's about getting the right balance of saltiness, sweetness and sourness. Also it can be quite controversial as every Vietnamese kid will claim their mum has the best recipe! My recipe is my own version which I hope is equally just as good! Enjoy!
My Version:
- Brand - try and get your hands on Viet Huong fish sauce, it has 3 Crabs on the label, its my personal favourite.
- Sugar - I've substituted part of the sugar for some coconut sugar. I find that it gives this really nice subtle sweetness. But you can omit it and just use all white sugar - the result will still be just as tasty.
- Lime vs Lemons - I prefer limes, you can use lemon which is absolutely fine but just like my mojito, I like it with limes. I use the lime segments, not just the juice, the flesh gives the sauce pops of freshness.
- Red Chilli - I use large long chilli because I love the beautiful colour it brings to the sauce. The small chillies are for heat.
- Garlic - If possible use Australian garlic but do not skimp and use the cheap imported bleached garlic.
- Method for mixing - I like to either blitz it in a blender or use a mortar & pestle to smash the ingredients I find it releases the flavours better than just simply chopping it and stirring it all together.
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup white sugar (optional remove 1 tbsp and replace with 1 tbsp coconut sugar)
- 1/4 cup fish sauce (Viet Huong 3 Crabs Brand)
- 1/2 cup water
- 4-5 lime segments (half a lime)
- 1-2 birds eye chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 1/2 large red long chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped
- 1-2 garlic cloves, peeled roughly chopped
Method:
via Blender
- In the blender add sugar, water, lime segments, chillies & garlic and blend on high for 30 secs until mixture is smooth.
- Stir in fish sauce.
via Mortar and Pestle
- In a bowl add water, fish sauce, half of the sugar and stir to dissolve. Set aside.
- In a mortar & pestle add remaining sugar, lime segments, chillies & garlic and smash to form a wet paste (the friction of the grainy sugar helps break everything up).
- Add paste to the fish/water/sugar bowl and stir to combine.
Cooks Notes:
- This is my standard ratio for Nuoc Mam so start with it as a base first. As with using any fresh ingredients, today your lime might be juicer than it is tomorrow or you chilli is extra hot today, so you may need to adjust it to taste. If you like it sweeter, add more sugar, if you want it a bit more sour, add more lime. If the fish sauce is too strong for you, add a bit more water. It's all about getting the right balance.
- It will keep in the fridge sealed for over a week.
- Once it settles, all the solids will float to the top of the dressing. Be sure to stir before using.
- I will use this base recipe for my other Vietnamese recipes. Stay Tuned!
