{"id":33299,"title":"Nem Sauce – Easy N\u01b0\u1edbc Ch\u1ea5m","modified":"2025-06-16T08:28:25+02:00","plain":"Nuoc cham, also known as nem sauce, is a flavorful and versatile Vietnamese condiment. When you think of many Vietnamese dishes, it is hard to imagine enjoying them without a little nuoc cham on the side! \n\n\n\nYes, even though in France n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m is often associated with a single version, the sauce served with nems, it is actually an umbrella term that covers an entire family of dipping sauces.\n\n\n\nWhat is nuoc cham?\n\n\n\nThe expression is a symbol of Vietnam's culinary diversity, covering countless preparations made with fish sauce (n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm), soy sauce, condensed milk, or tamarind paste. The terminology, however, varies from one region of Vietnam to another.\n\n\n\nIn the south, where options abound, the term n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m is often used to distinguish a dipping sauce from a plain bowl of fish sauce or soy sauce. During family meals with the older generation, people usually speak of n\u01b0\u1edbc t\u01b0\u01a1ng or n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm. \n\n\n\nUnlike diners in the North and in Mi\u1ec1n Trung, most Southerners and people from the Mi\u1ec1n T\u00e2y region do not dip their food into straight n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm. They prefer a blended sauce, usually sweetened with sugar. As a result, the expressions n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m or even \u0111\u1ed3 ch\u1ea5m are used to describe any sauce meant for dipping.\n\n\n\nFor many people, n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m means n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm that has been diluted and seasoned with water, sugar, garlic, chili, coconut milk, and so on...\n\n\n\nThat said, in a restaurant, if you ask \"cho xin n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m,\" the server may bring you a range of sauces - chili sauce, mayonnaise, fish sauce, soy sauce, m\u1eafm n\u00eam, or other s\u1ed1t - chosen to suit your dish. Basically, you are asking for a dipping sauce.\n\n\n\nIn the North, n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm that has been mixed with other ingredients is called n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm pha. Often, however, people just say n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm, with the pha element understood; the term n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m is more often used for condiments whose main component is not n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm. \n\n\n\nThese terms can, of course, overlap. In this article, n\u01b0\u1edbc ch\u1ea5m refers to a salty, sweet, tangy, and spicy sauce made with fish sauce, garlic, lime juice, sugar, chilies, and vinegar.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nA dipping sauce, a vinaigrette, and a condiment in one!\n\n\n\nThis nem sauce wears many hats at the table.\n\n\n\nIt is perfect for dipping spring rolls and pork nems or chicken nems, and it also makes an excellent dressing for Vietnamese rice noodle salads like b\u00f2 b\u00fan. You can even dip my famous b\u00e1nh cu\u1ed1n\n\n\n\nDelicious banh cuon\n\n\n\nIt is also fantastic with almost any grilled meat. Dip your meat in it or drizzle nuoc cham over rice on the side. Trust me, the bowl will be empty halfway through the meal.\n\n\n\nWhether you use nuoc cham as a dressing, a dip, or even a meat marinade, it is so versatile and tasty that I consider it an almost perfect condiment.\n\n\n\nQuick summer salad idea with nuoc cham\n\n\n\n\nLettuce\n\n\n\nGrated daikon radish\n\n\n\nGrated carrots\n\n\n\nGrated Chinese cabbage\n\n\n\nSome aromatics such as scallions, shallots and cilantro\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nHow to store nem sauce?\n\n\n\nIt keeps for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. Always use clean utensils when serving.\n\n\n\nNem sauce ingredients\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWhite rice vinegar: the most common Asian vinegar. You will find it in almost every store, but if necessary, substitute white wine vinegar.\n\n\n\nFish sauce, or nuoc mam: it does not taste fishy; it is simply delicious and is a staple of Vietnamese cooking.\n\n\n\nSecret tip: if you are lucky enough to have some, add a little m\u1eb9 to the sauce; cooks in some regions of Vietnam do this.\n\n\n\n\n\n\tEasy Nem Sauce - Nuoc Cham\n\t\t\n\t\tAn easy, quick and authentic recipe for nem sauce or nuoc cham\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t1.5 tablespoons palm sugar (or white sugar)2 tablespoons water (hot)1 tablespoons fish sauce1 tablespoons rice vinegar1 tablespoons lime juice (freshly squeezed)1 garlic clove  (minced)1 tablespoons red chili (Thai chili for more heat; sliced\/chopped)5 leaves cilantro  (chopped, optional)\t\n\t\n\t\tIn a small bowl, dissolve the sugar in the hot water. Once dissolved, stir in the fish sauce and rice vinegar.When you are ready to serve the nuoc cham, add the freshly squeezed lime juice, minced garlic and sliced chilies.\t\n\t\n\t\tIf you like more heat, use fresh chopped Thai chilies instead of regular chilies\n\t\n\t\n\t\tSauceVietnamesenems, rouleaux de printemps frits","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33299"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33299\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}