The Magical Sauce

December 2, 2013

The Magical Sauce © kvalifood.com

A Vietnamese all-purpose dipping sauce with nuoc mam, vinegar, chilli, garlic, and quick-pickled carrot and peppers. It’s similar to standard nuoc cham but includes pickled vegetables that add texture and crunch. The author calls it “magical” because it complements so many different dishes.

Ingredients

3 tbsp Nuoc mam
1 tbsp Sugar
6 fl oz (200 ml) Water
1 tbsp Red chilli
1 oz (30 g) Young carrot
4 tbsp Vinegar
6 cloves Garlic
5 Vietnamese peppers

Directions

Peel and finely chop the garlic cloves. Seed and chop the red chilli.
Slice the Vietnamese peppers thinly. Cut the young carrot into thin slices or matchsticks. Toss the peppers and carrot with a splash of the vinegar and a pinch of the sugar, and set aside briefly to quick-pickle.
In a bowl, combine the nuoc mam with the water. Add the remaining vinegar and remaining sugar, and stir until the sugar dissolves.
Add the chopped chilli and chopped garlic to the liquid.
Stir in the quick-pickled carrot and peppers along with their liquid.

Notes

Keeps for about 2 days - the pickled vegetables lose their crunch beyond that.
The original source describes this as complementing “numerous dishes,” making it a good general-purpose table sauce.
Vietnamese peppers (ớt hiểm) are mildly spicy. Substitute with any mild fresh chilli if unavailable.