Nuoc Mam (and more)

the staple of Vietnamese cooking

Yes, Richard Parker, you can have nuoc mam with your dinner. 


Fish sauce or Nuoc Mam is a staple of the Vietnamese diet. It is made all over Vietnam, but the largest producers are in the Mekong Delta and on the island of Phu Quoc. The amber-coloured liquid is made by fermenting layers of fish and salt in large vats. The resultant liquid is tapped from the bottom of the vats at intervals. The first tap, Nuoc Ma No 1 is the best quality and so on down to Nuoc Mam No 7. Fish sauce is also used extensively in the cuisines of Cambodia, Thailand and the Philippines.

the fish and salt are fermented in wooden vats

Fish sauce is not only added to dishes during the cooking process, but also used as a base for NUOC MAM CHAM, (recipe follows) a dipping sauce for fish, shrimp, pork, and chicken. Most Vietnamese fish sauces are made from anchovies or other raw fish, although some use dried fish; most from only a single species, others from whatever is dredged up in the net!

The fermented liquid is drained from the bottom of the vat. Best quality nuoc mam is that which is drained first.

Hoa, my Vietnamese teacher, came over to teach me how
to make goi cuon. Notice the nuoc mam and oyster sauce
on the counter!

Fish sauce is not only added to dishes during the cooking process, but also used as a base for NUOC MAM CHAM, (recipe follows) a dipping sauce for fish, shrimp, pork and chicken. 

our goi cuon

Hoa and I made goi cuon (fresh spring rolls) with 2 dipping sauces:

Dipping Sauce 1:
4 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. peanut butter
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. fish sauce (to taste)
1 teas. rice vinegar
2 tbsp. chicken or vegetable broth
1 garlic clove
1/8 teas. pepper
1 teas. Asian hot sauce

Heat all ingredients in sauce pan. Slowly bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool.

Hoa and I make goi cuon

Fish sauces can contain only fish and salt, or have a variety of herbs and spices added. Vietnamese prepared fish sauce is lightly sweet and salty tasting, and can even be sour and spicy if lime and chile peppers are added. The fish sauces used in western cuisine are generally prepared using fresh or packaged fish, not made from fermented fish. Fish sauce that has been only briefly fermented has a very fishy taste, longer fermentation reduces this and gives the product a nuttier, richer and more savory flavor.

Vietnamese made fish sauce stopped being exported to Europe and NA in 1975 when the Americans pulled out of Vietnam and imposed an embargo on Vietnamese products. Markets opened up again in the late 1980’s and Vietnam has struggled to re-establish its market share, lost to China and Thailand. In early 2002, an agreement was reached with France and the EU to register its Phu Quoc trademark. Similar agreements have been negotiated in North America and Japan.

 In Vietnam, there is also a popular food item called mam, which is made the same way as fish sauce, except that both the fish and the liquid extract, not just the liquid, are kept, and mam is fermented for a shorter period than fish sauce. It is either eaten as is (uncooked), or cooked in soups or stir-fries.

At this restaurant, patrons are able to choose the seafood they want to eat or purchase it to take home.

At the same restaurant, we were served frogs' legs. (there were live frogs on display as well). As much as I like frogs, I must admit, they were very tasty.















 Another restaurant we visited specializes in Vietnamese pancakes, which are made in full view of the restaurant patrons. They are similar to omlettes or crepes, or even pizza, with a huge variety of fillings available.

Making 'pancakes'

Hot work!

The picture at the left is taken in my kitchen! I have 1 small sauce pan and a wok, so asparagus soup is made in the wok! And yes, a teaspoon of nuoc mam was added!

Nuoc Mam Cham (dipping Sauce)

1/2 cup of water

1 tablespoon rice or plain vinegar (optional)

2 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice (about 2 limes)

2 tbsp sugar

1 hot red chile pepper or Jalapeno (or more to taste)

3 cloves of garlic

1/8 cup fish sauce, adjust to taste

pickled carrots and daikon, optional. (shred a couple carrots and daikon and p;ut in a large mason jar. Cover with distilled white vinegar, 1 tsp. salt and sugar to taste. Let sit 1 hour before using. Daikon is also known as white radish – use North American red radishes if you can’t find daikon)

store brand chile garlic sauce (optional)

 Directions:

Add water and sugar to mix well to dissolve. Add lime juice and vinegar (optional). Mince garlic and chiles together and add to the mixture. Slowly add the fish sauce a few tablespoons at a time. Taste frequently and stop when you feel it’s just right. For a deeper red color, add some chile garlic sauce. Add pickled carrots and daikon to the mixture according to your taste.

Fish Fillet with Lemon Grass (with thanks to Victory Star Cruise Line)

2 skinless white fish fillets

2 sticks fresh lemon grass

2 teas. grated ginger

2 tbsp. oil

3 teas. NUOC MAM

1 teas. oyster sauce

1 teas. sugar

1/2 an onion, chopped

2 shallots chopped
1 peeled carrot
1 stalk celery
fresh dill to taste
1 red chile, minced
Directions:
Marinade: Peel lemon grass and chop.
In a bowl, mix ginger, nuoc mam, oyster sauce, sugar, half the chopped lemon grass, 1 tbsp. oil and 1 teas. minced red chile.
Slice the fish into cubes and mix with the marinade. Marinade at least 2 hours in the fridge.
Chop the onion and carrot, mince the shallots.
Heat the wok or pan on high heat. Add 1 tbsp. oil. When the oil is hot, add the shallots and remianing lemon grass. Stir 1 minute and add the carrots, keep stirring while adding, after 30 seconds, the onion. Stir and add celery. Cook 1 minute and add fish. Continue stirring at medium high heat and add chicken stock, dill and remaining red chile.
Cook all at least another minute (or until fish is done).
Serve with steamed rice. Serves 2.

Chopstick Etiquette

The finer points of chopstick etiquette vary from region to region in Asia, but the principals are the same. The Chinese use a longer style than other countries, wood sets that come to a rounded or blunt end. The Japanese use short, wooden sticks that come to a sharper pointy end.
The Koreans use shorter, metallic, wood or plastic sticks that are often blunt at the end.
The Vietnamese use longer sticks that also come to a blunted end as in China; often wooden, but can be made of plastic as well. 

• never wave chopsticks around, bang them like drumsticks or use them to move bowls or plates.
• never hover over food with your chopsticks, deciding what to choose, or poke the food looking for some special ingredient
• when picking up a piece of food, never use your chopsticks like a spear. They can be used to tear larger items
• when not in use, rest your chopsticks horizontally on your plate or bowl. A chopstick rest can also be used to keep the ends off the table.
• never stab chopsticks into food or bowls or leave them standing upright. (this could be thought to represent an incense stick that is used to honour deceased relatives).