Garlic, Lime, and Chili Dipping Sauce
Nam Jim Seafood
A raw garlic, lime, and cilantro dipping sauce for steamed or fried seafood
- Prep
- 20 min
- Serves
- 4
- Heat
- hot
Nam Jim Seafood is really more of a category than a single fixed recipe, but this version leans hard into garlic and cilantro, both used generously and left uncooked so their raw, sharp flavors stay front and center. Lime juice and coconut sugar syrup balance out into a proper sweet-sour base, with fish sauce adding salt and thin-sliced chili bringing the heat. Because nothing here is cooked, the sauce is best mixed close to serving time, with the cilantro folded in only at the very last minute so it doesn't wilt or lose its brightness before it hits the table.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons Garlic (peeled, finely chopped or pressed)
- 3-4 Thai hot chilies (sliced into thin rings)
- 4 tablespoons Fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons Coconut sugar (dissolved in a little water)
- 3 tablespoons Fish sauce
- 1 bunch Coriander/cilantro leaves (cut gently into 1/2-inch pieces, not chopped)
Directions
- Dissolve the coconut sugar in a tablespoon of water, warming briefly (in a microwave or over low heat) without boiling, until smooth and syrupy.
- Squeeze the lime juice. Slice the cilantro gently into 1/2-inch pieces, being careful not to bruise it or chop it fine. Chop or press the garlic. Slice the chilies into thin rings.
- Stir together the lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar syrup.
- Stir in the garlic and chili.
- Let the mixture sit for about 20 minutes to let the flavors blend.
- Just before serving, gently stir in the cilantro. Garnish with an extra sprig of cilantro.
Notes
Slice the cilantro gently rather than chopping it fine — chopping bruises the leaves and releases their juices too quickly, dulling the sauce's freshness by the time it's served.
Substitutions
This sauce is best made shortly before serving, since it's uncooked and loses some of its bright flavor if it sits too long.