Nuoc Sot Me (Tamarind Dipping Sauce for Grilled Meat), Made with Monk Fruit Sweetener
Vietnamese dishesSauces and DipsSouthern Vietnam80 minutes
Nuoc sot me usually goes wrong on balance. A good sauce is brightly sour, moderately salty and thick enough to cling to grilled meat. Too short a soak leaves it weak, and a careless strain leaves pulp and seeds behind.
The soaking water has to be at a full boil and fill the bowl, with a full 60 minutes for the tamarind to give up everything it has. Only after straining does the pan go on for the shallot, garlic and chili, and then the tamarind liquid goes in.
This batch weighs about 655g, at roughly 216 calories per 100g.
Method
Bring water to a boil. Put 40g tamarind pulp in a bowl, fill it with the boiling water, and soak for 60 minutes to draw out everything.
Strain out the pulp and seeds to leave a smooth bowl of tamarind liquid.
Set a pan with 2 tablespoons oil. Once it is hot, fry 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic, 1/2 tablespoon minced shallot and 1/2 tablespoon minced chili until fragrant.
Pour in all the tamarind liquid and stir well.
Add 1/2 bowl kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, 1/2 bowl fish sauce, 1 bowl water, 2 tablespoons chili sauce, 2 tablespoons ketchup and 1/2 teaspoon MSG.
Cook over low heat, stirring without stopping, until the sauce boils and thickens, then turn off the stove. Taste again and scatter over roasted sesame seeds to serve.
Tips
The soaking water has to be properly hot for the tamarind to give up all its sourness.
Fry the garlic, shallot and chili over medium heat until evenly golden, as anything scorched ruins the whole pot.
Add the chili sauce and ketchup last, since a screaming hot pan darkens the sauce and turns it harsh.
Stir without stopping while it cooks so the bottom of the pan does not catch.
The sauce thickens as it cools, so loosen it with a little warm water if needed.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.