Thai crack sauce or prik nam pla is an all-purpose sauce that tastes addictively delicious on practically everything! It's savory, tangy, sweet, spicy and packed with umami. Prik nam pla is super easy to throw together and perfect for anything from dipping spring rolls or adding to fried rice. For a more mellow version, try nuoc cham, Vietnamese dipping sauce, which is also very versatile.
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How to enjoy crack sauce
This Thai crack sauce is DELICIOUS with anything! Anything that makes you ponder if under-seasoned, flat, or missing something can be fixed with a little drizzle of or a dipping in this crack sauce. Here are some of our favorites:
- Any protein (especially when grilled) - steak and shrimps are our top favorites
- Fried Vietnamese spring rolls
- Fresh spring rolls
- Thai fried rice
- Pad Thai
Ingredients needed
Please scroll down to the recipe card for the ingredient quantities!
- Garlic and bird's eye chili - These two are must-haves to make Thai crack sauce. Bird's eye chili really brings the heat, so adjust the amount used according to your spice tolerance. I have a medium low tolerance and 2-3 chili peppers is a comfortable amount for me.
- Shallot - Although it's not a must, shallot adds an additional layer of flavor and gives the sauce a slight body.
- Fish sauce - The savory note in the sauce. We used the Three Crabs brand fish sauce.
- Lime juice - Make sure to use fresh limes! It not only adds the mouthwatering acidity, but fresh lime juice also gives the sauce a nice touch brightness.
- Sugar - To help round out the tang and saltiness.
- Cilantro - This is totally optional. If you a cilantro fan, you'll love it!
How to make crack sauce aka prik nam pla
Please scroll down to the recipe card for the full recipe and instructions!
1. Grind the aromatics. Place the roughly chopped garlic, shallot, and chili into a mortar and pestel and grind it into a rough paste. The finer the paste, the more body the sauce will have.
2. Season. Add the fish sauce, lime juice, and sugar. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. At this point, you can taste the sauce and decide if you want to make the sauce saltier, tangier, or sweeter.
3. Finish. Optionally, add finely chopped cilantro to the sauce. Stir and enjoy!
Recipe tips
- Use a food process instead of a mortar and pestle. It's traditional to grind up the aromatic with a mortar and pestle to release more flavor, but if you prefer, you can chop up the garlic, shallot, and chili in the food process or even by hand. If chopping by hand, make sure to wear gloves or wash your hands really well after handling the peppers.
- Refrigerate the sauce for a couple of hours to let the flavors marry together. Freshly made sauce packs on a punch of salty, savory, tang, and sweet. But after it sits, the flavors will still pack a punch but tastes more balanced.
Storage
This sauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week with cilantro or 2 to 3 weeks if not contaminated and without cilantro. But the sauce does become more mellow as it sits, so it's good to make small amounts whenever you need it.
📖 Recipe
Crack Sauce (Prik Nam Pla)
Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic cut into smaller chunks
- ¼ piece shallot peeled and cut into ¼ inch chucks
- 1-3 bird's eye chili cut into ¼ inch pieces (more or less to your spice preferences)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice about 1 lime per TBSP
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons cilantro finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Place the garlic, shallot, and chili peppers into a mortar and pestle and grind into a rough, chunky paste. Note: the finer the paste, the thicker the sauce will be.
- To the paste, add fish sauce, lime juice, and sugar. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Optionally, stir in the finely chopped cilantro.
- Enjoy the sauce with with any protein, appetizers like spring rolls, or add to any dish that needs some extra love! If you have time, let the sauce sit for a couple of hours in the fridge to allow the flavors to marry. But freshly made sauce is perfectly fine for using as well. It'll just have a bit more punch.
Notes
- Mortar and pestle alternative - If you don't have a mortar and pestle, you can use a food process to chop up the garlic, shallot, and peppers. Or you can mince everything by hand! Grinding with a mortar and pestle is more traditional and helps to release more flavor from the aromatics and peppers.
- Shallot - If you prefer, you can substitute the shallot for an extra clove of garlic.
KBarber says
I know this is a large amount, but if I may give them both, how long will it last in the refrigerator a month sounds delicious. Can’t wait to make thank you.
Mei says
Hi there! This recipe actually only makes about 1/3 cup of sauce, so not too much. If you were to store it, we recommend using it up in no more than 1 week, as there are a lot of herbs and aromatics that will go bad. It goes well with practically everything, so we never really have leftovers. =)
Mei ❤️