Nuoc Cham Shrimp Cocktail

This sauce is the perfect mashup of cocktail sauce and nuoc cham and makes for a unique twist on shrimp cocktail! All the flavors are there, the sweet fish sauce, the tart lime juice, and the spicy horseradish kick! To take it up a notch, the shrimp are poached in a lemongrass and lime mixture so there is flavor added everywhere!

The inspiration for this recipe

I was eating a shrimp snack the other day, as one does, and I wanted to make a really quick cocktail sauce to go with it. After looking in the fridge and was surprised to see we were out of ketchup. I grabbed the sambal chili paste instead and mixed it up with some horseradish, lime juice, and worcestershire. Right away, I knew I was on to something good! I made it again the next day to test this recipe and take photos, and add nuoc cham ingredients to make it a true shrimp cocktail mashup.

Poach the shrimp

Fill a pan with some water and add lemongrass, lime, and salt. Bring to a simmer and add the shrimp. Cook a few minutes per side, and spread them out on a pan to cool in the fridge.

Make the nouc cham cocktail sauce

Start by making a super simple nouc cham base. Warm up some water, stir in sugar, and add the fish sauce.

Next we are adding some ingredients that could go into both dips. Grated garlic, lime, and sambal chili paste. Cocktail sauce would probably be lemon, garlic and hot sauce, while nuoc cham would be lime, garlic, and fresh chilis.

Finally finish it off with traditional cocktail sauce ingredients. Worcestershire, horseradish, and ketchup.

Serve the nuoc cham cocktail sauce

I served the shrimp on a bed of cucumber and carrot, and topped the cocktail sauce with some parsley and fresno chili.

Look how flavorful this sauce looks! Every bite was begging me to come back for more! Shrimp cocktail is one of my favorite things, and this twist brings it to the next level!

Twists on Nuoc Cham Shrimp Cocktail

You could adjust this to your tastes by adjusting the ratio of nuoc cham to cocktail sauce. If you are making it for the first time, you could add less fish sauce at first, then add more to your personal taste.

For more info on nuoc cham, the famous Vietnamese dipping sauce, check out this post.

For more great shrimp recipes, check out my shrimp avocado fresh rolls, these chimichurri shrimp burgers, or this grilled shrimp and broccoli gyoza!