C – My boyfriend isn’t a big fan of fish sauce.
I am not too surprised. I really didn’t expect a Southern boy from Tennessee to like all the things I eat all the time. Although, it might be an issue when he comes with me to visit my parents. My parents love when people like their food. It isn’t surprising. We are a food family.
So, when he finally went to eat at my parent’s house, he had to suck it up and eat the sweet fish sauce they made. He didn’t like it very much. But, he was a good sport and ate it anyway.
He ended up telling me, after we left, that he didn’t quite like it. He asked if he could have soy sauce the next time.
I asked him what was wrong. He said it must be an acquired taste. “Soy sauce, I am used to. Fish sauce will take a while.”
Well, this means I have to figure something out. Soy sauce can be a bit strong by itself. Especially, as a dipping sauce. It needs some sort of balancing ingredient to make it less salty. Sugar and vinegar are great choices to help balance out soy sauce.
I tried it. It worked! It’s the same ingredient profiles as in my dad’s sweet fish sauce, so he won’t be missing out on the full taste experience of whatever we are eating.
| Sweet Soy Dipping Sauce |
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp white distilled vinegar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 garlic clove, minced finely
- ½ cup boiling water
- Combine all ingredients. Mix until sugar is dissolved.
- Serve as a dipping sauce with lettuce wraps or grilled chicken.
- Enjoy!
It tasted good. Good balance of salty, sweet and sour. I added a minced garlic clove to give it a savory quality. Perfect!
Hope my boyfriend will like it, the next time we go to my parent’s house.