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Thai

Nam jim kai (Thai sweet chilli sauce)

Vegetarian

น้ำจิ้มไก่ · nam chim kai

Thailand's sweet, sour and gently hot dipping sauce of red chillies and garlic simmered in sugar and vinegar until syrupy — made for grilled chicken and fried snacks.

Nam jim kai (Thai sweet chilli sauce) is a Thai sauce from Thailand, ready in about 45 minutes and made with fresh red chilli, sugar and white vinegar. It serves 13 and is rated easy to cook.

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Prep
10 min
Cook
15 min
Rest
20 min
Total
45 min
Serves
13
Level
Easy
Calories
66

Ingredients

13 servings of 30 ml

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Pulse the chillies and garlic (opens in a new tab) with a splash of the vinegar to a coarse paste with visible flecks — not a smooth purée.

  2. Step 2

    Put the paste in a saucepan (opens in a new tab) with the remaining vinegar, the water, sugar (opens in a new tab) and salt. Stir and bring to a boil.

  3. Step 3

    Simmer until reduced by about a third and syrupy; it should coat the back of a spoon. Stir in the cornstarch (opens in a new tab) slurry for the last minute if you want a thicker, bottle-style sauce.

    • 10 min
    • medium-low heat

    Food safety: Boiling sugar syrup is far hotter than boiling water and sticks to skin — keep children away and don't taste from the spoon.

    A curry simmering in a pot
    How it looks · Photo: Bachir Mamud on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Cool in the pan (it thickens as it cools), then pour into a clean, sterilised jar.

About this dish

Origin
Thailand · Commonly attributedThe name means 'chicken dipping sauce'; the commercial style is often linked to the town of Si Racha, but that attribution is popular rather than documented.Also popular in Australia, United KingdomMore food from Thailand
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Snack · Sauces · Dips & spreads · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
Cooking method
Simmered, Blended
Taste
sweet & spicy, sweet & sour, garlicky
Diet
Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Low-carb
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · Low-fat · DASH-style
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead · Budget-friendly
Cook more with
Fresh red chilli · Sugar · White vinegar · Garlic
Techniques
Boiling · Simmering · Wet grinding · Reduction · Emulsification

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

66 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 36 g · recipe makes 13

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 1%
  • Carbohydrate 99%
  • Fat 0%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy66 kcal184 kcal
Protein0.2 g0.6 g
Carbohydrate16.6 g45.8 g
Net carbohydrate16.4 g45.5 g
Sugars15.6 g43.2 g
Added sugars15.4 g42.6 g
Fibre0.1 g0.3 g
Fat0 g0.1 g
Saturated fat0 g0 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium270 mg748 mg
Salt equivalent0.7 g1.9 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
25 mg
Calcium
7 mg
Iron
0.1 mg
Magnesium
2 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
2 µg
Vitamin C
7 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
1 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: cornstarch.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Test the thickness on a cold saucer — stop reducing as soon as it barely wrinkles.

Common mistakes

  • Over-reducing until the sugar caramelises; it sets like jam once cold.

Serve with

  • With gai yang (grilled chicken), fish cakes, spring rolls or fried tofu.

Food safety

  • Use a sterilised jar and a clean spoon each time; discard if mould appears.

Storage

  • Refrigerate in a sterilised jar for up to 1 month.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

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Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

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Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in step 1

Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.

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