diff --git a/docker/development/nginx/default.conf b/docker/development/nginx/default.conf
index 126df16b..3ff41fe0 100644
--- a/docker/development/nginx/default.conf
+++ b/docker/development/nginx/default.conf
@@ -3,10 +3,15 @@ server {
   listen [::]:443 ssl http2;
   server_name _API_DOMAIN_;
 
+
   location / {
     # Using a variable here stops nginx from crashing if the dev container is restarted or becomes otherwise unavailable
-    set $backend_upstream devenv;
-    proxy_pass http://$backend_upstream:_API_PORT_;
+    set $backend_upstream "http://devenv:_API_PORT_";
+    # Using a variable in proxy_pass also requires resolver to be set.
+    # This is the address of the internal docker compose DNS server.
+    resolver 127.0.0.11;
+
+    proxy_pass $backend_upstream;
 
     client_max_body_size 200M;
   }