Food is a great topic for discussion among Cambodians: everyone has their own opinion on the most delicious foods and the best way to cook them, with individual tastes influenced by the cooking of the person’s province of origin.
Cambodian food isn’t normally spicy, although it is often fragrant with berbs such as lemon grass and coriander. Many dishes are variations on fare from other Asian countries, China being a case in point, as Khmer cuisine draws a lot on the longstanding Chinese influence in the country.
Traditionally, food is cooked in a single pot or wok, over a charcoal stove. Although gas burners are being introduced in the cities, many people don’t consider the food “delicious unless it’s been cooked over charcoal, and absorbed some of the smoky flavor.
A lot of dishes are fried in palm oil and aren’t drained before serving, so food can be quite greasy if you are vegetarian it’s worth being aware that the pan is seldom washed out between the meat and vegetable dishes.
As in many countries where rice is the staple food, the most common way to refer to eating in Cambodia is ngam bai, literally “eat rice”.
Most of the famous Khmer food are the curries and the spicy seasoned stews, plus the smooth and tasty coconut curries. Most of meals use rice as the filler, but there are many noodle dishes and salads without rice. Ovens are not part of the ordinary Cambodian kitchen or small restaurant, for cooked food is boiled, fried or stir-fried. Just about any combination of ingredients can be ordered cooked in this fashion; chicken or pork or frogs legs might be stir-fried with ginger, spring onions and garlic; or prown or chicken with basil leaves.
Rice or noodles can themselves be stir-fried with chopped pork, beef, crab or vegetables and an egg scrambled in or friend and served on top. A variation on the stir-fried them is the sweet and sour dish, usually made with fish or pork-though you can ask for a vegetarian version and flavored with a combination ingredients including pineapple, onion and either green or red tomatoes.
Stews and curries are often available at market stalls and cheap restaurants. Cambodian stews are usually based on light stock (beef or fish), complemented by bitter gourd or field melon. It’s not unusual for them to contain hard-boiled eggs either.
Curries, usually made with beef, are or mildly spicy and generally quite dry.
Smoky, charcoal-grilled chicken and fish are available everywhere from roadside stall to restaurants, the fish served with a dip grated green mango, chili, garlic and fish sauce, while the chicken comes with a salad garnish and a sweet chili sauce.
Khmer cuisine features two kinds of soup: samlar, freshly prepared to order and cooked quickly, and sop, based on a stock which has been simmering for a while. One of the commonest soups on restaurant menu is samlar sngor chruok, made either from chicken or fish and cooked with onion, lemon and chives.
