Cambodian Food & Traditional Cuisine, Phnom Penh

Asian Rice & Freshwater Fish, Herbs & Spices, Tropical Fruit

Oct 7, 2009

Based on local produce from rivers and fields, Cambodian food is deliciously fresh and tasty, healthy and sometimes surprising.

The traditional cuisine of Cambodia borrows a few flavours from its neighbours and former French masters but from soup and rice to freshwater fish, Asian food in Phnom Penh comes with a twist. There are fresh baguettes, noodles and curries but chilli can be added to taste, like salt and pepper, and locals happily snack on tropical fruit or fried crickets and spiders. The lean years of the Khmer Rouge are not forgotten and all protein is good for the pot.

Sweet and sour dishes, including soup, are usually served at the same time and eaten with spoon and fork or chopsticks. All is washed down with tea, the national drink, though visitors often opt for a bottle of Angkor beer.

Some of the finest Asian rice comes from the Battambang province in north-west Cambodia. Rice is served with every meal and may be aromatic, glutinous or sticky for desserts. Mild curries are popular, as is kyteow, a healthy rice noodle soup and a complete meal in itself. Rice porridge can be eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and is delicious flavoured with ginger.

Freshwater fish plays a major role in the Cambodian diet, ranging from catfish to whitebait and brought in every day from the Mekong, the Bassac and the vast Tonle Sap lake. Recipes abound and there’s also fish sauce, served as a dip or used in stir fries and soups. The ultimate Khmer addiction is prahok, a fermented fish paste which adds an unmistakable tang to a variety of dishes.

Chefs in Phnom Penh use spices fairly sparingly, often blending them with herbs to achieve the distinctive Khmer flavour. Popular ingredients include nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, turmeric and ginger as well as kaffir lime leaves or zest, lemongrass, garlic and shallots. Herbs and spices are carefully combined to produce the unique aromatic paste known as Kroeung.

Individual Kroeungs come in different flavours to accompany specific dishes, meat, fish or fresh vegetables, such as bamboo shoots, snow peas, oriental squash or winter melon. Kroeungs may be green, yellow or red, depending on the blend. Royal Kroeungs contain additional herbs.

Cambodian desserts make good use of local produce such as rice, vegetables and fruit. Favourites include sticky sesame rice, rice puddings baked with banana or coconut, and vegetable puddings such as mung bean or pumpkin and potato. Those who prefer something cool could do as the locals do and try an ice cream sandwich.

Tropical fruit are plentiful and cheap, neatly piled up on the market stalls. The pungent durian is best handled with care but Cambodians are spoilt for choice, with star and rose apples, mangosteen, rambutan, dragon fruit, pineapple and more. Mangoes are available all year but most tasty are the local ones, ready in the spring.

The copyright of the article Cambodian Food & Traditional Cuisine, Phnom Penh in Cambodia Travel is owned by Solange Hando. Permission to republish Cambodian Food & Traditional Cuisine, Phnom Penh in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.