Siem Reap Throwback: Nom Banh Chok (Khmer Fish Curry Noodles)
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| Nom Banh Chok (Khmer Curry Noodles) |
In early July 2014, I arrived in the city of Siem Reap, smack into a ripening summer and heat thick and sticky like mango skins. Relatively speaking, Cambodia is a fairly new player on the field of global tourism, having only recently emerged from three decades of armed conflict. I remember, however, that walking through the urban hum of Siem Reap, it was hard to believe that that region went through a genocide of almost 2 million deaths less than 50 years ago. At first glance, tourism had bloomed well, and understandably, seeing as the town adjoins the World Heritage site of Angkor Wat. 20 minutes of tuk-tuk, the widespread motorbike-pulled rickshaw, was all it took to arrive to the temple ruins, loved in millennium-old elephantine buttress roots and turf that smelled of monsoon rains. It wasn't a city à la New York's overwhelmingly polished dazzle, but nonetheless 5-stars hotels lined the main Airport Road, a French Quarter proudly displayed its manicured garden and Pub Street, the neighboring quarter, was a bustling nerve center for foreign travelers.
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| Night snacking at a chocolate-banana pancake stall on Pub Street |
In Siem Reap's inner city streets, the presence of food is ubiquitous. At every block there will be a street cart, a small open-air restaurant or a convenience store selling snacks or young coconut husks. Traditional Khmer markets are open-air and vibrant, with rows of chickens skillfully arrayed feet-up, snuggled beside fresh pork loins and a corner of Khmer donuts. Those markets are typically divided into sections according to the type of products that they sell, but there is a distinctive meddling of aromas as you get closer to the market's heart: the food stalls' area. Vapors of pork broth, sweet desserts in the steamer and exposed raw meat coalesce into a strong and characteristic fragrance. Early morning is when townsfolk activity is the most buoyant as the night's cooling properties still linger in the air, and the markets can get crowded starting as early as 6 A.M. Stallholders serve breakfast amidst the labyrinthine display of seafood ice buckets and fresh produce baskets on the ground. During those morning hours, the markets are busy to navigate around, but the palpable energy created by all this buzz and bustle is absolutely magnetic and irreplicable. It is quite a memorable experience to pull up a stool and just be slurping rice soup next to the sounds of fish heads being chopped off. The next best thing is that these places are treasure troves of local ingredients and cuisines: street and stall food are practically bound to the culinary identity of South-East Asia.
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| Nom Banh Chok stall in the Old Market |
A particular coup-de-coeur that I adopted as my go-to breakfast during my stay in Siem Reap was nom banh chok, also called "Khmer curry noodles" by foreigners. At the intersection of Street 21 and Achar Sva Street, there's a restaurant that serves the heartiest, chock-full of offal, chicken curry nom banh chok. Typically, nom banh chok can mean any of the 2 versions available in Cambodia: a chicken curry version, or a curried fish gravy version. Both are absolutely amazing. The broth is coconut curry-based, creamy, potent and deliciously flavor-complex with aromas of lemongrass and kaffir limes. It is then poured on top of num banh chok noodles (a type of rice vermicelli) layered with fresh raw vegetables such as chopped up green beans, sliced cucumbers, Thai basil, banana blossoms and crunchy bean sprouts.
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| Nom Banh Chok - Fish Curry Gravy Version |
I first fell for the chicken variety, but I then fortuitously discovered the fish gravy version at a village that we were helping out. The NGO I was working with (BFT Center) has different coordinators for the variety of issues that it covers (ie.: health, education, etc...). Being a nutrition student at the time, I usually tagged along with my health coordinator. That day, however, our health group was requested to help along with the construction of a preschool in Bos Em village. The first surprise of that day was the incredible manual dexterity of the villagers: everything from the school's stone foundations to the pole framing was built by hand. When we arrived, the villagers were handcrafting their construction tools, which was already quite ingenious and impressive to watch. Throughout the day, we helped dig up the perimeter trench, layered stones down in it and pounded the life out of them with a makeshift stone drilling hammer. As we dripped sweat and blister blood into a mortar coating, the villagers were adeptly taking care of the hardwood frame. You know, simply written like this, pounding rocks doesn't sound like such a hard task... but come lunchtime I was completely drained. In my defense though, the makeshift hammer was three-quarter my size.
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| Building at Bos Em Village |
This nom banh chok recipe is for the fish curry gravy variety. I know it looks a bit underwhelming compared to the chicken curry one, which is piled up with condiments and offal, but the taste should not be underestimated: its lemongrass-based seasoning is epic. In fact, my mom loves it so much that she's been using this lemongrass paste on pretty much every other meat these days.
For aesthetic purposes, I have baked some extra chunks of basa fish coated with the lemongrass paste as a marinade, but the basa gravy alone already gives all the flavor oomph this dish needs.
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| Nom Banh Chok - Fish Curry Gravy |
Nom Banh Chok (Khmer Curry Noodles: Fish Curry Gravy Version)
Adapted from Rambling Spoon and the Friends NGO's lovely cookbook From Spiders to Water Lilies: Creative Cambodian Cooking with Friends
Portions: 2
Ingredients:
Fish gravy:
200g basa fish fillets (Substitute with any firm white fish)
(Optional) 1 medium leek, white and green parts only, roughly chopped
(Optional) 2 strips of kaffir lime zest (Substitute with lemon zest)
2 tablespoons lemongrass paste (recipe down below)
1 tablespoon peanut butter (chunky will give a more interesting texture)
350 ml fish stock
150 ml coconut-flavored soy milk (Substitute with full coconut milk with you want)
75 ml coconut milk
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 1/2 teaspoon crushed palm sugar (or brown sugar)
Salt to taste
Lemongrass paste (makes 1 cup - you'll have more than what's needed for this recipe but it freezes very well):
100g young lemongrass (about 8 stalks), lower bulb cut off and tough outer layers peeled away (you only want the softer, pale lower sections - the green tougher upper ends can be frozen to later be infused for broths or syrups)
1 1/2 teaspoon peeled and chopped galangal
1/2 teaspoon peeled and chopped ginger
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
Zest of half a kaffir lime
To serve:
250g rice vermicelli, cooked al dente
200g cucumber, sliced into matchsticks
100g green beans, chopped into 1 inch pieces
100g bean sprouts
Thai basil (to garnish)
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| Lemongrass paste prepping |
Preparation:
Lemongrass paste:
1. Using a sharp knife (lemongrass fibers are tough), chop the young lemongrass stalks (they should be pale beige, almost white) into thin slices. Then, place them into a food processor and process until they look minced.
2. Using a mortar and pestle, pound your processed lemongrass to a pulp (the food processing step can be skipped if you have a mortar big enough to fit all your lemongrass slices. I didn't, so the processing helped in making the lemongrass a bit more compact for pounding, which then releases its aroma and volatile oils).
3. Return that lemongrass pulp to the food processor and add all the remaining ingredients. Blitz it until you obtain a sandy paste. It will not look like a thick wet paste peanut butter-style, but rather feel like a crumbled up moist cake.
4. Reserve 2 tablespoons of that lemongrass paste and freeze the rest.
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| Pestle & Mortar: Lemongrass paste |
Fish gravy:
1. Next, poach your fish fillets. In a pot or pan large enough to poach your fillets, bring to boil 3 cups of water. Then, if using, add the leek and strips of kaffir lime or lemon zest. Lower the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 20 minutes (skip if you't not adding the leeks and zest).
2. Reduce the heat to low. Add a pinch of salt and gently lower in the fish fillets. The fish should be covered by at least 2/3 of its thickness - add more water if it isn't.
3. Cover, bring to a boil again for 1 minute, then turn off the heat. Leave to steam, covered, for about 7-10 minutes until the fish is no longer translucent.
4. Gently remove the fillets with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool.
5. Once the fish is cooled, pound it to a paste with the peanut butter and reserved lemongrass paste. It will become a bit fluffy. Set aside.
6. In a large pot, pour the fish stock, coconut-flavored soy milk and coconut milk and bring to a boil. Add the lemongrass-fish paste, fish sauce and palm sugar. Lower the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Salt to taste and take off the stove.
To serve:
1. Place a handful of fresh sliced cucumbers, green beans and bean sprouts in a bowl. Add some vermicelli noodles and pour one (or two, or three) ladle(s) of fish curry gravy on top. Garnish with Thai basil.
2. Nom!
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