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How to make Kreung, the best Khmer spice paste in 2022

Written by André Ruys on 08/06/2022. Posted in cooking class, eat with locals, Food adventure, food in Cambodia, Kambodscha, Khmer food, Kochkurs, Kochkurs in Kambodscha, Online-Experience.

It is one of the most important ingredients in Cambodian cuisine, used in stir fried dishes as well as soups or when meat is marinated. If you want to know how to make Kreung we can assure you: it’s quite easy and you should get all ingredients in supermarkets, asia markets or even in your garden.

Kreung is a main ingredient in fish amok, but also used in many soups like samlor korko. Another dish are stir fried vegetables with any kind of meat or tofu, where Kreung is then added.

Despite what the name suggests the spice paste is not spicy. There isn’t even chilli used when you learn how to make Kreung. It’s is related to the use of different herbs and spices. Kreung can be bought at the market – many Cambodians buy it there for daily use – but its much more intense in taste pleasing your palates when you make it from scratch.

Remove the ribs from the kaffir lime leaves

You can use a mortar or a food processor

How to make Kreung in a mortar

The traditional way of producing Kreung is in a classic mortar. It can be made of stone or wood – the result will be the same. You also need a good knife and a chopping board – in Cambodia is a wooden board in every household used for this task.

Ingredients for Kreung (sometimes also called Royal Kreung)

3 stalks lemongrass
1 ounce galangal
4 kaffir lime leaves
8 cloves garlic
2 shallots
1 ounce turmeric
1/2 teaspoon salt

First you need to cut the lemongrass into fine slices. Remove the middle rib from the kaffir lime leave. Only use the white and bright green part of the stalks. Then peel and slice galangal, garlic and ginge as thin as possible. For turmeric you can use either the root or just a teaspoon of power.

Then place lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaves in the mortar and start grinding. You can go in circles to ensure that the oil is released from the broken cells. Add the other ingredients and grind until it becomes a thick paste.

Make Kreung in a food processor

If you don’t have a mortar, you can use a food processor or a blender. You still need to cut the ingredients but it doesn’t have to be that fine. The best way how to make Kreung in a food processor is to start again with the hard parts and then add the other ingredients. Don’t use the highest setting.

Red and green Kreung

There are variants of Kreung, and the difference lies in some other ingredients. The green Kreung uses more lemongrass and less – or not at all – tumeric. For the red Kreung you replace the tumeric with chilli. use fresh chilies to get a bright color and a well developed flavor.

How to make Kreung while in Cambodia

If you want to learn how to make Kreung while traveling in Cambodia, you should visit our host Ms. Laum. She will show you how Kreung is used as an ingredient in the famous dish fish amok. You can book the cooking class in Siem Reap with her here.

Cambodian crispy rice with pork floss

Written by André Ruys on 09/28/2021. Posted in cooking class, eat in Siem Reap, eat with locals, Experience Cambodia, food in Cambodia, Khmer culture, Khmer food, News and Updates, Online-Experience, Siem Reap.

Rice is something like the staple food in Cambodia. It is served at every meal. Most people eat regular cooked rice, but there are also variations, for example in delicious desserts. Another specialty is pot-fried Cambodian crispy rice with pork floss. Pork floss is soft, dried meat fibers from the pig. You find this dish on special occasions, but a restaurant in Siem Reap specializes only in it. It is not cheap: a large portion costs 10 dollars. Our host Vorleak researched a bit for you and made a step-by-step instruction how to cook Cambodia crispy rice at home.

How to cook Cambodian crispy rice with Pork Floss

First of all, you take normal rice and wash it three times. Then you pour it into a pot with a thin bottom. Take so much rice that it covers about one centimeter of the bottom. Then add water and boil the rice for about 20 minutes. The rice must become very soft. A gas stove or open fire is best.

When it is done cooking, take a wooden spoon and start spreading the rice from the center to the edge of the pot. It should form a rim about five centimeters high, but the rice must still cover the bottom. Spread everything smoothly.

Now put the pot back on the stove and let the rice bake. First on the bottom, then you have to take the pot in your hand and hold the edges over the flame. Be careful not to burn yourself. It would be best if you kept swirling the pot until the rice has darkened and is clearly browned on the pot (but it shouldn’t burn).

Let the Cambodian crispy rice burn a bit

Meanwhile, crack two eggs and whisk them with salt, pepper and chili powder or homemade chili sauce to taste. Cut spring onions into small pieces.

Heat about 150 ml of oil. When it’s hot, carefully pour it into the rice pot (turn the flame back on) and swirl the pot so the oil gets everywhere. You need to keep doing this until the rice looks crispy. Then pour off the rest of the oil.

Now take the eggs and pour them over the bottom of the crispy rice. Spread them evenly and let the mixture fry briefly until the egg has set. Now let the pot cool down a bit. Hold the bottom of the rice with a wooden spoon, tip the pot over and carefully catch the rice.

Poor eggs and onions on the rice and let it get solid.

Place it on a plate and sprinkle with Pork Floss.

Take the Cambodian crispy rice carefully out of the pot

You need these ingredients

200 gr rice
2 eggs
200 ml cooking oil
salt
pepper
chili powder
2 bunches spring onion
4 tbs porkfloss

Another view of the famous pubstreet in Siem Reap during road works

Siem Reap ist eine große Baustelle

Written by André Ruys on 06/23/2021. Posted in Kambodscha, Kochkurs in Kambodscha, Online-Experience, Siem Reap Höhepunkte, Uncategorized.

Die Covid-19-Pandemie hat Siem Reap zu einer Geisterstadt gemacht. In der Pub Street sind fast alle Bars und Restaurants geschlossen, die Straße zum Flughafen ist gesäumt von Hotel mit einem Schild “Zum Verkauf” oder “Zur Miete” an den zugezogenen Gittern an den Eingangstoren. Die Zahl der ausländischen Touristen ist um über 90 Prozent gesunken. Kleine Läden, die in Angkor Wat einst kühle Kokosnüsse und gebratene Bananen verkauften, bieten jetzt Gesichtsmasken an.

Gleichzeit hat ein gigantisches Bauprojekt begonnen. Die Zentralregierung in Phnom Penh hatte 2020 beschlossen, 38 Straßen in Siem Reap zu erneuern. Dafür wurden 150 Millionen Dollar budgetiert – das meiste Geld stammt aus Verkäufen von staatlichem Land.

Seit einigen Monaten nun haben Bagger die Touristenbusse abgelöst, Bauarbeiter mit Helmen und Warnwesten stehen dort, wo einst chinesischen Besuchergruppen ihrem Führer hinterherliefen. Die Sivutha Road im Herzen von Siem Reap wird ebenfalls erneuert wie die Airport Road. In der Pub Street werden neue Abwasserrohre verlegt. Wo einst Angelina Jolie einen Cocktail trank, sind heute die Rolläden heruntergelassen. Das Red Piano hat eine zweite Dependance in der Sok San Road eröffnet, die bereits fertiggestellt ist.

Hier und da kam es zu Protesten, weil einige Häuser in die Straße hineingebaut wurden oder Stände einige Meter öffentlichen Raum in Anspruch nahmen. Da halfen aber die sonst so guten Beziehungen nicht, manches Hotel musste seine Einfahrt zurückbauen oder verlor gar seine Rezeption.

The Red Piano in Siem Reaps Pub Street is closed — Das Red Piano ist derzeit geschlossen.

Die neuen Straßen werden nicht nur einen neuen Belag bekommen. Zu dem Projekt gehört es, dass die meisten Kabel in die Erde verlegt werden. Gleichzeitig werden die Straßen auf die ursprüngliche Breite vergrößert, viele bekommen sogar einen Bürgersteig.

Derzeit, um Juni 2021, sind die meisten Wasser- und Abwasserrohre verlegt, die Gräben und Löcher wieder zugeschüttet. Am Jajavarman-Hospital sind die ersten Abschnitte schon fertig. Die Airport Road bekommt in einigen Abschnitten bereits ihren Asphalt.

Wenn in 2022 Touristen wieder nach Siem Reap kommen, werden sie sicherlich ein anderes Bild sehen als noch zuvor. Die City Hall malte in einem Video das Bild von prachtvollen Boulevards und Booten auf dem Siem Reap River. Auch wenn da einige bezweifeln, auf jeden Fall wird Siem Reap anders aussehen.

Noch sind aber Touristen in weiter Ferne. Die Zahlen mit Neuinfektionen sind landesweite im mittleren dreistelligen Bereich, in Siem Reap zwischen 20 und 30 täglich. Es gibt ein Verbot von Alkoholverkauf, außerdem ein Verbot von Versammlungen und eine Ausgangssperre zwischen 22 und 4 Uhr. Derzeit wird in der Haupstadt Phnom Penh und den am schlimmsten betroffenen Provinzen geimpft. Die Quote liegt bei 20 Prozent, die meisten Impfstoffe kommen aus China, SinoPham und SinoVac.

Kambodschas Premierminister Hun Sen hat angekündigt, bis 2022 alle Bürger geimpft zu haben.

Online-Class: Making Vietnamese coffee, by Vietnamese

Written by André Ruys on 12/05/2020. Posted in Online-Experience, Vietnam food.

Are you coffee lovers? Have you heard about the truly Authentic Vietnamese coffees – egg coffee and coconut coffee? Yes, egg coffee. It is a specialty available all over Vietnam, and in Cambodia too. It is a regular coffee, but with egg yolk. The yolk is mixed with condensed milk until it fluffy and then added to the coffee. There are hundreds of recipes, but our hosts in Vietnam go with the Hanoi way of doing it.

By joining this special class, you will learn how to make the famous Vietnamese Egg coffee and the delicious coconut coffee. Recipes are provided after the class so that you can practice at home.

During the 40 minutes you learn the secrets of coffee making in Vietnam and can ask as many questions as you want. The class is conducted via Zoom, best watched on a laptop or a smart TV.

We are now testing out what time is best for you. Please let us know what you prefer, and we will then finalize the time slots.

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