'The Rice People' Cambodian Recipes and Photos

Cambodian Pickles
3 tablespoons coarse salt
2 carrots
1 bunch radishes (about a dozen)
1 cucumber
1 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Wash and trim carrots, radishes, and cucumber. Halve cucumber lengthwise and remove seeds. Cut all vegetables into 1/4" slices and place in a colander over a shallow bowl. Sprinkle with salt and allow to stand for about 1 hour, until tender. Rinse away all salt, drain thoroughly and place in a container with tight-fitting lid. Add rice vinegar, fish sauce and sugar. Shake to coat and blend. Allow vegetables to marinate overnight, shaking the container occasionally to ensure that all vegetables are uniformly marinated. When ready to serve, strain off the liquid and place in an attractive serving dish.

Spicy Lime Dipping Sauce
1 cup rice vinegar
1 cup Asian fish sauce
1 cup lime juice
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
5 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 tbsp ginger root, peeled and finely grated
1 small chili pepper, trimmed, seeded and finely minced
1/4 cup crushed peanuts
Mix all ingredients together in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake vigorously and allow to stand for at least one hour, or overnight. Serve in a shallow dish for dipping Rice Paper Spring Rolls and Grilled Shrimp Skewers.

Cambodian Spring Rolls with Grilled Tilapia
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped into 2" matchsticks
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
1/2 pound tilapia filets, grilled and coarsely chopped
1 cup mint leaves, finely chopped
2 cups mesclun greens
12 rice paper wrappers
Fill a large, shallow dish with warm water and soak a rice paper wrapper until softened. Carefully transfer the wrapper to a dinner plate. Divide each of the fillings into 12 equal portions. Place one portion of each spring roll filling in compact layers on the lower half of the wrapper, leaving the edges empty for tucking and rolling. Fold the lower edge of the wrapper up and gently snuggle it around the filling. Fold in the left and right sides of the wrapper toward the center and roll cigar-style toward the upper edge. Cut spring roll in half on a diagonal angle and place on an attractive serving dish. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling. Serve with Spicy Lime Dipping Sauce.

Grilled Shrimp Skewers
1 pound large shrimp, peeled & deveined, tails on
Sesame oil or vegetable oil
Bamboo skewers
Skewer the shrimp, brush lightly with oil and grill on an electric grill, grill pan or outdoor grill until just pink and tender, about 3 minutes per side. Serve with Spicy Lime Dipping Sauce.

Golden Tofu with Spicy Ginger Sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 pound firm tofu
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely shredded
2 scallions, finely sliced
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 lime, juice only
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce
Cut the block of tofu in half to form two thinner slices. Place on layers of paper towel, cover with a baking sheet weighted with a heavy book. Allow to stand for 30 minutes to drain away the excess water. Cut it into 16 triangles. Heat the sesame oil in a wok and pan-fry the tofu triangles until golden brown on all sides. Remove from wok and drain on paper towels. In the same wok, add garlic, ginger and scallions and stir fry until just tender. Add fish sauce, lime juice sugar and chili garlic sauce and stir to blend. If the sauce is too thick or too strong, a little water may be added. Arrange tofu triangles on serving plates and drizzle the ginger sauce over them.

Carmelized Sauce
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups light stock or water
In a small saucepan, combine sugar and 1 tablespoon of water and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the water is evaporated and sugar turns golden brown. Stir in the 2 cups of stock or water, being careful of the steam produced when the liquid comes in contact with the molten sugar. Stir to blend and remove from heat. Set aside for use in the sauce for the grilled fish and carmelized chicken.

Grilled Fish with Pineapple
1 pound firm white fish (catfish, halibut, cod, etc.)
1 small pineapple, or one can, sliced into 1/2" rings
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon ginger, finely shredded
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 cup carmelized sauce
1 tabelspoon nam pla (Asian fish sauce)
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
Heat the sesame oil in a small saucepan. Add garlic, and ginger and saute until lightly golden. Add pineapple juice, fish sauce, and carmelized sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add cornstarch mixture and stir until slightly thickened. Divide the fish into 4 equal portions. brush lightly with vegetable oil and grill on an electric grill, grill pan or outdoor grill until flesh turns white, about 3 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the fish. Brush the pineapple rings with vegetable oil and grill until just tender.

Carmelized Chicken
2 pounds chicken, cut into 1" cubes
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 jalapeno pepper, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 scallions, finely sliced
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 cup carmelized sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
Heat the sesame oil in a wok. Add scallions, garlic, ginger, and chicken, and stir-fry until lightly browned. Add lime juice, sugar, fish sauce, and carmelized sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add cornstarch mixture and simmer, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. Serve over Jasmine Rice.

Jasmine Rice
2 cups jasmine rice
3 cups water
Rinse the rice and place in an electric rice cooker or heavy sauce pan with 3 cups of water. Cover and steam until tender (about 25 minutes).

Asian Stir Fry Medley
3 baby bok choy, root end removed and separated into individual leaves
1 carrot, julienne
1 cup snow peas, trimmed
8 mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 cup each red and green bell peppers, coarsly chopped
3 tablespoons nam pla (Asian fish sauce)
2 tablespoons sesame oil
Place the prepared vegetables in a steamer kettle and steam for 3-5 minutes until almost done, but still slightly crisp. Uncover and transfer to a cool wok, toss with nam pla and sesame oil and set aside. Just before serving, finish cooking the vegetables over high heat for about 2 minutes, until just tender.

Coconut Macaroons with Gingered Tropical Fruits
Coconut Macaroons 3 cups shredded sweetened coconut
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease a large baking sheet. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until thoroughly blended. Using two spoons, scoop and shape the mixture into walnut-sized balls and place in rows on baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake at 350° for about 15 to 20 minutes, until macaroons are golden brown. Allow to cool and remove from baking sheet with a spatula. While macaroons are still soft, they may lose their shape on being removed from the baking sheet, and may need to be reshaped into attractive macaroons using your fingers. Gingered Tropical Fruits 1 mango
1 cup pineapple, fresh or canned
1 orange
1 cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon ginger root, finely shredded
1 tablespoon rice wine
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
Chop the fruits into bite-sized pieces and set aside. Combine pineapple juice, ginger and rice wine in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add cornstarch and water mixture and stir constantly until slightly thickened. Add fruit to saucepan and stir to thoroughly blend. Continue to simmer for about a minute, until fruit is just tender. Serve warm or chilled with Coconut Macaroons.

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