“What you are eating is always the end of a very long story–and often an ingenious but delicious answer to some very complicated problems.”
–Anthony Bourdain
Yesterday was World Food Day. No, really, this is an official day because people obviously need a reminder to eat food instead of plastic. It actually commemorates the founding of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization in 1945. It reminds me that on a family vacation we stopped in Morro Bay, California, and the only non-fast food chain near the hotel had a huge sign that said, “Real Food.” What does that say about the other establishments in town?
Anyway, I thought I’d share a few photos of food from Cambodia that I hadn’t posted before. Unlike it’s neighbors, Cambodia doesn’t use a lot of chili in its food–most dishes have lighter flavors. There’s a lot of grilled food and light curries around the country. They prefer to use a lot of lemongrass and basil to any overpowering flavors you might find in other parts of Asia. There aren’t any dishes that I would consider heavy or oily because they’d probably kill people with the heat and humidity.
One of the first meals I had in a real restaurant was amok, a lemongrass curry served in a banana leaf bowl, that I found in downtown Siem Reap. It’s generally served with fish, but there’s also chicken and beef for all the tourists who pass through. In Phnom Penh, the best food I found was at the Central Market–the crowded market that sells everything from clothes to tourist junk also has a great selection of local foods. I was tempted to eat everything in sight, but my stomach isn’t big enough for that.
