Bobor

Cambodian rice porridge eaten plain or with chicken, herbs and crisp garnishes.

Illustration inspired by a morning porridge stall in Phnom Penh.

Dish details
Other names	Babor; Borbor; Bawbaw; Bobor sach moan
Dish types	Rice dish; Soup
Related dishes	Kuy Teav

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Bobor connects to 4 pages

Kuy Teav, Bai Cha, Bobor (recipe) and Cambodian Restaurant.

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On this page

1. Cultural context
2. Ingredients and preparation
3. History and origins
4. Regional and household variations
5. Preparations and recipes
6. References

On this page

1. Cultural context
2. Ingredients and preparation
3. History and origins
4. Regional and household variations
5. Preparations and recipes
6. References

Bobor (បបរ) is a Cambodian rice porridge, plain or made with chicken, pork or fish, and often topped with fried garlic and green onions. The name is also written borbor, bor bor, babor, borbo and bawbaw.

Cultural context

Bobor is rice boiled in a large amount of water or stock until it becomes a soft, soupy porridge. It has long been a handy way to use up the rice left from the night before. Along with noodle soups such as kuy teav (គុយទាវ), it is a popular breakfast in Cambodia. Cambodians also eat it as a snack after school or work. Local workers eat it in the evening as well as at breakfast.

Bobor is cheap and sold at street stalls all over Cambodia. It is also eaten as a late-night supper. It is easy on the stomach and nourishing for someone who is unwell, especially without the spicy toppings. As of December 2025, Wat Bo Primary School in Siem Reap served bobor, along with Khmer cakes, fruit, rice and Khmer noodles, in place of sugary snacks and energy drinks.

The chicken version, bobor sach moan, is thought to have come from China, as part of the cooking of Cambodia's Chinese community rather than Khmer cooking. Cambodians eat it as comfort food at any hour, from breakfast to a dinner for someone who is unwell, and as a hangover cure.

Ingredients and preparation

The broth is usually pork or chicken, and small pieces of meat or fish may go in. One chicken method starts with a seasoned stock of chicken bones, carrots, coriander roots, lemongrass, star anise, cinnamon, ginger, galangal and makrut lime leaves before the rice goes in. Another seasons the broth with onion, garlic, ginger, coriander seeds, pepper, sugar and salt, with coriander, green onions and bean sprouts among its ingredients.

The rice is rinsed before cooking. The chicken may be lifted from the pot once cooked, then cooled and shredded. The porridge simmers until the grains turn fluffy and the texture is creamy, with more water or stock added if it grows too thick. Common finishes are lime juice, fish sauce, black pepper, chili sauce and fried garlic. Chinese fried dough sticks may come alongside the bowl.

Common toppings include bean sprouts, sliced green onions, coriander, black pepper and dried fish. Other toppings include garlic oil, pickles, salted or soft-boiled eggs and sometimes slices of omelet. It is also served with ginger and garnished with coriander and crisp fried onions.

History and origins

Under the Khmer Rouge, in Democratic Kampuchea (1975 to 1979), there was little food, and starvation was widespread. Rice rations were small, so people thinned their rice with water into a soup to make it last, and a thin, watery porridge was what almost everyone ate in those years. Authentic Food Quest writes that the dish comes out of that history of want, and credits its simplicity for its popularity. In June 2017 a food stall in Siem Reap began serving the watery porridge of the Khmer Rouge years as a reminder of the country's past.

Regional and household variations

Cambodian cooks name two common kinds. Bobor saw is plain white rice porridge, which often comes with a salted duck egg. Bobor kroeung (បបរគ្រឿង), also spelled bobor kroueng, is made with meat or fish stock and costs more. Diners season the stock-based kind with the condiments on the table. One Khmer-language recipe for bobor kroeung builds the soup on pork and pork bones, with dried and straw mushrooms, carrot, potato and onion, and adds bean sprouts, herbs and sweet soy sauce when it is served.

In Siem Reap, bobor is also made with pork, fish, dried fish, seafood, snails or frog legs, and crisp fried garlic is a popular local garnish. One Siem Reap restaurant offers bor bor sor trei gneat, plain congee with salted fish, preserved bean curd and pickles; a fish congee, bor bor sach trei, with spring onions; and bor bor samchok, a mixed congee with slow-cooked pork shank, liver, shrimp and squid. Another Siem Reap stall serves it with salted eggs, savory beans and ginger relish.

A household form called bobor sam jok mixes finely chopped pork belly with the white parts of green onions, shapes them into small meatballs and cooks them in the porridge. It is served with the same toppings as the chicken version plus slivered ginger. The Slow Noodles author's mother made it this way for sick children.

Preparations and recipes

• Terence Carter, Grantourismo

  Jasmine rice simmered in poaching stock until soft, served with shredded chicken, lettuce, sprouts and herbs.

References 9