Dish

Prahok Ktis

Cambodian dip of prahok and minced pork simmered with kroeung, coconut cream and tamarind, eaten with raw vegetables.

A bowl of prahok dip surrounded by cucumber, small eggplants, long beans and cabbage, a river village behind
Illustration inspired by prahok makers on the Tonle Sap.

Prahok ktis (ប្រហុកខ្ទិះ) is a Cambodian dip of prahok and minced pork simmered with kroeung, coconut cream and tamarind, eaten with raw vegetables.[1][2][3] Cooking softens the sharp taste of the fermented fish, and the coconut makes the dip rich and creamy.[4][2]

Cultural context

Its base, prahok, is a very traditional Cambodian food.[5] Cooks serve it with raw vegetables such as cabbage, cucumber, long beans and carrots[2] or round eggplants.[6] It is often served with fresh vegetables of the season and makes use of the harvests that come with the rainy season.[7] It can also be served with rice.[6]

A white plate with rice, a small bowl of prahok ktis topped with a cracker, and raw vegetables.
Prahok ktis served with raw vegetables and rice, 2023.

Prahok, the fermented fish paste, is kept in most Cambodian family homes, and the chef Luu Meng says a jar of it makes everyone happy.[3] He recalls a saying among elders: "No good prahok, no good friends."[3] He adds that in the provinces, anyone visiting a future mother-in-law is expected to win her over with a well-made prahok ktis.[3] Chhem Siriwat, who has written on Cambodian food diplomacy, holds that prahok was the basis of everyday life for kings and peasants alike.[3] During a COVID-19 lockdown in Phnom Penh, Luu Meng led a team of chefs for two days to cook 410 boxes of prahok ktis. The boxes went to cleaners, street vendors and other sellers who worked near the Royal Palace, and each held enough for a family of eight.[3] He said the dish was chosen to remind people of home and to give them food to share.[3]

Prahok ktis is among the recipes in The Taste of ANGKOR, a cookbook the Foreign Ministry released in 2021 at the launch of its economic diplomacy strategy. Prak Sokhonn, who presided as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, said that publicizing Khmer food would be key to that diplomacy.[8] Some visitors who are unused to fermented fish with pork think at first that something is wrong with the dip.[2] Move to Cambodia says foreigners often avoid dishes built on prahok, and that prahok ktis makes the ingredient easier to eat.[5]

In Chicago, the chef Mona Sang shared her and her mother's recipe in 2022. As a child she disliked the dip her mother made, because it left the smell of prahok on her clothes. As an adult she counts it among her favorite dishes, and it reminds her of growing up.[9] Her mother's story inspired her to open Khmai Fine Dining in Rogers Park, which WTTW calls one of the few Cambodian restaurants in Chicago.[9]

Ingredients and preparation

Its ingredients are minced pork, prahok sach, coconut cream, yellow kroeung, palm sugar, tamarind water, kaffir lime leaves and pea eggplants.[2] Prahok sach is made from larger fish.[2] The coconut sets prahok ktis apart from Thai nam prik, and it mellows the pungency of the fish.[2]

One recipe for four people uses 500 grams (about 1 pound) of minced pork, two tablespoons of vegetable oil, three tablespoons of yellow kroeung, two tablespoons of tamarind water and a teaspoon of palm sugar.[2] It adds four medium dried red chilies soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, two tablespoons of finely chopped prahok sach, 250 milliliters (about 1 cup) of coconut cream, 75 grams (2.6 ounces) of pea eggplants and four kaffir lime leaves with the center vein removed.[2] The pea eggplants are dry-roasted until wrinkled and a little blackened, then simmered in half the coconut cream.[2] The kroeung is mixed in, then the pork is added and cooked through. The prahok, palm sugar, tamarind water and chopped chilies follow.[2] The dip is served with cucumber, carrots, cabbage and long beans, topped with lime leaves and more coconut cream.[2] It takes about 22 minutes.[2]

The Cuisine Wat Damnak kitchen of chef Joannès Rivière in Siem Reap uses 150 grams (5.3 ounces) of prahok for every kilogram (2.2 pounds) of pork, so the fermented flavor does not overwhelm the dip.[5] Fresh coconut water is strained and chilled for about half an hour until the cream rises, and the cream is skimmed off for later.[5] The prahok is chopped fine with a cleaver and mixed well with the pork.[5] Shallots, garlic and chilies are softened in oil before mushrooms and the pork mixture go in. The pork is browned, in two batches if needed so it cooks evenly.[5] The mixture then simmers with pea eggplants, pork stock, palm sugar and coconut water until the liquid is gone and it is thick.[5] Thin pieces of snakehead fish, kaffir lime leaf, the coconut cream and tamarind paste are added, and the dip is brought to a boil and kept warm.[5] The tamarind adds a kick but not enough to make the dish sour.[5] Salt can adjust the seasoning, but fish sauce is left out because it makes the dish too fishy.[5] Canned coconut cream with plain water can stand in for fresh coconut water.[5]

The dip is served hot in a small bowl beside a bowl of crudités.[5] Firm, crunchy fruits and vegetables suit it, and slightly sour ones cut through its richness. Choices include cucumber, green tomatoes, sparrow eggplant, star fruit, green mango, banana shoots, rose apple, laksa leaves and Thai basil.[5]

History and origins

Prahok has given Cambodia protein and flavor since the Angkorian period, from the ninth to the fifteenth century.[3] The fish were plentiful in season and there was no refrigeration, so they were preserved by fermenting.[3] Top-quality prahok takes two days of hard work to make and can last as long as three years.[3] Chhem Siriwat says prahok improves both the taste and the look of a wide range of Khmer dishes.[3] Some very old versions of the dip used wood apple for sourness, which tamarind water can copy.[2]

Grantourismo Travels compares prahok ktis with the Thai nam prik and lon dips. The article holds that Khmer cooks served pungent dips with vegetables or rice centuries before Thai cooks did, and that a dip existing in the 13th century most likely came from the Khmer. An update to the article says lon dips are Khmer and far older.[2]

Regional and household variations

Recipes share much the same ingredients and differ mostly in amounts.[10] Pea eggplants can be replaced with green peas.[11][10] Cooks may use less prahok for a milder dip.[2] Prahok ch'oeung soaked in hot water, or Thai pla raa, can stand in for prahok sach.[2]

The Cuisine Wat Damnak version is more refined than those at an average family restaurant. It uses prahok trey rhoy, which costs more and is fermented in smaller, more controlled batches than regular prahok.[5]

Mona Sang's recipe starts with two cups of a lemongrass paste of lemongrass, garlic, shallots, lime leaf and galangal, heated with two cups of non-spicy red chili paste in a tablespoon of oil until light brown.[9] Two pounds (about 900 grams) of ground pork cook in it for three minutes. Prahok, fish sauce, sugar, chicken powder, coconut milk and water go in next, and the dip simmers for 30 minutes.[9]

Another recipe for five chops 450 grams (1 pound) of skinless pork belly with 150 grams (5.3 ounces) of boneless fermented fish.[6] It uses a kroeung of galangal, lemongrass, garlic, shallot, turmeric, kaffir lime leaves and water, along with the juice pressed from it, a paste of soaked dried red bell pepper and a tamarind paste.[6] The coconut cream and pepper paste are heated in a wok, then the kroeung and the pork mixture are stirred in. The lemongrass juice, tamarind, palm sugar, pan-roasted crushed peanuts, chicken soup base, salt and fish sauce follow, and baby eggplant cooks for the last two minutes.[6] It is served with rice and cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber, purple and round eggplant and carrot.[6]

Other cooks adapt it further. One home version is spicier than Cambodians usually make it and uses peas in place of the small, bitter pea eggplants. It is served with rice and prawn crackers.[10] Confirel, which has showrooms in Phnom Penh, sells a packaged Kiril Prahok Ktis. In a paid feature in Cambodianess in 2024, it describes the product as its Kiril prahok mixed into coconut milk and palm sugar with red pepper, garlic, turmeric, lemongrass and kaffir lime. It calls the dip creamy and soft, and salty, spicy and slightly sweet, to eat with rice or crunchy vegetables or to use on spaghetti, sandwiches, hamburgers or canapés.[12]

Preparations and recipes

References 12
  1. ↑ Wikipedia: Prahok ktis
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 Grantourismo Travels, An Authentic Khmer Prahok Ktis (Prahok K'tis) Recipe (November 27, 2014)
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 BBC, Marissa Carruthers, Prahok: The pungent fish elevating Cambodian cuisine (July 8, 2021, updated December 8, 2023)
  4. ↑ CNN, 30 Cambodian foods every visitor needs to try (December 10, 2019)
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 Move to Cambodia, Recipes from the Cuisine Wat Damnak kitchen: Prahok ktis
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Flavourfully Good, Cambodian Pork Dipping Prahok Ktiss (August 30, 2022)
  7. ↑ Phnom Penh Post, Rainy season: A Cambodian celebration of nature's bounty (September 17, 2024)
  8. ↑ Cambodianess, Foreign Ministry Offers the World a Taste of Khmer Culture (February 6, 2021)
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 WTTW, A Recipe for a Cambodian Dip Redolent of Childhood (September 13, 2022)
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Not Quite Nigella, Prahok Ktis Ktiss recipe (September 24, 2016)
  11. ↑ Angkor Food, Prahok Ktees
  12. ↑ Cambodianess, paid content, Confirel, the Pleasure of the Table and Healthy Food with Authentic Khmer Style and Flavors (February 3, 2024)
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This page was last edited on 22 October 2026, at 01:19.