The Food & Cooking of Cambodia: Over 60 authentic classic recipes from an undiscovered cuisine, shown step-by-step in over 250 stunning photographs; ... using ingredients, equipment and techniques [Paperback]

Ghillie Basan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 31, 2008

Ancient Cambodia was a kingdom with an Indian culture, which then expanded into Burma and Vietnam, later becoming a territory claimed by both Vietnam and Siam. As a result, the Cambodian cuisine has Indian roots, with strong influences from both China an

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Anness (January 31, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184476351X
• ISBN-13: 978-1844763511
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 8.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #230,210 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous, but unnecessary if you own Food & Cooking of Vietnam & Cambodia, April 9, 2008

By 

MJF "Juell" (Manhattan NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Food & Cooking of Cambodia: Over 60 authentic classic recipes from an undiscovered cuisine, shown step-by-step in over 250 stunning photographs; ... using ingredients, equipment and techniques (Paperback)

I already have their first book: Food & Cooking of Vietnam & Cambodia, which I love!, so when I heard there was a new one of straight up Cambodian dishes, I was thrilled to add it to my collection. To my disappointment, though, it is exactly the same book, just minus the Vietnamese portion. Yep, very same photos and exactly the same recipes. Can't believe they made money off o' me all over again, and for the very same product! I'm a SUCKA! :)

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Repeat recipes, February 28, 2008

By 

Julian Zareh "in love with southeast asia" (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Food & Cooking of Cambodia: Over 60 authentic classic recipes from an undiscovered cuisine, shown step-by-step in over 250 stunning photographs; ... using ingredients, equipment and techniques (Paperback)

The recipes are really good, the layout of the book is easy to follow and there are tons of great photos of the dishes and ingredients. BUT...the recipes are exactly the same as the book I already own called 'Vietnamese Food & Cooking' by the same author. I wish I had known this before ordering the book (which I am now returning). That's why I only give three stars.

The Vietnamese cookbook has more background information in the front section, including many pages describing ingredients (with photos) and some tips on preparation. This Cambodian version has much less. There are two things that are included in the Cambodian cookbook that are not in the Vietnamese one: how to prepare bottled prahok for use in cooking and a recipe for Tuk Trey sauce. I just don't want other people to be disappointed for the same reasons (especially when I was looking forward to this "new" book).

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 100% authentic, February 28, 2009

By 

Kasper Simon "nicolas100" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Food & Cooking of Cambodia: Over 60 authentic classic recipes from an undiscovered cuisine, shown step-by-step in over 250 stunning photographs; ... using ingredients, equipment and techniques (Paperback)

Having recently returned from Cambodia and like most other visitors to this stunning country, been seduced by its wonderful cuisine, one of my first tasks, upon returning home, was to trawl Amazon for something to help me to banish the British winter blues. And boy, does this book do that!

Covering everything from soups and snacks to main dishes to desserts, this terrific book has all the recipes that you will need to reconjure memories of your trip. If you haven't already visited Cambodia, after trying some of the recipes in this book, you will certainly want to.

Contrary to what one of the previous reviewers states, this book does include the most popular recipes but the heading has often been anglicised. For example 'Amok' is listed as 'Fish in Coconut Custard', Khmer Curry is listed under various guises (e.g. 'Aubergine Curry with Coconut Milk'). It is also worth noting that the ingredients for many popular Cambodian dishes are often variable, depending upon the region or personal taste, so just because a recipe in the book uses chicken, for example, does not mean that the same dish cannot be made with fish, beef, pork, vegetables, etc. The important thing is to get the spices right.

My only slight criticism of the book is that it fails to highlight the difficulty in securing 'Prahoc', a fish-based condiment that is an essential component of cambodian cuisine. The author suggests that it is available in Asian stores but I have definitely not found this to be the case, nor did it appear to be available via retailers on the internet. However, I simply substituted it with the Thai or Vietnamese fish pastes, which are available in Asian supermarkets and this has proved to be effective.

Unlike many cook books, which promise to deliver authentic examples of local food but then fail to do so, when one attempts to follow the instructions, all of the attempts that I have made have been exactly as I remembered them during my trip. Surely this is the best recommendation that anybody can make about such a work. In addition, the instructions are easy to follow and the ingredients used (aside from that already noted)are easy to obtain, either online or at Asian supermarkets.

Do not hesitate to purchase this. I promise you that you will not be disappointed!