Dish

Prahok Ktis

ប្រហុកខ្ទិះ

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

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

Cultural context

Prahok ktis is a very traditional Cambodian dish.[4] It is eaten with fresh vegetables such as cucumber, carrots, cabbage, long beans, iceberg lettuce, string beans and round eggplants.[1] It is often served with fresh vegetables of the season and makes use of the harvests that come with the rainy season.[5] Rice is often served alongside.[6] The dip is salty, spicy and lightly sweet, with a soft, creamy texture.[7]

Prahok, the fermented fish paste, is commonly kept in Cambodian homes and is tied to hospitality and cooking together.[8] The chef Luu Meng recalls a saying among elders: "No good prahok, no good friends."[8] He adds that in the provinces, a young person meeting a future mother-in-law must cook a good dish of prahok ktis to make her smile.[8] Chhem Siriwat, who has written on Cambodian food diplomacy, holds that prahok formed the foundation of the daily lives of kings and peasants alike.[8] 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. They were given to street sellers, cleaners and other vendors working outside the Royal Palace, and each box could feed a family of eight.[8] He said the dish was chosen to remind people of home and to give them food to share.[8]

Cambodia's Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Prak Sokhonn, named prahok ktis among the dishes to promote in the country's culinary diplomacy campaign.[1] Some people unfamiliar with the pairing of fermented fish and pork wrongly assume that spoiled pork was used.[1] Move to Cambodia counts it among the easier ways for newcomers to try prahok.[4]

In Chicago, the chef Mona Sang shared her recipe in 2022. Her mother made the dip throughout her childhood, and it is now one of her favorite dishes because it reminds her of that time.[9] Her mother's story led her to open Khmai Fine Dining, which she describes as one of the only Cambodian restaurants in the city.[9]

Ingredients and preparation

The dip is made from prahok sach, minced pork, yellow kroeung, coconut cream, tamarind juice, palm sugar, pea eggplants and kaffir lime leaves.[1] Prahok sach is made from larger fish.[3] The coconut sets prahok ktis apart from Thai nam prik, and it mellows the pungency of the fish.[3]

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.[3] 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.[3] The pea eggplants are dry-roasted until wrinkled and a little blackened, then simmered in half the coconut cream.[3] The kroeung is mixed in, then the pork is added and cooked through. The prahok, palm sugar, tamarind water and chopped chilies follow.[3] The dip is served with cucumber, carrots, cabbage and long beans, topped with lime leaves and more coconut cream.[3] It takes about 22 minutes.[3]

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.[4] Fresh coconut water is strained and chilled for about half an hour until the cream rises, and the cream is skimmed off for later.[4] The prahok is chopped fine with a cleaver and mixed well with the pork.[4] 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.[4] The mixture then simmers with pea eggplants, pork stock, palm sugar and coconut water until the liquid is gone and it is thick.[4] 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.[4] The tamarind adds a kick but not enough to make the dish sour.[4] Salt can adjust the seasoning, but fish sauce is left out because it makes the dish too fishy.[4] Canned coconut cream with plain water can stand in for fresh coconut water.[4]

The dip is served hot in a small bowl beside a bowl of crudités.[4] Firm, crunchy fruits and vegetables suit it best, and slightly sour ones cut through its richness. Choices include green tomatoes, cucumber, star fruit, sparrow eggplant, banana shoots, green mango, rose apple, Thai basil and laksa leaves.[4]

History and origins

Prahok has given Cambodia protein and flavor since the Angkorian period, from the ninth to the fifteenth century.[8] The fish were plentiful in season and there was no refrigeration, so they were preserved by fermenting.[8] The finest prahok keeps for up to three years and is made through a hard, two-day process.[8] Prahok ktis belongs to a wider Cambodian habit of using fermented fish to add depth to everyday food.[8] Some very old versions of the dip used wood apple for sourness, which tamarind water can copy.[3]

Grantourismo Travels compares Cambodian prahok dips with Thai nam prik and traces an exchange of ideas among Khmer, Thai and Lao cooks. Its writers believe, from the historical timeline, that the Khmer dips came first, and they hold that lon dips are Khmer and very old.[3]

Regional and household variations

Recipes share much the same ingredients and differ mostly in amounts.[10] Pea eggplants can be replaced with green apples, unripe peaches or nectarines, cabbage or cauliflower.[1] Cooks may use less prahok for a milder dip.[3] Prahok ch'oeung soaked in hot water, or Thai pla raa, can stand in for prahok sach.[3]

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.[4]

Mona Sang's recipe starts with 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. Sugar, chicken powder, fish sauce, prahok, water and coconut milk are added, 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 lemongrass, galangal, shallot, garlic, kaffir lime leaves, turmeric 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] A packaged Kiril Prahok Ktis made by Confirel blends Kiril prahok into coconut milk and palm sugar flavored with lemongrass, turmeric, kaffir lime, garlic and red pepper. It can garnish spaghetti, sandwiches, hamburgers or canapés or eaten the Cambodian way with rice or vegetables (2024).[7]

Preparations and recipes

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Wikipedia: Prahok ktis
  2. ↑ CNN, 30 Cambodian foods every visitor needs to try (December 10, 2019)
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 Grantourismo Travels, An Authentic Khmer Prahok Ktis (Prahok K'tis) Recipe (November 27, 2014)
  4. ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 Move to Cambodia, Recipes from the Cuisine Wat Damnak kitchen: Prahok ktis
  5. ↑ Phnom Penh Post, Rainy season: A Cambodian celebration of nature's bounty (February 14, 2025)
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Flavourfully Good, Cambodian Pork Dipping Prahok Ktiss (August 30, 2022)
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cambodianess, Confirel, the Pleasure of the Table and Healthy Food with Authentic Khmer Style and Flavors (February 3, 2024)
  8. ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 BBC, Prahok: The pungent fish elevating Cambodian cuisine (December 8, 2023)
  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 Not Quite Nigella, Prahok Ktis Ktiss recipe (September 24, 2016)
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This page was last edited on 2 October 2026, at 01:35.