We spent December 21st to December 27th in Cambodia. We crossed from Thailand at Poi Pet and continued on a dusty, two-lane road to Siem Reap. The city was lovely, the people were friendly, the mornings were cool and the food was good and diverse. With Angkor Wat 10 minutes away, it’s a city not to be missed. 

We also stayed with a family in a small village between Siem Reap and Phnom Penh for one day and one night. Our two days in Phnom Penh were hot and filled with activities. We did a lot in a short amount of time. We ate a lot, too. The food was different from both Thailand and Vietnam and I noticed there appeared to be less diversity in the cuisine – there were a few traditional dishes repeated on every menu. That said, we were able to try some wonderful street food and some innovative variations. Here are the best things I ate in Cambodia:

1. Kralan: Grilled Sticky Rice in Bamboo Tube

Of all the people in our tour group, I was by far the most excited by this roadside snack. Our guide had the bus pull over to this food stall where he told us about kralan and showed us how to eat it. Kralan is a rice, coconut milk and black bean mix that is put into hollowed-out bamboo sticks then grilled over a fire until cooked. Peeling the bamboo away reveals a warm, soft, savory and slightly sweet rice mixture within. 

I LOVED it. The soft and sticky texture, the chewiness of the rice followed by the creaminess of the cooked black beans, and the barely-there sweetness of the coconut milk were the perfect combination. So simple. So delicious.

2. Papaya soup with fresh ginger and pork

In the wise words of one of our group members, “home-cooked food is the best food.” It could not have been any more true during our homestay with a Cambodian family in the rural countryside. 

This papaya soup may not look like much, but it was amazing in every way. The papaya was tender and not too sweet, accompanied by salty pieces of pork, a bright flavor from fresh ginger and a light broth. After many activities in the sweltering heat, the dish was light and flavorful – so refreshing.

3. Amok Fish

Amok Fish is a traditional and famous Khmer dish – and it’s served all over Cambodia. Imagine the Thai soup Tom Kha Gai – that rich, buttery coconut milk broth – added to a fresh coconut shell with vegetables. Then poach a piece of delicate fish in it. Yeah, it’s good. Really good.

4. Amok Trey: Steamed curried fish wrapped in banana leaf

This dish was probably the most like things I’d had before, but was still unique and new in many ways. The flavors of curry were familiar, but I’d not had them with fish all wrapped in a banana leaf before. The fish is juicy and delicate, the curry was mild in spice but rich in flavor, and the sticky rice was the perfect accompaniment. The rice is actually a very important part of all the food we ate in Southeast Asia – and it’s so good!

In Cambodia, they gave us a large spoon and a fork for our food. We put the spoon in our right hand and gathered rice in it, then used the fork to add pieces of meat or stir-fry onto the spoon. It was easy to adopt this method and we sometimes do this at home now. 

5. Spaghetti Chlar Kdao: Wok-fried spaghetti with crispy basil and minced pork

This dish was one of the more “inspired” dishes during our time in Cambodia and we had it at Nest, a trendy and beautiful restaurant in Siem Reap that served wonderful fusion dishes in a lush setting. We had a most amazing lunch here that included sushi, papaya salad, and mango and sticky rice but this noodle dish stayed in my mind more than the others. It was simple but with good ingredients that worked well together – al dente spaghetti, salty pork, a hint of ginger, spice from Thai chilies and sweetness from crispy and fresh basil. So unique!

And there you have them – my five favorite dishes in Cambodia.

(I should also mention that we had a really solid meal at the Peace Cafe in Siem Reap [veggie stir-fry, fried sweet and sour cauliflower and a mild eggplant dip that was reminiscent of baba ganoush] but the service was terrible so we didn’t even take any photos of the meal.)

If you want to see more of the awesome food we ate on our Southeast Asia honeymoon, check out my post on my top eats in Bangkok, Thailand.