Lap khmer, a fresh and easy recipe to master!
With its tender beef, fresh herbs, roasted rice and prahok-based sauce, phlea sach ko offers a beautiful introduction to the popular flavours of Khmer cuisine.
Beef lovers, particularly those who appreciate raw meat marinated like a tartare, will be delighted to discover this typical Khmer dish. Lap khmer, also called phlea sach ko, literally beef salad, combines finely sliced meat with the freshness of crunchy raw vegetables from Cambodia. Prahok, a fermented fish paste, and nuoc mam sauce, flagship condiments of Cambodian cuisine, come to add character to this recipe and wonderfully replace salt. When scattered grains of roasted rice amplify the crunchiness of the vegetables and contrast beautifully with the tender, savoury meat.
Beef salad is very often enjoyed among friends or during festive gatherings in Cambodia, it is a signature dish amid the long conversations of nights in Phnom Penh. In fact, depending on portions, it makes for a perfect appetizer course. Approaching the taste profile of the Thai "Crying Tiger", its refreshing character will not leave you unmoved. Here are some tips to perfect this recipe at home. All the ingredients used can easily be found, particularly in Asian specialty shops.
Ingredients:
300 g beef fillet
2 garlic cloves
100 ml water
100 ml fresh lime juice
1 red onion
1 small aubergine
150 g green beans
200 g bean sprouts
1 dried red chilli
3 tbsp fresh herbs: 1 of mint, 1 of basil, 1 of coriander
2 tbsp roasted rice powder
1 tbsp palm sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce (nuoc mam)
1 tbsp prahok
4 tsp lemongrass
1 tbsp olive oil
Let's cook!
Prepare the meat by draining and removing any blood. Finely slice the fillet, then set aside.
Heat the pan on low heat, and after a few minutes add the sliced lemongrass and garlic. Cook on low heat, then gradually increase the temperature before adding the water and prahok.
Reduce the mixture and stir regularly with a spatula, then remove the pan from heat 2 minutes after it reaches a boil.
Transfer the sliced beef to a bowl, add the lime juice to create a marinade. Mix and let marinate for 10 minutes.
Add to this marinade the fish sauce (nuoc mam), sugar, the previously chopped onion, and the aubergine pre-cut into rounds. Continue stirring regularly so everything is thoroughly infused with the marinade.
Then add the prahok, garlic and lemongrass mixture, the roasted rice powder, and the different herbs finely chopped as well.
Mix and finish by adding the chilli cut into rings.
It's ready, you can serve!
Frequently asked questions
Prahok can be found in Asian specialty shops, particularly Cambodian or Vietnamese ones. You can also order it online from specialised websites.
Yes, lap khmer can be prepared with pork or even fish. The marinating technique remains the same.
Lap khmer should be consumed quickly, ideally within 2 hours of preparation, as it contains raw meat.
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