Now, let’s get back to cooking. Here is another recipe that I adapt from The Elephant Walk Cookbook. I haven’t had this in a very long time, like more than 10 years! I think one of the reason was because I was too lazy to make my own Khmer Kroeung. Thanks to my Mother I now have an endless supply of  Khmer Kroeung.

This soup gives off a very fragrant aroma when cooked and very rich and flavorful. One might refer to this soup as Pineapple Curry due to the use of coconut milk.  But the resulting taste  is  more on the sour and spicy side. The Kroeung along with the pungent pahok (pickle-fish) and shrimp paste helped balance the sweetness from the coconut milk and pineapple.  Serve it up with lots of hot steamy rice. It is delicious! When the coconut milk was first combined with the Kroeung it reminded me of the broth used to ladle over Cambodian fresh noodles topped with assorted vegetables known as Num Baingjok.

Cambodian Sour Soup with Coconut Milk & Pineapple
(Somlaw Machew Ktiss Manoss) សម្លរម្ចូរខ្ទៈម្នាស់
adapt from The Elephant Walk Cookbook

Ingredients
1-1.5 lb pork (shoulder, butt, spare ribs), cut into fairly large chunks
1 cup coconut milk unsweetened
2 cups water
1 can (16 oz) pineapple chunks in natural juices
½ cup Khmer Kroeung (lemongrass paste)
1 teaspoon pahok (pickle-fish), grounded
1 teaspoon shrimp paste
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon tamarind soup base (powder)
4 kaffir lime leaves, torn
red chili to garnish (optional)

Method:
Heat a pot and add ½ cup coconut milk. Stir and cook until the oil starts to separate. Add Khmer Kroeung, stir often until the flavors are release. The aroma is heavenly!

Add meat along with sugar, fish sauce, shrimp paste and pahok. Cook for 5 minute.

Add the remainder coconut milk, water and tamarind soup base (powder). Give it a quick stir to incorporate them together and bring to a boil. Cover partly and simmer on medium for about 30-45 minutes until the meats are tender.

About 15 minutes before it is done add the pineapple chunks and torn kaffir lime leaves.

Garnish with chili and serve hot with lots of steamed rice.

Anyhow, I went through a couple of my cookbooks to get some ideas on what I can do different with my beef. The one that interest me was a recipe from The Elephant Walk Cookbook called Stir-Fried Beef with Lemongrass (Cha Sachko Kroeung) ឆារសាច់គោគ្រឿង. I technically borrowed this book from my BFF like 3-4 years ago. One of these days I’ll return it to it’s rightful owner plus a some cook dishes from this book for her to taste. According to the authors Longteine De Monteiro & Katherine Neustadt this dish is an Indian-Chinese hybrid. I read the recipe through and applied the concept but tweaked the flavors and measurements accordingly to my taste.  As a result, I really really love the dish! I was blown away by surprise.  At first I was wary of the flavor afraid it might be too nutty and that it would not pair well with my steamed rice. I was totally wrong. The lemony flavors from the Khmer Kroeung (lemongrass paste) and the spicy jalapenos really help balance out the nutty flavor.

Stir-Fried Beef with Lemongrass
(Cha Sachko Kroeung) ឆារសាច់គោគ្រឿង
adapt from The Elephant Walk Cookbook

Ingredients
½ cup Khmer Kroeung (lemongrass paste)
¾-1 lb beef, cut into 2 inches strips
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 small onion, sliced into wedges
6 red jalapeños, quartered length-wise (substitute red bell pepper for color and a mild flavor)
4 tablespoons unsalted roasted peanuts, coarsely ground in a mortar & pestle
2 stalk green onion, cut into 2 inches & split length-wise
2 tablespoons oil for frying

Method:
Mix sliced beef with Khmer Kroeung and set aside. Use your hands to massage and work the Kroeung into the beef.

Heat oil in a pan. Depending on the size of your pan you might have to fry the beef in batches. Fry them in single layer and do not crowd them. Once you set it in the pan do not move it. Leave it there un-touch for a couple of minutes. This will ensure that you get a nice crusty brown on the beef strips. Then flip to the other side and repeat this step until all the strips are fried.

Sprinkle sugar and add fish sauce. Do a quick stir to incorporate the ingredients.

Toss in the onion, peppers and ¾ of the peanut. Give it another stir and cook for about 3 minutes until onions are soften.

Remove from heat and add green onion reserving a few for garnish and sprinkle with remaining peanuts just before serving.