Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Cambodia's time to shine

May 4, 2010
SOURCE: Epicure

This spicy cuisine is stepping up for a turn in the spotlight, writes David Sutherland.
CHAN Uoy is excited. The part-owner and food director of Melbourne's only Cambodian restaurant, Bopha Devi (which is at two locations: Docklands and Yarraville), is rapt that a Cambodian cookbook, From Spiders to Water Lilies, has been released in Australia. Not just because it supports a great cause - homeless children in Cambodia - but also because it finally puts Cambodian food in the spotlight.
''In terms of tourism, Cambodia is only just now starting to emerge from its black hole, so our cuisine has not become as familiar to people as, say, Thai or Vietnamese,'' he says. ''People have for too long associated Cambodia with Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge and the killing fields. It's about time our great food got some exposure.''
Cambodian food has some similarities to the cuisine of neighbouring Thailand and Vietnam. It also has some marked differences.

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