Cherry & Dennis Helper Habitat

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup

柬埔寨雜菜香料湯 Samlor Korko

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — finished dish

Total time: 75 min
Difficulty: Medium
Servings: 4 servings

Recipe overview

A thick vegetable soup built with aromatic herbs and toasted rice.

01

Ingredients

Main ingredients

300 g pumpkin
250 g green papaya
2 eggplant
200 g long beans
150 g spinach
1.5 L water
50 g uncooked rice

Seasoning

2 stalks lemongrass
4 cloves garlic
20 g fresh turmeric
1 tbsp prahok fermented fish paste
1 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tsp salt

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — ingredients

02

Tools

stockpot
small pan
blender
board
knife

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — tools

03

Steps

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Toast raw rice until lightly golden

Step 1

Toast raw rice until lightly golden

Toast 50 g raw rice in a dry pan over low heat, stirring until pale gold and fragrant.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Grind toasted rice to coarse powder

Step 2

Grind toasted rice to coarse powder

Cool the toasted rice, then grind it into a coarse powder, keeping a little grainy texture for thickening.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Cut pumpkin and green papaya

Step 3

Cut pumpkin and green papaya

Peel and cut 300 g pumpkin and 250 g green papaya into similar chunks.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Cut eggplant and long beans

Step 4

Cut eggplant and long beans

Cut 2 eggplants into chunks and 200 g long beans into lengths, keeping them separate.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Finely chop lemongrass, garlic and turmeric

Step 5

Finely chop lemongrass, garlic and turmeric

Finely chop the tender parts of 2 lemongrass stalks, 4 garlic cloves and 20 g fresh turmeric.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Bring water to a boil in stockpot

Step 6

Bring water to a boil in stockpot

Bring 1.5 L water to a boil in a stockpot before adding vegetables in stages.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Simmer chopped aromatics and prahok in water

Step 7

Simmer chopped aromatics and prahok in water

Add the lemongrass, garlic, turmeric and 1 tbsp food-grade prahok fermented fish paste, simmering until aromatic.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Add pumpkin and papaya

Step 8

Add pumpkin and papaya

Add the firmer pumpkin and green papaya first and keep the liquid at a gentle simmer.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Cook until vegetables begin to soften

Step 9

Cook until vegetables begin to soften

Cook until pumpkin and papaya begin to soften but still hold their shape before adding the other vegetables.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Add eggplant and long beans

Step 10

Add eggplant and long beans

Add eggplant and long beans; cook until eggplant is soft and the beans are fully cooked.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Stir in roasted rice powder to thicken

Step 11

Stir in roasted rice powder to thicken

Sprinkle in the coarse toasted rice powder gradually while stirring until the liquid thickens enough to lightly coat the vegetables.

Cambodian Samlor Korko Vegetable Soup — Add spinach and fish sauce; cook greens and serve

Step 12

Add spinach and fish sauce; cook greens and serve

Add 150 g spinach and 1 tbsp fish sauce; cook until the spinach wilts, then serve four hot bowls of thick vegetable stew.

Common mistakes

Burnt rice powder
Hard root vegetables
Over-thick soup

Tips

Add toasted rice powder late and stir to prevent sticking.