The Cambodian Snack Fairy

Khana is my T.A. and I am a foodie; the birth of a blog post.

Khana is a great gal for many reasons, but I'm going to highlight just one in this post.  Khana leaves little Khmer snacks on my desk for me, and I love it.  It feels like a present.  Like I've been rewarded for being a good girl and a hard worker.  But it also feels like a treat for no reason at all other than friendship, giving and sharing.  It's like an adventure to discover what it's called and what it tastes like.

It's been a great way for me to try many different Khmer foods, that I would probably never venture out to buy on my own.  I love to try new things, but I haven't bought food off the street carts since I've been here.  Maybe that's why I've maintained good health since arriving...I'm building up my bacterial immunity slowly but surely, rather than one good onslaught.  (Other than the time I ate two pieces of papaya, but we won't talk about that here).

Enjoy a gallery of Khmer treats.  I've tried to list the Khmer names for most and the English equivalent.

A type of sweet potato "dom lowng".  'Dom' means 'pound' as in a nail with a hammer.

"pbote dtuk com bow."  A baggie of corn kernels mixed with sugar and shredded coconut.   'Pbote' means corn, 'dtuk' means water, the rest of the words were unclear.
This one was my favorite because I have a coconut fetish.

Little fried dumplings of potatoes and various veggies "Nom chung chroo" Literally means 'pigs foot snack' because it looks like a little piggy foot I guess.  These have appeared on my desk several times and I'm never disappointed.

An ear of corn. "Pbote sngow" or 'boiled corn.'
 The corn is a bit gummy here, different from what we have at home.

Two little fried snacks. "jak kwai" on the left and "nom powng" on the right, which means 'balloon snack.'

Sticky rice and banana treat wrapped in a banana leaf and then grilled.  It's called "nom ahn som ang".  'Ang' means grilled.

Khmer jello of sorts.  "Nom che kah jun"  or 'Monday snack.'  
It had chopped roasted nuts on top and had a delightful nutty flavor.  

This is a banana, steam rolled flat, dipped in batter with black sesame seeds and fried. " nom jake jian" or 'fried banana snack.' This was a fun one.

Here is the picture of the Cambodian snack fairy.

Thank you Khana, you are special to me.