• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • ABOUT
    • All About Grantourismo
    • Work With Us
    • Meet Lara and Terence
    • Itineraries, Tours & Retreats
    • Media Coverage
    • Contacts
  • SLOW
  • LOCAL
  • EXPERIENTIAL
  • RECIPES
Grantourismo Travels Homepage

Grantourismo Travels

The website of globetrotting professional travel writing and photography team Lara Dunston and Terence Carter

Grantourismo Travels Homepage
  • AFRICA
        • KENYA
          • Masai Mara
          • Mombasa
          • Tsavo West
        • MOROCCO
          • Essaouira
          • Marrakech
        • SOUTH AFRICA
          • Cape Town
  • ASIA
        • CAMBODIA
          • Battambang
          • Phnom Penh
          • Siem Reap
        • INDONESIA
          • Bali
        • JAPAN
          • Tokyo
        • LAOS
          • Luang Prabang
        • MALAYSIA
          • Borneo
          • Kuala Lumpur
          • Penang
        • MEKONG RIVER
        • SINGAPORE
        • MYANMAR
        • THAILAND
          • Bangkok
          • Chiang Mai
          • Isaan
          • Phuket
        • VIETNAM
          • Dalat
          • Hanoi
          • Hoi An
          • Saigon
          • Sapa
  • AMERICAS
        • ARGENTINA
          • Buenos Aires
        • BRAZIL
          • Rio de Janeiro
        • COSTA RICA
          • Manuel Antonio
        • MEXICO
          • Mexico City
          • San Miguel de Allende
        • UNITED STATES
          • Austin
          • New York City
  • AUSTRALASIA
        • AUSTRALIA
          • Adelaide
          • Darwin
          • Gold Coast
          • Melbourne
          • Perth
          • Sydney
  • EUROPE
        • AUSTRIA
          • Vienna
          • Zell Am See
        • ENGLAND
          • London
        • FRANCE
          • Céret
          • Paris
          • Perpignan
        • GERMANY
          • Berlin
        • HUNGARY
          • Budapest
        • ITALY
          • Alberobello
          • Calabria
          • Italian Lakes
          • Sardinia
          • Venice
        • MONTENEGRO
          • Kotor
        • POLAND
          • Krakow
          • Zakopane
        • PORTUGAL
          • Porto
          • Portugal Wine Regions
        • SCOTLAND
          • Edinburgh
        • SPAIN
          • Barcelona
          • Jerez
          • Mallorca
        • TURKEY
          • Istanbul
  • MIDDLE EAST
        • JORDAN
          • Desert Areas
        • QATAR
          • Doha
        • UAE
          • Dubai
The Condiment Tray and DIY Seasoning in Asia – Footpath Feasting 101. Pho, Hanoi old town, Hanoi, Vietnam. Copyright © 2022 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

The Condiment Tray and DIY Seasoning in Asia – Footpath Feasting 101

The condiment tray or condiment caddy on the table at Asian restaurants, modest eateries, market tables, and street food stalls is there for a reason. It’s DIY seasoning. Don’t worry, you’re not going to upset the chef. In Asia, you’re meant to customise your dish.

I can’t tell you how many times we’ve been footpath feasting at a street food stall in Southeast Asia and overheard a conversation that went something like this: “This soup tastes bland.” “I agree. I don’t get it.” Yet at no point did either person reach for the condiment tray.

The Condiment Tray, Condiment Caddy and DIY Seasoning

In Asia, that ubiquitous stainless steel condiment tray or plastic condiment caddy on the table, holding a collection of bottles, glass jars and tubs of soy sauces, fish sauce, vinegars, pickles, sugar, pepper, spices, garlic cloves, ginger slices, and chili jams, powder, flakes, and fresh chili peppers, is there for a reason – it’s do-it-yourself (DIY) seasoning.

Along with a dish of lime wedges and perhaps a tray or basket of fragrant fresh herbs, the condiment tray contents are intended for use with whatever you’re eating. The cook won’t mind – in fact, she or he will probably smile, pleased to see you have some local know-how.

I often forget that for ‘Western’ people (and I do hate to generalise and put us all under the same umbrella, but here goes), it’s considered an insult to the cook or chef if a guest or diner wants to adjust the taste of a dish by adding seasoning. On the dining tables of most homes in Western countries (and, again, forgive the generalisations), there is little more than salt and pepper, but increasingly neither.

Maybe some mayonnaise or salad dressing for a casual lunch. Olive oil and Parmigiano Reggiano in Italy. HP Sauce in the UK. Tomato sauce in Australia. Ketchup in the USA. Mustard in France. At my Russian grandmother’s home there was always a tub of sour cream and a jar of homemade gherkins.

But there is generally little else on a Western dinner table and asking a host for chili, fish sauce, soy, or Sri Racha to add to the clear broth set in front of you would certainly raise eyebrows and probably won’t score you a further dinner invitation.

In many restaurants, especially the very finest, salt and pepper are not even placed on tables these days. The most accomplished chefs have worked hard to balance the ingredients and flavours of dishes when developing their recipes. If it’s a degustation menu, the chef has also taken into account the progression of each dish and how the flow from one to another affects the taste buds.

To change the flavour profile of a dish by adding your own seasoning, and disrupting the sequence of a carefully constructed experience, would be considered an affront to the chef.

Yet in most countries in Asia, everywhere from Cambodia to Korea, Thailand to India, and everything in between, along with the Middle East and Africa, from the Arabian Peninsula across to Morocco, adding some sort of seasoning or even a whole gamut of condiments is not only acceptable, it’s expected and encouraged.

There’s nothing wrong at all with adding something to your dish if you desire a little more heat, spice, sourness, saltiness, sweetness, bitterness, tanginess, and umami – in many parts of Asia, one of those glass jars on the table will probably contain MSG.

One night in Hanoi at a street food stall in the old town, we watched two 20-something Asian-American girls, sitting beside us at a teensy plastic red table on tiny plastic blue stools, screwing up their nose and moving their noodles around on their plates with their forks.

The girls might have just arrived from the airport and this could have been their first meal in Vietnam. Regardless, only their features gave away their heritage, because they clearly didn’t know how to eat in Asia.

Neither girl was very enthusiastic about her dish – dishes we were already tucking into and loved. Dishes that we had been encouraged to embellish by experience and watching a regular customer, an elderly gentleman at another table.

The moment the dapper old man in plaid jacket and beret sat down on his stool, he took the chopsticks out of the paper packet and readied the condiments in front of him, checking each bottle and jar was full, and if one wasn’t swapping it with another from the next little table.

As soon as the plate was set in front of him, he set to work – a splash of fish sauce, another of soy, a spoonful of chili jam, and a squeeze of lemon. He didn’t even try the dish first. Then he combined it all with his chopsticks and put his head down close to the plate, and began to shovel the noodles into his mouth, not looking up until he was done. When he was finished, he took out a perfectly pressed white handkerchief from his top pocket and dabbed at his mouth.

We watched the man intently, as we watch any local diners the first time we eat a dish we’re unfamiliar with – if they haven’t already gestured to show us what to add of their own accord, as they often do in Vietnam and Thailand – and after tasting those noodles we immediately followed suit.

On another day at one of Hanoi’s most revered pho establishments, we watched table after table of locals enhance their dishes after only a cursory glance at the broth steaming in front of them. With Vietnamese and much of South East Asian street food, it is as if the cooks give you a blank canvas and you add the condiments to your heart’s content to complete the dish.

But at the Hanoi noodle stall, however, the American girls were obviously oblivious to how we and the old gentleman opposite were eating the rich noodle dish that was all the more delicious because of our additions.

The girl on my side looked up to her friend and, crinkling up her nose again, said: “The chef hasn’t quite got there with this dish.” Wrinkling her face right back at her pal, her friend responded in agreement. “It’s under-seasoned, don’t you think?” Of course it is!

I blame cooking competition shows like MasterChef, IronChef and My Kitchen Rules, where entrants are required to create dishes that are finished, judged by their perfection of form, and are commonly scored down if what’s on their plate isn’t faultless.

How many times have we heard John Torode, Gordon Ramsay or Matt Preston tell a contestant their dishes are under-seasoned? The chefs and food critics obviously have the most well developed palates (we’d like to think we do too) but what they and their shows don’t take into account is that we all have different taste.

I like my food fiery. I don’t do bland. I have a very high tolerance to heat and, along with Terence, who is an expert in the art of seasoning and likes his salt and spices, we probably add more condiments to our dishes than the average diner. Terence has been known to turn many a clear soup red.

In Cambodia, where the cuisine lacks the intensity of, say, Thai cuisine (in an interview I recently did with Chef David Thompson he called Cambodian a “gentler cuisine” and it’s true to a certain extent), we find we are continually reaching for condiments, especially for the chili.

In Cambodia, like Thailand, the portable condiment tray will generally hold chili flakes or chili jam (or relish), fish sauce, and something like vinegar. In Thailand, it’s generally red chilis and garlic, whereas in Cambodia it might be green chilis or even pickled cucumber or daikon and carrot.

The sugar that is commonplace in Thailand doesn’t always appear in Cambodia, but in both countries, as in Vietnam, there will generally be an additional bottle or three of soy sauces (light and dark), fish sauce, and perhaps a chili sauce like Sriracha on the table.

While not strictly classified as condiments, in Vietnam, there will often be the added bonus of a basket or plate of fresh aromatic herbs and greens that might include any combination of mint, Vietnamese mint, Thai basil, holy basil, coriander, dill, saw tooth herb, fish herb (or fish leaf), perilla leaves, bean sprouts, and lettuce, that if served with your dish you should sprinkle on top and can continue to add as liberally as you like throughout your meal.

The condiment tray is on the table for a reason and you’re welcome to use the condiments to customise your dish to your liking, especially if you believe something to be under-seasoned. Don’t ever consider a street food dish in Asia, especially South East Asia, complete. Some dishes are made to be enhanced – pho, congee, cao lau, com ga, kuy teav, kway teow, just to name a few. But how much flavour you add is up to you.

Just watch what the locals do and add a little of each – you can always add more, but you can never take something away. Then again, you don’t have to add anything if you don’t want to. And therein lies the beauty of the condiment tray and DIY seasoning.

Just don’t call something bland without understanding how locals embellish a dish. Otherwise, you may as well head right back to the airport. Or eat at McDonalds.
 

Vietnam Visa on Arrival

Travelling to Vietnam? Click through to arrange your Vietnam Visa on Arrival through our Visa Partner, the most respected Vietnam Visa agent. Visa approval letters take just 2 business days, although urgent visas can be arranged in as little as 4 working hours and up to 1 working day. More visa information here.
 

Support our Cambodia Cookbook & Culinary History Book with a donation or monthly pledge on Patreon.

Related Posts You Might Like

Advertisement

Find Your Vietnam Accommodation

Booking.com

Shop for related products

SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

39 shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Yummly

About Lara Dunston

A travel and food writer who has experienced over 70 countries and written for The Guardian, Australian Gourmet Traveller, Feast, Delicious, National Geographic Traveller, Conde Nast Traveller, Travel+Leisure Southeast Asia, DestinAsian, TIME, CNN, The Independent, The Telegraph, Sunday Times Travel Magazine, AFAR, Wanderlust, International Traveller, Get Lost, Four Seasons Magazine, Fah Thai, Sawasdee, and more, as well as authored more than 40 guidebooks for Lonely Planet, DK, Footprint, Rough Guides, Fodors, Thomas Cook, and AA Guides.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jo (The Blond) says

    December 27, 2013 at 9:33 pm

    oh I love that tray of spices and herbs! the more the better and the more fun I have with food then.

  2. Lara Dunston says

    December 28, 2013 at 1:52 pm

    Agree! And it is about having fun with your food, isn’t it? So many people take food so seriously these days.

  3. Katherine Belarmino says

    January 2, 2014 at 12:23 am

    Great article! I think it is important to learn about a place’s food culture before you go so you kind of know what to expect and then also learn by observation. I love playing with my food and since I like my food spicier than my husband, it was great that we could adjust on our own.

  4. Lara Dunston says

    January 3, 2014 at 9:05 am

    Thanks, Katherine! Southeast Asians are the same – contrary to public opinion, not everyone likes fiery food in Thailand, and in places where they prefer gentler cuisine, such as Cambodia, there are also people who do like a lot of spice. And that’s the beauty of that condiment tray. Thanks for dropping by!

  5. Top Koaysomboon says

    January 11, 2014 at 4:29 pm

    I like your last paragraph and thank you for understanding our conplex eating habits. In Bangkok, there are many streetfood joints I don’t add condiments — those renowned places who been there for thirty years, for instance. But our favorite flavors are too varied that chefs can set the standard, especially for local dishes. ^^

  6. Lara Dunston says

    January 11, 2014 at 10:22 pm

    Thank you – or, kapunka – much appreciated. We try hard to understand the complexities of things. Too many people simplify everything these days. You are so right – it’s very true that there are dishes by cooks who have been making them forever that are simply perfect and you don’t want to touch. But there are also dishes that you can transform with a little seasoning and it’s perfectly okay to do that, but it continually disappoints us that tourists don’t realise this and instead they criticze the cook for under-seasoning. It’s annoying. Thank you so much for dropping by and for your comments.

  7. Simone says

    January 12, 2014 at 7:29 am

    That is so true! Loved the story… For us going to Asia is all about the food, well maybe not all, but certainly a big part and not eating the way the locals do is just a pity. It can cause some surprises as I remember once being served chicken feet unexpectedly (which I ate but did not like!)

  8. Lara Dunston says

    January 12, 2014 at 12:31 pm

    Thanks, Simone! I think for many people travel to Asia is increasingly about eating. And, yes, agree that having a go at eating as locals do (the subject of our next post actually) is so important.

    Sadly, the vast majority of tourists aren’t as adventurous and because of that and their complaints about the food many restaurants tone down the flavours of dishes to please tourists, especially when it’s too spicy, sour, bitter etc. And that’s the subject of a forthcoming post too.

    We think it’s important to at least have a try of dishes like chicken feet – even if it’s accidental!

    Thanks for dropping by!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

About Grantourismo

Lara and Terence are an Australian-born, Southeast Asia-based travel and food writers and photographers who have authored scores of guidebooks, produced countless travel and food stories, are currently developing cookbooks and guidebooks, and host culinary tours and writing and photography retreats in Southeast Asia.
READ MORE…

Featured Posts

The Buenos Aires Parrilla or Steakhouse. Buenos Aires, Argentina. Copyright © 2022 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

Celebrating Beef: the Buenos Aires Parrilla or Steakhouse

Best Photography Equipment for the Angkor Wat Temples. Angkor Wat at dawn. Angkor Archaeological Park, Siem Reap, Cambodia. Copyright © 2022 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

The Best Camera Gear for Photographing Angkor Wat

Durian is Hot, Mango is Not – Don't Miss The Durian Lady in Chinatown Bangkok. Durian seller, Chinatown, Bangkok, Thailand. Copyright © 2023 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

Durian is Hot, Mango is Not – Don’t Miss The Durian Lady in Chinatown Bangkok

Footer

ABOUT GRANTOURISMO

  • All About Grantourismo
  • Meet Lara and Terence
  • Work With Us
  • Itineraries, Tours & Retreats
  • Media & Advertising
  • Media Coverage
  • Contacts

THE GRANTOURISMO SHOP ON SOCIETY6

The Grantourismo Shop on Society6

GET THE BEST MANAGED WORDPRESS HOSTING

Get the Best Managed Wordpress Website Hosting with Flywheel

IMPORTANT DETAILS

  • Terms and Conditions
  • Editorial Policy
  • Comments Policy
  • Advertising
  • Privacy Policy

AMAZON AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE

Grantourismo Travels is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, audible.com, and any other website that may be affiliated with Amazon Service LLC Associates Program.

GRANTOURISMO AFFILIATES/SUPPORT

Grantourismo is reader-supported. Posts contain various affiliate links. If you click through and purchase something, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. That income supports the work we do to create content. Here are more ways to support Grantourismo.

SUBSCRIBE

Follow us on Socials

INSTAGRAM FEED

Still looking for Christmas cooking inspo? Check o Still looking for Christmas cooking inspo? Check out our seafood recipe collection, especially if you celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve with a fish focused meal in the Southern Italian tradition, transformed by Italian-Americans into the Feast of the Seven Fishes, or like Australians, who celebrate Christmas in the sweltering summer, feast on seafood for Christmas Day lunch, we’ve got lots of easy seafood recipes for you.

Our recipes include a classic prawn cocktail, blini with smoked salmon, a ceviche-style appetiser, and devilled eggs with caviar. We’ve also got recipes for fish soup, seafood pies and pastas, salmon tray bake, and crispy salmon with creamy mashed potatoes.

You’ll find the recipes here: https://grantourismotravels.com/seafood-recipes-for-christmas-eve-and-christmas-day-menus/
(Link in bio if you’re seeing this on IG)

Merry Christmas if you’re celebrating!! 

#christmas #christmasfood #seafood #fish #recipes #christmasrecipes #foodstagram #foodblogger #food #foodlover #igfood #picoftheday #igfood #igfoodie #cooking #foodblog #food #foodstagram #instafood #instafoodie #foodie #foodies #foodlover #foodpics #foodporn #foodphotography #foodwriter #foodblogger #grantourismo #grantourismotravels #xmas #merrychristmas #happychristmas
If you’re still looking for food inspo for Chris If you’re still looking for food inspo for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day meals, my smoked salmon ‘carpaccio’ recipe is one of dozens of recipes in this compilation of our best Christmas recipes (link below). 

The Christmas recipe compilation includes collections of our best Christmas breakfast recipes, best Christmas brunch recipes, best Christmas starter recipes, best Christmas cocktails, best Christmas dessert recipes, and homemade edible Christmas gifts and more.

My smoked salmon carpaccio recipe makes an easy elegant appetiser that’s made in minutes. If you’re having guests over, you can make the dish ahead by assembling the salmon, capers and pickled onions, and refrigerate it, then pour on the dressing just before serving. 

Provide toasted baguette slices and bowls of additional capers, pickles and dressing, so guests can customise their carpaccio. And open the bubbly!

You’ll find that recipe and many more Christmas recipes here: https://grantourismotravels.com/best-christmas-recipes/ (link in bio if you’re seeing this on IG)

Merry Christmas!! X

#christmas #christmasfood #recipes #christmasrecipes #foodstagram #salmon #smokedsalmon #foodblogger #food #foodlover #igfood #picoftheday #igfoodie #cooking #foodblog #food #foodstagram #instafood #instafoodie #foodie #foodies #foodlover #foodpics #foodporn #foodphotography #foodwriter #foodblogger #recipedeveloper #writingacookbook #grantourismo #grantourismotravels 
#xmas #merrychristmas #happychristmas
If you haven’t visited our site in a while, I sh If you haven’t visited our site in a while, I shared a collection of recipes for homemade edible Christmas gifts — for condiments, hot sauces, chilli oils, a whole array of pickles, spice blends, chilli salt, furakake seasoning, and spicy snacks, such as our Cambodian and Vietnamese roasted peanuts. 

I love giving homemade edibles as gifts as much as I love receiving them. Who wouldn’t appreciate jars filled with their favourite chilli oils, hot sauces, piquant pickles, and spicy peanuts that loved-ones have taken the time to make? 

Aside from the gesture and affordability of gifting homemade edibles, you’re minimising waste. You can use recycled jars or if buying new mason jars or clip-top Kilner jars, you know they’ll get repurposed.

No need for wrapping, just attach some Christmas baubles or tinsel to the lid. I used squares of Cambodian kramas (cotton scarves), which can be repurposed as napkins or drink coasters, and tied a ribbon or two around the lids, and attached last year’s Christmas tree decorations to some.

You’ll find the recipes here: https://grantourismotravels.com/homemade-edible-christmas-gifts/ (link in bio if you’re seeing this on IG)

Yes, that’s Pepper... every time there’s a camera around... 

#christmasgiftideas #ediblegifts ##christmasfoodgifts #foodgifts #giftideas #homemadegifts #christmasfood #ediblegiftideas #hotsauce #chillisauce #sriracha #pickles #homemadepickles #recipes #foodstagram #foodblogger #food #foodlover #igfood 
#blackcat #blackcatsofinstagram #picoftheday 
#christmas #christmastree #xmas #merrychristmas #happychristmas #cambodia #siemreap
This crab omelette is a decadent eggs dish that’ This crab omelette is a decadent eggs dish that’s perfect if you’re just back from the fish markets armed with luxurious fresh crab meat. It’s a little sweet, a little spicy, and very, very moreish.

Our crab omelette recipe was one of our 22 most popular egg recipes of 2022 on our website Grantourismo and it’s no surprise. It’s appeared more times than any other egg recipes on our annual round-ups of most popular recipes since Terence launched Weekend Eggs when we launched Grantourismo in 2010.

If you’re an eggs lover, do check out the recipe collection. It includes egg recipes from right around the world, from recipes for classic kopitiam eggs from Singapore and Malaysia and egg curries from India and Myanmar to all kinds of egg recipes from Thailand, Japan, Korea, China, Mexico, USA, Australia, UK, and Ireland.

And do browse our Weekend Eggs archives for further eggspiration (sorry). We have hundreds of egg recipes from the 13 year-old series of recipes for quintessential egg dishes from around the world, which we started on our 2010 year-long global grand tour focused on slow, local and experiential travel. 

We’re hoping 2023 will be the year we can finally publish the Weekend Eggs cookbook we’ve talked about for years based on that series. After we can find a publisher for the Cambodia cookbook of course... :( 

Recipe collection here (and proper link to Grantourismo in our bio):
https://grantourismotravels.com/22-most-popular-egg-recipes-of-2022-from-weekend-eggs/

If you cook the recipe and enjoy it please let us know — we love to hear from you — either in the comments at the end of the recipe or share a pic with us here.

#recipe #recipes #eggs #eggslover #breakfasteggs #WeekendEggs #egg #breakfast #brunch #igfood #igfoodie #cooking #foodblog #food #foodstagram #instafood  #instafoodie #foodie #foodies #foodlover #foodpics #foodporn #foodphotography #foodwriter #foodblogger #recipedeveloper #lookingforapublisher #writingacookbook  #grantourismo #grantourismotravels
I’m late to share this, but a few days ago Angko I’m late to share this, but a few days ago Angkor Archaeological Park, home to stupendous Angkor Wat, pictured, celebrated 30 years of its UNESCO World Heritage listing. 

That’s as good an excuse as any to put this magnificent, sprawling archaeological site on your travel list this year.

While riverside Siem Reap, your base for exploring Angkor is bustling once more, there are still nowhere near the visitors of the last busy high season months of December-January 2018-2019 when there were 290,000 visitors. 

Last month there were just 55,000 visitors and December feels a little quieter. A tour guide friend said there were about 150 people at Angkor Wat for sunrise a few days ago.

If you’re looking for tips to visiting Angkor, Siem Reap and Cambodia, just ask us a question in the comments below or check Grantourismo as we’ve got loads of info on our site. Click through to the link in the bio and explore our Cambodia guide or search for ‘Angkor’. 

And please do let us know if you’re coming to Siem Reap. We’d love to see you here x

#siemreap #cambodia #asia #travel #instatravel #traveldeeper #slowtravel #localtravel #experientialtravel #exploremore #neverstopexploring #goexplore #igtravel #angkorwat #angkor #temple #temples #angkorwithoutcrowds #unesco #unescoworldheritagesite #unescoworldheritage #archaeology #archaeologicalsite #traveladdict #beautifuldestinations #beautifulplaces #travelgram #wanderlust #picoftheday📷 #grantourismotravels.
Our soy ginger chicken recipe will make you sticky Our soy ginger chicken recipe will make you sticky, flavourful and succulent chicken thighs that are fantastic with steamed rice, Chinese greens or a salad, such as a Southeast Asian slaw. 

The chicken can be marinated for up to 24 hours before cooking, which ensures it’s packed with flavour, then it can be cooked on a barbecue or in a pan.

Terence’s soy ginger chicken recipe is one of our favourite recipes for a quick and easy meal. I love the sound of the sizzling thighs in the pan, and the warming aromas wafting through the apartment. 

It’s amazing how such flavourful juicy chicken thighs come from such a quick and easy recipe.

Recipe here (and proper link to Grantourismo in our bio): https://grantourismotravels.com/soy-ginger-chicken-recipe/

If you cook it and enjoy it please let us know — we love to hear from you — either here or in the comments at the end of the recipe on the site or share a pic with us x 

#recipe #recipes #chicken #soygingerchicken #asianfood #southeastasianfood #igfood #igfoodie #cooking #cookingtime #recipe #recipes #comfortfood #foodblog #food #foodstagram #healthyfood #instafood #healthy #instafoodie #foodie #foodies #foodlover #foodpics #foodporn #foodphotography #foodwriter #foodblogger #recipedeveloper #writingacookbook #grantourismo #grantourismotravels
Who can guess the ingredients and what we’re mak Who can guess the ingredients and what we’re making with my market haul from Psar Samaki in Siem Reap — all for a whopping 10,000 riel (US$2.50)?! 

Birds-eye chillies thrown in for free! They were on my list but the seller I spent most at (5,000 riel!) scooped up a handful and slipped them into my bag. She was my last stop and knew what I was making.

My Khmer is poor, even after all our years in Cambodia, as I don’t learn languages with the ease I did in my 20s, plus I’m mentally exhausted after researching and writing all day. I have a better vocabulary of Old and Middle Khmer than modern Khmer from studying the ancient inscriptions for the Cambodian culinary history component of our cookbook I’m writing.

So when one seller totalled my purchases I thought she said 5,000 riel but she handed back 4,500 riel! The sum total of two huge bunches of herbs and kaffir lime leaves was 500 riel.

Tip: if visiting Siem Reap, use Khmer riel for local shopping. We’ve mainly used riel since the pandemic started— rarely use US$ now as market sellers quote prices in riels, as do local shops and bakeries, and I tip tuk tuk drivers in riels. I find prices quoted in riels are lower.

Psar Samaki is cheaper than Psar Leu, which is cheaper than Psar Chas, as it’s a wholesale market, which means the produce is fresher. I see veggies arriving, piled high in the back of vehicles, with dirt still on them — as I did on this trip. 

The scent of a mountain of incredibly aromatic pineapples offloaded from the back of a dusty ute was so heady they smelt like they’d just been cut. More exotic European style veggies arrive by big trucks in boxes labelled in Vietnamese (from Dalat) and Mandarin (from China), such as beautiful snow-white cauliflower I spotted.

Note: the freshest produce is sold on the dirt road at the back of the market.

#cambodia #siemreap #foodwriter #foodblogger #foodphotography #igfood #foodstagram #instafood #instafoodie #foodie #instadaily #picoftheday #market #siemreapmarket #psarsamaki #marketfresh #vegetables #healthyfood #marketshopping #traveltips #foodtravel #culinarytravel #localtravel #cooking #cookingtime #curry #homemade #currypaste #grantourismotravels
My Vietnamese-ish meatballs and rice noodles recip My Vietnamese-ish meatballs and rice noodles recipe makes tender meatballs doused in a delightfully tangy-sweet sauce, sprinkled with crispy fried shallots, with carrot-daikon, crunchy cucumber and fragrant herbs. 

The dish is inspired by bún chả, a Hanoi specialty, but it’s not bún chả. No matter what Google or food bloggers tell you. Names are important, especially when cooking and writing about cuisines not our own.

This is an authentic bún chả recipe:  https://grantourismotravels.com/vietnamese-bun-cha-recipe/ You’ll need to get the outdoor BBQ/grill going to do proper smoky bún chả meat patties (not meatballs).

My meatball noodle bowl is perhaps more closely related to dishes such as a Central Vietnam cousin bún thịt nướng (pork skewers on rice noodles in a bowl) and a Southern relation bún bò Nam Bộ (beef atop rice noodles, sprinkled with fried shallots (Nam Bộ=Southern Vietnam) though neither include meatballs. 

Xíu mại= meatballs although they’re different in flavour to mine, which taste more like bún chả patties. Xíu mại remind me of Southern Italian meatballs in tomato sauce.

In Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, home to millions of Khmer, there’s bánh tằm xíu mại. Bánh tằm=silk worm noodles. They’re topped with meatballs, cucumber, daikon, carrot, fresh herbs, crispy fried onions. Difference: cold noodles doused in a sauce of coconut cream and fish sauce. 

Remove the meatballs, add chopped fried spring rolls and it’s Cambodia’s banh sung, which is a rice noodle salad similar to Vietnam’s bún chả giò :) 

Recipe here: (link in bio) https://grantourismotravels.com/vietnamese-meatballs-and-rice-noodles-recipe/

For more on these culinary connections you’ll have to wait for our Cambodian cookbook and culinary history. In a hurry to know? Come support the project on Patreon. (link in bio)

#recipe #recipes #vietnamesefood #cambodianfood #asianfood #southeastasianfood #ricenoodles #rice #noodlebowl #meatballs #igfood #igfoodie #foodblog #food #foodstagram #instafood  #instafoodie #foodie #foodies #foodlover #foodpics #foodporn #foodphotography #foodwriter #foodblogger #writingacookbook #writingacambodiancookbook #patreon #patreoncreator #grantourismo
It is pure coincidence that Pepper’s eye colour It is pure coincidence that Pepper’s eye colour matches the furnishings of our rented apartment. So, no, I did not colour-coordinate the interiors to match our cat’s eyes. 

I keep getting DMs from pet clothing brands wanting to “partner” with Pepper and send her free cat clothes and cat accessories. Although she did wear a kerchief for a few years in her more adventurous fashion-forward teenage years, I cannot see this cat in clothes now, can you? 

#pepper #blackcat #blackcats #blackcatsofinstagram #blackcatsrule #blackcatsmatter #cat #cats #catsofinstagram #catstagram #catlover #catlovers #catlove #catoftheday #catphoto #catpic #catpics #cambodiancat #cambodiancatsofinstagram #catlife #catloversclub #catoftheday #catgram #catstagram #cats_of_instagram #catphotography #catsofig #catsoftheworld #catsofinsta #cats🐱 #siemreap #cambodia

SAFETY WING INSURANCE

Safety Wing Insurance

Footer Widget Header

WEB LOVE

As Seen in The Guardian As Seen on NineMSN As Seen on Tnooz
As Seen In The Independent As Seen on Frommers As seen on Viator
As Seen in Afar As seen on Gadling As seen on Context
As Seen in Fathom As Seen on Matador As seen on Inspirato with American Express
As seen on the Daily Mail website As seen on the Forbes website Grantourismo on the SilverKris website

ALL MEDIA COPYRIGHT © 2009–2023 GRANTOURISMO | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
DESIGNED IN APARTMENT RENTALS, HOTELS AND RESORTS AROUND THE WORLD BY GRANTOURISMO MEDIA.
ASSEMBLED IN SOUTH-EAST-ASIA.
GRANTOURISMO TRAVELS AND ‘MAKING TRAVEL MORE MEANINGFUL AND MEMORABLE’ ARE ™ TO GRANTOURISMO MEDIA.