BY TAYLOR SARRATT
PHOTO BY MARIAH SMITH
The International Student Union treated many students who attended Cody Commons on the night of November 20th to some traditional Cambodian comfort food by giving attendees a chance to broaden their palates and try dishes most people would not be normally used to. Each dish was vastly different and all had unique and flavorful qualities, which will be highlighted below.
The first dish tried is known as Lol Lak, a traditional beef dish served with carrots and cucumber, it is eaten simultaneously with the meat on the veggie or biting one and then the other. A well seasoned and full-bodied protein meal where the spices in the beef gave it a pleasant tang not unlike cilantro, with the acidity well countered by the cool taste of the cucumber, and then the carrot acting as the perfect palate cleanser. One of the most important factors of red meat dishes is to let the savory taste shine without over-salting it, and Lok Lak knocks it out of the park.
The second dish tried does not seem to have an English name. It’s very comparable to a stir-fry dish visually, but the taste was a wholly different factor, served on white rice was shrimp, peppers, potatoes, and a thin orange sauce. At first bite the dish was surprising. Visually the dish gave off a spicy appearance, but it was actually quite sweet, the potatoes, shrimp, and peppers absorbed this flavor quite well, with the real star of the dish being the shrimp themselves, each bite bursting with flavor absorbing the sauce excellently. The vegetables acted as a great accent piece providing a good crunch despite their time in the sauce.
The final dish was described as simply egg and onion and can be summed up as a Cambodian omelet, but simplicity is not a bad thing. The nice earthy flavors of white onion with a good hearty egg is a classic flavor combination all over the world, and provided a nice sense of familiarity while consuming the unfamiliar flavors of the other two dishes, it was also provided a good protein to vegetarians who attended the event.
The International Spice Event was part of International Education week celebrated on campus before Thanksgiving break.