Crab Market (it's a very small town)
Kep, Cambodia
In my bid to produce the World's Most Comprehensive Guide to the Kep Crab Market, I present to you The Kimly Restaurant. I do all this research because I am a giver and I give to humanity. I also spend a lot of time in Kep and possess a profound and personal interest in eating crustaceans. I have nothing against them, but they're delicious.
I ordered the Kampot Pepper Crab, the thing to order here (naturally).
This is what I'm gathering is the traditional method of doing Kampot pepper crab up. A thick sauce with a lot of kreung - Cambodian spice paste - in the mix. It's got a great flavor with a lot of chili, a bit of coconut milk (I suspect), some ginger, and the fresh bite of the Kampot pepper. They use green pepper instead of onion and green onion in the stir-fry mix - I prefer it the other way. I also think the thick sauce is a bit too salty. Ultimately, I like Trei's lighter/less thick version better. Lets the taste of the crab come through
Kimly's interior. It's a nice place to hang out.
The plate of crab cost 9 dollars, which is actually more then Trei down the strip a bit at 7. (The fact that I am quibbling over the price of a giant plate of fresh-caught crabs is technically hilarious as this would cost 30 bucks in the USA, but regardless). Still, the portion size is immense and it's a great place to hang out and watch the fisherfolk do their thing, pulling traps and setting them out again.
Here's a recipe from the BBC (of all places) for Kampot pepper crab. I am testing this out when I get home, though getting fresh peppercorns may prove a challenge. I am not very fond of dry pepper, but I am growing more and more partial to these little green jobbys. You can buy them pickled in jars here at the crab market, along with pickled shrimp and crabs and other sea creatures I find hard to identify. I love the crab market.
1 comment:
I LOVE CRAB! But I'm too lazy and/or gluttonous to do anything but tear them apart and eat them. Those look pretty enticing though.
Have you ever gone to the "Boiling Crab" or some such place in south Sacramento? It probably doesn't rival what you've got going on there but I suppose it's all we got. I haven't gone yet but will surely report on it when I do.
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