ទឹកគ្រឿង (Asian Mackerel Vegetable Dip Sauce )

It is almost time for lunch and I want to introduce a dish name Teok Kreoung - (ទឹកគ្រឿង) Asian Mackerel Vegetable Dip Sauce. 

The dish can be for lunch or dinner and one of the popular dish among Cambodian people. Some restaurants with Khmer food also offer this in the menu.

Many Cambodian dishes come together with side vegetables, very healthy. I cannot even count how many of the dishes that come together with side vegetables.

Dip with various vegetables - whenever I eat this I have to say sorry to my stomach because I typically cannot stop 

• A kind of dip sauce that goes together with various vegetables, healthy dish. It is incomplete without vegetables and less or more vegetables depends families and what availed in the garden.
• The dish that goes together with rice
• Different regions have different ways of making it.

Ingredients:

• Smoked fish / grilled fish or boiled fish (as per your preference)
• Garlic and shallot
• Chili
• Pea eggplant (some regions use and some do not use)
• Ripe tamarind or lemon/lime
• Fermented/preserved fish or fish sauce
• Fried peanut (don't put if you don't like)

Side vegetables or Khmer called it Anlork (អន្លក់):

• Similar to rice noodle, there are gardening and wild plants which we use to go together with this dish.

• អន្លក់​ or side vegetables included cucumber, water lily, water hyacinths, banana blossom (fresh or boiled), cabbages (fresh or boiled), herbs (few types from the garden), string bean (fresh or boiled), eggplant (fresh or boiled), baby corn (boiled), winged bean, water lily (fresh or boiled), neem leaves/flower (fresh or boiled), water mimosa, 

How to do it?

• Garlic, shallot, pea eggplant and chili must be heat on the pot to be red and leave them a bit colder and then scratch in mortar together, keep aside.
• Smoked fish/ grilled fish should be peeling off its skin and then scratch in the mortar, keep aside. If you use boiled fish, boil it and bring it on the plate, keep it until cold and peel off its bones. Put them in the mortar so they become mixture.
• Fermented fish, can be boiling or grilling to be cooked and put in hot water (enough to be sauce), stir it till it is mixed well. 
• Then, put these things together, add sugar, lemon/ripe tamarind sauce (mixed with hot water and stir, take only the water).
• Taste it and keep adding things till your preference and put chili on it for decoration or for those who love a bit of hot. 
• Watch how to do it here (most places do this way) and here for some other regions.

This dish is good for 4-6 people and required using hand while eating.

Dip sauceSome of the vegetables to go with it.