When I told my father that I was going to be traveling to Cambodia he said, “Really? Cambodia? You know, we weren’t really nice to them. We bombed them, you know? Are you sure?”

Yes, I went on a Holiday in Cambodia.

Quick, what’s your favorite Cambodian dish?

What’s that you say? You’re asking me what IS a Cambodian dish?

Well, before we get to that, there are some things you should know about Cambodia. (Don’t worry, the history lesson will be brief and vauge. If you want to learn more, you can do your homework.) First, Geography. Cambodia is surrounded by the nations of Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. The history of these places impacts the history of Cambodia. Back in the day, Jayavarman II, started the Khmer Empire that lasted from 802 C.E. to the mid 1400 C.E. The Khmer people are probably most well known for the building of Angkor Wat. The French then rolled into town around the 1800′s when colonization was all the rage. They stuck around until 1953, when Cambodia gained independence. The Vietnam War impacted Cambodia in many ways which gave rise to the Khmer Rouge (which is a whole other story), who were in power until the nation was reunited under a monarchy in 1993.

Cambodia has been through a lot. It is still recovering from the effects of much of it’s history – all of which can be reflected in its food. There is one dish that stands out to me as clearly Cambodian – Lok Lak.

Looking at it, you wouldn’t think that it is anything special, just some stir fried beef; but I have to tell you it is one flavorful dish. The basic ingredients in the marinade are oyster sauce, garlic, chili oil, and ketchup (yes, ketchup). The beef sits in this marinate 20 minutes or so and then it stir fried in a wok. It is served with white rice, a side of sliced tomato and cucumbers and a lime juice with salt and pepper sauce. (The sauce is where it’s at. Seriously.) So simple and so good.

[Side Bar - I learn more and more about food, simple seems to be the way to go. I've traveled to India and parts of South East Asia. Some say I have a thing for Third World Travel. And I guess I do, but it's just reinforced by the fact that simple is good. When resources are low, people really do the best with what they have. I have seen poverty in my travels, but I have had some really great food. More on this in a future post.]

When I think of Cambodia, I think of Lok Lak. Not only because it was on nearly every menu (along with fish amok) that we saw, but because to me it IS Cambodia. Upon first glance, Lok Lak doesn’t seem like it has much going for it, but once tasted, the flavor is comforting with just a hint of spice. Just like Cambodia. At first, it doesn’t seem like it has much to offer. I would recommend Cambodia to anyone traveling in South East Asia. The people are warm and comforting. The sights are breathtaking. And you don’t want to miss a ride on a bamboo train! The travel industry is just picking up and will be going crazy in no time. I would love to go back and explore more of the former Khmer Empire. There was so much that I didn’t see. The bottom line is, Cambodia makes an impression.

I’ve made Lok Lak at least seven times since returning. Most of those were within the first week back in the The States. It made an impression as well.

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If you would like to learn how to make Lok Lak, please “like” the One World, One Plate Facebook page and you will find a recipe there – it’s really easy to make!
Update: due to its popularity, I have posted the recipe here. 

Growing up, my access to interesting foods was pretty limited. My parents made good food, but it was mainly American. Despite the diversity of ethnicities in my household, when it comes down to it, a Stoffer’s Lasagna always came in handy during the week.

Looking back on my college years, I wasn’t as adventurous as I thought I was at the time. I had a lot going on, but I still thought I was “cultured”. I really wasn’t. I don’t remember many food experiences from back then, but I do remember the first time I had Indian food. It’s not too off the mark to say, that that day changed my life.

I was never good with dates, but I think it was 2004 or early 2005, I was visiting my college roommate at her home in Chicago. We spent some time catching up, but then we got hungry. The time had come to figure out what to eat. Now if you know me, you know I’m never a good person to go to in this situation. I can never make up my mind. I’m happy to just be eating. But this time, Noemi knew exactly where she wanted to go – the famed Hema’s Kitchen off of Devon Street.

I had never had Indian food before because it never really was an option. To be honest it was so foreign to me I was a little scared of it. However, I figured now was as good of a time as any to try it out. I was happy I didn’t have to think of a place to go eat and was excited to go to some where I had never been. So hopped in the car.

Devon Street in Chicago is the heart of the Indian neighborhood. Driving through, I saw signs in grocery store windows with ingredients I had never heard of before. There were stores with brightly colored fabrics in the window. The street was full of people out and about – walking from store to store and catching up with neighbors. Even though it was overcast, everything seemed a little more vibrant. I was so glad that Noemi was driving because it gave a chance to look out the window like a three year old child seeing a new world for the first time.

What’s that? Look over there – did you see that? Oh, I want to go there! (This is a trait I am proud to say, I still have not outgrown.)

After being amazed by the proper parallel parking skills of a true Chicagoan, we stepped into a tiny restaurant. The windows by the doors had copies of newspaper articles written about the place and it was Zaggat rated. If I was going to try Indian food, this seemed like the place to do it.

We sat down at our table and honestly, I was a little nervous. The air was full of aromas I had never encountered before. I remember getting the menus and being overwhelmed because I had no idea what anything was.

Was I going to like this? Do they have grilled cheese on the menu just in case I chicken out?

Luckily Noemi had been here many times and gave me the lay of the land. It didn’t stop questions from popping up in my head.

How can so many things be “masala”? What is “aloo”? What’s “paneer”? What does it mean to be “tika” and “masala”? Samosa! Oh I know that one! Let’s get some of those.

After I became more familiar with what my options were and I had reminded myself that Noemi brought me here and she thinks its good, so it was probably good – we placed our order. We split vegetable samosas and I ordered something with mushrooms and peas in a creamy sauce (I still don’t remember the name of it), rice and naan. The waiter took the menus and headed off to the kitchen. There was no turning back.

Everything came to the table at once. (In retrospect, I totally wish I had my camera with me. The photo above is not of this meal.) There was no space for anything else.

I remember trying the mushroom and peas dish first. I scooped some up with my fork and in it went.

It is hard to describe the feeling I had as my taste buds were exposed to this new cuisine. However, it was a moment that is bookmarked enough for me to want to write a blog post about it almost six years later.

The first thing I remember thinking was, “This is comforting. How can this be so familiar when I’ve never had it before? This makes me happy.” I ate and ate and ate. I used the naan like a tortilla, gathering up rice and veggies into one scrumptious bite. I dipped samosas in the various chutneys. I ate until I was just past full.

It was so delicious. Indian food was no longer unknown. I took this thought away with me: If something this unknown tasted like it was something I had eaten my entire life, I couldn’t wait to go taste what else the world had to offer.

Luckily, there were leftovers.

I remember going home to my family and talking about my experience at Hema’s Kitchen non-stop. After listening to me go on and on, they admitted that they probably wouldn’t eat at Hema’s even though it has been featured on their favorite Channel 11 show, Check Please! I tried to convey to them the feeling I had while I ate Indian food. It was the same feeling I have when I eat at grandma’s, it was that comforting. I didn’t comprehend why they didn’t want to try it after listening to my enthusiastic review.

I am convinced that this day in the timeline of my life was the day I made a decision to give myself opportunities to learn about and experience other cultures. I could not shake the feeling I had when I first tasted my lunch that day. There was a whole world out there. Fear no longer was going to keep those doors closed. I wanted to go out there and taste and see everything. At the time, I had no idea where this was going to take me or if it was going to take me anywhere at all. But, I can tie many decisions I made in my life since then, to this single experience. After all, almost three years later I was asked, “Would you like to go to India?”

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I have a strong connection with the tortilla – let me explain. . . .

I am half Mexican and half Polish. These are two very different cultures, but I found that there are a lot of similarities between them. For example, the polka sounds a whole lot like the ranchera. Both cultures are fond of their respective alcohol and Catholicism seems to work for large populations in Mexico and Poland.

Anyway, one would think that I had a rich cultural upbringing with these two sides of my family, but that was far from the case. I actually grew up with very little cultural education, but was always searching for more. I wanted there to be some sort of battle between my parents trying to prove which culture was superior just so that I could learn all that I could about them and in the process would get to eat some awesome food. As it turns out, my mom isn’t all that Polish, she’s second generation American and my dad is so into being American that he didn’t really tell me what it is like to be Mexican.

My grandparent’s house was the only place I had growing up, to get a glimpse at Mexican culture. I always looked forward to visiting them in the city because it meant that grandma would cook and grandpa would tell stories. We would walk in the house and smell the carne, arroz y frejoles on the stove. We would all sit around the table while my grandmother would refill our plates and my grandfather flipped the totrillas on the comal (1). As a kid, I noticed everyone on my dad’s side of the family using a tortilla to eat. They would use the tortilla to scoop up the meat, rice and beans. I had never thought that food could be eaten like that. Each visit I would try to mimic what I saw, but always ended up using a fork. It was a big accomplishment when I figured out how to put it all together because I finally felt connected to the Mexican culture.

As I grew older I realized that Mexicans weren’t the only ones that used bread as a vehicle for food. While traveling in India, I saw people using paranthas much in the same way as I use a tortilla. This is when I declared that every culture has a tortilla (ask my boyfriend, it really was a declaration) and became fascinated with finding the connections between cultures through food. That’s what I hope to do with One World, One Plate.

I hope to post as often as I can about different dishes and ingredients. I cannot promise a plethora of recipes, because that is not my goal – but if I find a good one, I’ll post it up here.

Here are few facts about the mexican tortilla . . . it is one of the oldest foods on the planet. Dating back to 10,000 BCE and – according to Mayan legend – were first served by a peasant to his hungry king. (2 ) They are usually made by soaking corn in lye and then grinding the grains into a dough. A ball of dough is then patted down into a circle and then the tortilla is placed on a hot griddle and heated on both sides. Since then, the process has become mechanized and tortillas are mass produced. They are so popular, that tortillas have “surpassed bagels and muffins to become the number two packaged bread product in the U.S.” (3).

What’s your culture’s tortilla?