Product Description

Written by the chef-owner of Boston's renowned The Elephant Walk, which has been praised for its unique cuisine by such publications as Esquire, the New York Times, USA Today, and Time & Leisure, The Elephant Walk Cookbook is a fascinating introduction to the lively and sophisticated flavors of Cambodia.

In addition to showcasing Cambodia's foods, this cookbook tells the inspiring story of Longteine De Monteiro. The wife of a diplomat who was forced into exile after Pol Pot invaded Cambodia, De Monteiro escaped to France, where she established what may have been the first Cambodian restaurant in the Western world. She then moved to the United States and opened The Elephant Walk.

Less salty than Vietnamese food, less sweet than Thai, and subtler than both, Cambodian dishes feature a rich interweaving of cultural influences and fresh, light flavors. Some of the recipes in the book, like Catfish with Coconut Milk and Red Chilies, were created in the kitchens of Cambodian aristocrats, while others, like Stuffed Cabbage with Lemongrass, have simpler origins.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #846492 in Books
• Published on: 1998-10-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 362 pages

From Amazon.com
The Elephant Walk Cookbook, the first volume of traditional Cambodian cooking published in the U.S., is a cultural as well as a culinary adventure. It's also the story of author Longteine De Monteiro and how she and her husband were forced into exile in 1975 by the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia and eventually came to own three restaurants and a market in and around Boston. An important reason she wrote this book--with Katherine Neustadt--was to preserve traditional dishes that now may no longer be served in Cambodia because everyone who knew how to make them was exterminated by the Khmer Rouge, or fled elsewhere.

Cambodian cooking blends influences from Asia and the West, including China, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Spain, and France. It is a balancing act of colors, textures, and most of all, salty, sour, sweet, hot, and bitter flavors. Rice and fish are important, particularly freshwater-lake fish and a fermented fish paste, prahok. So are coconut milk, lemongrass, and a list of other ingredients that are becoming more readily available outside of Southwest Asia. Still, ordering by mail from sources provided in the book--or a special shopping trip--will be necessary to make most of the dishes in The Elephant Walk Cookbook.

The most accessible dishes are the salads (many of which contain chicken or pork), including Tomato Salad and Pineapple Salad, and the pickles, such as Mixed Vegetable Pickles. Loc Lac--beef marinated in mushroom soy sauce, sautéed, and served on crisp lettuce with lime juice--is another easy choice. Loving, lively descriptions and alluring photos will keep you reading about all of the 150 dishes, which are aromatic with basil and cilantro, galangal, kaffir lime and curry leaves, tamarind, fiery chiles, garlic, pungent fish sauce, and the like. --Dana Jacobi

From Publishers Weekly
Boston restaurateur De Monteiro, who fled her native Cambodia in the mid-1970s, aims to both introduce and preserve traditional Cambodian cuisine in this appealingly unusual cookbook. Less sweet than Thai and not as salty as Vietnamese fare, Cambodian dishes make frequent use of lemongrass, fish sauce, shrimp paste, coconut milk, kaffir lime leaves and other local specialties. Classic Noodle Soup achieves part of its unique taste with preserved cabbage and dried shrimp. Dishes are as simple as Grilled Marinated Pork Ribs, made savory with mushroom soy sauce and garlic, and as complexly flavored as Caramelized White Fish with Fried Garlic. De Monteiro also tells how to make Crispy Rice, the deep-fried appetizer popular at her restaurant. Although many ingredients can be found in ethnic groceriesAgalangal, dried lily buds and the preserved fish paste, prahokAothers, such as banana blossoms for Banana Blossom Salad, will be difficult for Americans to locate. Less exotic, a dessert such as Sweet Sliced Corn puts a twist on a familiar U.S. food by slicing steamed corn off the cob, drizzling it with honey and garnishing with coconut, while New Year's Rice Treats with glutinous rice, coconut and bananas steamed inside banana leaves is an annually popular Cambodian sweet. Cooks wishing to explore new territory will be drawn to this attractive introduction.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ingram
Longteine De Monteiro, the owner of three Cambodian restaurants, and Katherine Neustadt, a food writer, bring a book on Cambodian cuisine, featuring dishes with a rich interweaving of cultural influences and fresh, light flavors. Color photos and illustrations.

Customer Reviews

Just like mom used to make....
Although I just purchased this and have not started cooking yet, I find the selection of recipes very similar to what my mom used to cook for us. Glad I went ahead and purchased this book because I was never taugh how to prepare authentic Cambodian dishes growing up and this book will allow me to carry on the Cambodian ways of cooking. My fiancee who is Chinese enjoys every aspect of Cambodian food and she'll be absolutely delighted when I surprise her with some authentic cookings(without having to go to my mom's house). I will add a follow-up review after I start cooking and hopefully I won't be disappointed.

Great book - very complete
As my girlfriend is from Cambodia, I have looked for a source to learn to prepare some of the dishes her mother also makes, and I've managed to surprise her a couple of times with the mostly very authentic recipes that are in this book (not ALL dishes are perhaps uniquely or typically Khmer, but that does not change the merits of the book! (cfr. the other reader reviews)). The book is very complete, and a pleasure not only to use for cooking but also simply to browse and admire the pictures. For those who wish some extra sources of "authentic" khmer cuisine, I can recommend that they look for the book by Nusara Thaitawat (The Cuisine of Cambodia - I don't think it's on Amazon, but can be found on the internet) - they will find a great second book that also lists a large number of marvellous recipes, with equally exquisite pictures, but does presuppose some more familiarity with the ingredients and measures - which can be acquired by reading and using "The Elephant Walk" first.

First rate and absolutely authentic
This is by far the most useful Cambodian cookbook I have come across including those available in Khmer. The recipes are spot on and the instructions clear. Moreover it has so much of the local flavour that it puts the food into context - and by the way makes people home-sick.

Superb, well written and well illustrated - a credit to both author and publisher.