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| A Woman's Directory For Travel and Life. WAVE Journey is your one stop online resource for women oriented businesses and services around the world. WAVE Journey is for every woman to enjoy. If you love to travel, cook, read or revel in outdoor activities this website is for you. If you are looking to connect with other like-minded women or if you are interested in finding businesses or services that cater to women, WAVE Journey is your number one online resource. |
| WAVE Journey |
| Women's Adventures, Vacations, Experiences ~ Your Journey Starts Here! |
Cambodia: Just Not Crickets ~
Article by Jacqui Menard, photo by Jen Liao
Article by Jacqui Menard, photo by Jen Liao
My daily bread? It was colorless and just, blah! Laced with sugar and coated in carbs, my
meals consisted of microwavable ‘easy eats,’ and food that could be prepared in less than
three minutes flat. However, one trip to Cambodia not only helped me discover the dark
underbelly of the culinary world (after all where else could you dip a forest grub in mad hot
chili sauce?), but it challenged my palette, redefined the meaning of ‘good food’ and
bewildered my taste buds for the better.
Deep fried Skuon spiders were not on the entrée menu that afternoon; our group had the
luxury of crickets. I turned away, took a deep breath, sifted through the basket of crispy
critters and pulled out the biggest one I could find. I popped him in my mouth, closed my
eyes, crunched down on his thorax, swallowed and felt his super fine hairs tickle at my
throat. I opened my eyes, one at a time, cleaned my teeth with my tongue and thought, ‘I
just ate a cricket?’
Cambodia’s food culture is very colorful and exotic - from simple combinations of mint and
lemon grass, to bizarre country-wide delicacies such as wasps and beetles, there are no
boundaries to the culinary delights this thriving South- East Asian country has to offer.
For tourists, a visit to any local Cambodian restaurant is like a culinary trip back in time.
Colonized by the French in the 1860’s, frog legs, fine breads and roasted turtle still manage
to find their way onto menus today. Other culinary influences extend from China, as well as
from Cambodia ’s long outstanding relationships with Thailand and Vietnam.
meals consisted of microwavable ‘easy eats,’ and food that could be prepared in less than
three minutes flat. However, one trip to Cambodia not only helped me discover the dark
underbelly of the culinary world (after all where else could you dip a forest grub in mad hot
chili sauce?), but it challenged my palette, redefined the meaning of ‘good food’ and
bewildered my taste buds for the better.
Deep fried Skuon spiders were not on the entrée menu that afternoon; our group had the
luxury of crickets. I turned away, took a deep breath, sifted through the basket of crispy
critters and pulled out the biggest one I could find. I popped him in my mouth, closed my
eyes, crunched down on his thorax, swallowed and felt his super fine hairs tickle at my
throat. I opened my eyes, one at a time, cleaned my teeth with my tongue and thought, ‘I
just ate a cricket?’
Cambodia’s food culture is very colorful and exotic - from simple combinations of mint and
lemon grass, to bizarre country-wide delicacies such as wasps and beetles, there are no
boundaries to the culinary delights this thriving South- East Asian country has to offer.
For tourists, a visit to any local Cambodian restaurant is like a culinary trip back in time.
Colonized by the French in the 1860’s, frog legs, fine breads and roasted turtle still manage
to find their way onto menus today. Other culinary influences extend from China, as well as
from Cambodia ’s long outstanding relationships with Thailand and Vietnam.
My first taste of authentic Cambodian cuisine was at a highway stop on recommendation
from our bus driver. Looking at the restaurant, I immediately knew this was going to be a
humbling dining experience - it was propped up on stilts, bamboo mats took the place of
tables and chairs, people lounged around in hammocks, and employees chopped and
washed vegetables on the floor while street cats meandered around dishes and between
customers.
I entered the restaurant, took off my shoes and sat alongside my friends on the floor. The
menu consisted of pages upon pages of traditional fare, which locals like our tour guide Lily
deemed steeped in history and tradition.
I was welcomed by a giant bowl of bright yellow durian fruit. I dove in and felt its flesh slide
between my fingers, and embed itself under my nails as I put it in my mouth and sucked
away at its buttery insides. It was creamy, sweet, milky and pungent. (Imagine gasoline
fumes with a touch of rotting garbage.) My taste buds were in frenzy and my sense of smell
was confused. I pulled the pit from my mouth, studied it and wondered how something that
smells so bad could taste so good.
Known to many as ‘the king of fruits,’ the durian is most notable for its distinctive spiky shell,
bright yellow flesh and unique aroma. In Cambodia, these fruits grow in abundance in the
Memot and Kampot regions and are considered some of the world’s finest.
from our bus driver. Looking at the restaurant, I immediately knew this was going to be a
humbling dining experience - it was propped up on stilts, bamboo mats took the place of
tables and chairs, people lounged around in hammocks, and employees chopped and
washed vegetables on the floor while street cats meandered around dishes and between
customers.
I entered the restaurant, took off my shoes and sat alongside my friends on the floor. The
menu consisted of pages upon pages of traditional fare, which locals like our tour guide Lily
deemed steeped in history and tradition.
I was welcomed by a giant bowl of bright yellow durian fruit. I dove in and felt its flesh slide
between my fingers, and embed itself under my nails as I put it in my mouth and sucked
away at its buttery insides. It was creamy, sweet, milky and pungent. (Imagine gasoline
fumes with a touch of rotting garbage.) My taste buds were in frenzy and my sense of smell
was confused. I pulled the pit from my mouth, studied it and wondered how something that
smells so bad could taste so good.
Known to many as ‘the king of fruits,’ the durian is most notable for its distinctive spiky shell,
bright yellow flesh and unique aroma. In Cambodia, these fruits grow in abundance in the
Memot and Kampot regions and are considered some of the world’s finest.