Shrimp and Tiny Green Egg Plant

Shrimp and Tiny Green Egg Plant is a delectable Khmer country dish that combines pounded roasted tiny green eggplants with ground shrimp, all bathed in a spicy and tangy lemongrass pickle fish (pahok) sauce. The tiny green eggplants, resembling large pearls and growing in grape-like clusters on vines, offer a mildly bitter taste and numerous seeds. These tiny wonders are a beloved ingredient in Khmer cuisine, often used in soups, curries, and, of course, this delightful shrimp and tiny green eggplant dish.

The dish holds sentimental value, especially for the narrator’s father, who fondly recalls it from his childhood in the village. Traditionally prepared by the great aunt, it features a generous pot of shrimp and tiny green eggplant served with the father’s favorite raw vegetables. The narrator recounts her father’s humorous advice to “take it easy with hot pepper,” emphasizing a cultural belief that women who enjoy spicy food may be perceived as jealous wives.

To recreate this flavorful dish, gather ingredients such as tiny green eggplants, vegetable oil, minced garlic, minced lemongrass, chopped hot chili peppers, ground shrimp, fish sauce, sugar, water, creamy-style pickle fish (pahok), and fresh lime. The cooking process involves roasting the tiny green eggplants until the skin browns, pounding them using a mortar and pestle, and setting them aside. In a hot saucepan, combine oil, garlic, lemongrass, chili pepper, and shrimp, seasoning with fish sauce and sugar. Water, pickle fish, and the pounded eggplant are then added, creating a simmering sauce that is ready to be served warm with rice and a variety of raw or cooked vegetables, along with sliced lime.

The versatility of the dish is highlighted by two popular serving options: dipping crisp raw vegetables in the shrimp and tiny green eggplants or wrapping boiled pork belly or boiled pork meat with skin, along with raw vegetables, in moistened rice paper, and dipping it in the shrimp and tiny green eggplant sauce. This dish not only celebrates the unique flavors of Khmer cuisine but also reflects the cultural significance attached to food and family traditions.

Ingredients

Directions to make Shrimp and Tiny Green Egg Plant

1. Roasted tiny green eggplants in hot skillet till the skin turns lightly brown. Using mortar and pestle to pounded roasted eggplant, set a side.
2. Pre-heat a small sauce-pan.
3. When sauce-pan is hot. add oil, garlic, lemon grass, chili pepper and shrimp, stirs well.
4. Seasoning with fish sauce and sugar, stirs well.
5. Add water, pickle fish and pounded eggplant, stirs and simmering till sauce bubbling.
6. Serve hot or warm with rice along with raw or cooked vegetables, and sliced lime.

Note:

Some people like to dips crisp raw vegetables in shrimp and tiny green eggplants. Samples of raw vegetables included; Napa cabbage , Romaine lettuce, mint leaves , chee poel trey, sliced bitter melon, sliced cucumber and sliced green banana

Some people like to wraps boiled pork belly *sach chrouk bei choen* or boiled pork meat with skin on, and raw vegetables in moisten rice paper, and dips with shrimp and tiny green eggplants.

Enjoy it

Related Recipe: Coconut Sauce