Shrimp and Tiny Green Egg Plant

Pounded roasted tiny green egg plants and grounded shrimp with spicy hotlemon grass pickle fish *pahok* sauce is very delicious Khmer  country food.

Tiny green eggplant is same size of a large pearl and clusters on vines like grape, it has lots of seeds inside and very mild bitter taste, which we love to put in soup, curry and this fantastic shrimp and tiny green eggplant. It’s one of my father favorite childhood foods. Whenever we went back to his old village , my great aunt always made a big pot of shrimp and tiny green eggplant with all his favorite raw vegetables. When I cooked this food for my father, he always told me to take easy with hot pepper. He said, ”Srey na nham matek hol srey nung prochanh pdey nas” meaning girl who eat hot spicy food is very jealous with her husband.

Ingredients

1 lb (450 gram) of tiny green egg plants , removed eggplants from vines, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup of fresh or frozen minced lemon grass
6 chopped hot chili pepper or to your taste(option)
1/2 lb (225 gram) of shrimp, peeled, de-veins and grounded
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of creamy style pickle fish *pahok*
1 fresh lime, sliced

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