Cambodian Fried Rice បាយឆា,Bay cha is something you are likely to eat more than once if you travel to Cambodia. But much like lort Cha , is it a unique dish, or just a rip-off from China? Quite the question!
To read about Cambodian fried noodles click here
Where can I get Cambodian Fried Rice?
Cambodian Fried Rice is pretty much everywhere. Street food carts sell it, and you will find it in fine dining cuisine too. From a street food angle the fried rice of Cambodia will set you back $1 to $1.50, but it comes with a soup.
The soup that tends to always come with it is a small bowl of pork soup, kinda like Chinese style as your rice “chaser”. It’s the bland kind of soup that I am not usually into. I had Cambodia Beer instead. To read about Cambodia Beer click here.
OK, so how is Khmer Fried Rice different to other fried rices?
By very definition a fried rice depends very much on where you buy it and who is cooking it. Generally speaking though fish and squid based fried rices are popular in Cambodia. They are also much more oyster sauce heavy than soy sauce, although soy is used.
It’s all about the condiments!
One of the reasons that I love about Cambodian Street Food is the condiments. There is always an array of sauces that you can use to sex up otherwise bland dishes. My usual method of choice is to add some Khmer Sweet Chilli Sauce (see photo). Although what you have and how you have it is down to you.
Generally speaking there is much less, or no MSG . Some people might see this as a good thing. Apparently MSG is bad for you. Bad for you though can often just mean “tastes great”.
And that is my opinion on Cambodian fried rice! A nice easy go to dish, and cheap.
