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Feeling All at Sea about Bordeaux?

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The vineyards of this single region of France far exceed the acreage under vines of countries such as New Zealand and Germany, and are not far behind that of countries such as South Africa and Australia Whatever about drinking it, just thinking about wine can give you a headache if you don’t approach it with moderation. The history of wine goes back 8,000 years. There are more than 10,000 wine grape varietals in the world and even using the same grapes will produce different tastes in different parts of the world, depending on the soil, climate and methods used. And even then, how the wine tastes to you in the glass may depend as much on the lighting of the room you’re in as the actual taste of what’s in the glass. It’s a vast world of terroirs, traditions, technologies, climates, customs, varietals, variables, weird words and, frankly, weirder points of view. To sauvignon blanc fans, the scent of cat pee is to be welcomed, for example. This makes wine selection for a lot of people something of a shot in the dark based on vague ideas around preferences and unreliable indicators such as price. No wonder if it all feels very arcane, impenetrable and, frankly, intimidating. But as with so many things, building up bite-sized understandings around wine is one of those things that always yields wider insights than at first thought. Which brings us to Bordeaux, perhaps one of the least bite-sized wine-producing regions of them all. With 110,000 hectares under vines — around one and a half times the size of Pailin Province — the vineyards of this single region of France far exceed the acreage under vines of countries such as New Zealand and Germany, and are not far behind that of countries such as South Africa and Australia. On the other hand, they’ve only been producing wine for 2,000 years and the overwhelming majority of the near one-billion bottles of wine that Bordeaux produces each year are derived from just three grapes. So it already looks a little more manageable. In a global scheme of things at least. So here’s a whistestop tour of the regions you’ll find represented on Topaz’s menu. For the most part, Bordeaux wines are red. Indeed, many are surprised by a mention of white Bordeaux, which is not surprising as whites account for just 8% (around five million cases) of the annual production. We can save those for another day. For the reds with which most people are familiar, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon reign supreme, with Cabernet Franc trailing, importantly, behind. Between them, they account for 88% of all grapes cultivated in Bordeaux. Another three varieties, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere, account for just over 1% more of terrain. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are responsible for the gutsy fruitiness for which Bordeaux wines are famous, and also for their enduring appeal as wines for laying down for the future. These two grapes have been reliable bedfellows in Bordeaux, and beyond, for centuries with Cabernet Sauvignon’s tannins providing the deep flavour, austere structure and durability, which are in turn mellowed by Merlot’s lush fruitiness. The third wheel, Cabernet Franc, is lighter bodied with a distinct herby fragrance. But given Bordeaux’s size, and the consequent diversity in weather, soils and traditions, how these grapes express themselves depends a lot on where they’ve been cultivated. Bordeaux itself is divided by the Gironde Estuary, which splits as it approaches the city. This estuary is why you may have heard of Left and Right Bank wines from the region. On the Left Bank, Médoc is Bordeaux’s, and possibly the world’s, most famous wine district. Once nothing but unremarkable salt-marshes and pine forests, the marshes have long since been drained and the forests retained to help protect vines from the harsh Atlantic winds. Underneath, gravelly soil provides much needed drainage and heat retention for one the wettest and mildest parts of Bordeaux. Médoc is further divided between Bas-Médoc and Haut-Médoc (Low and High-Médoc). Bas-Médoc wines are generally noted for being easy-drinking, with less acidity and notes of berries, liquorice and roasted coffee. These can be drunk on their own, but are elevated when paired with rich red meats such as beef, lamb and duck, firm-flavoured cheeses such as Brie, Gouda and Comté, and robust desserts like tiramisu. If you’re looking for a quality wine, then you’ll want a Haut-Médoc, at the southern end of the Médoc flank. This is where you’ll find the ultra-prestige appellations, Margaux, Moulis, Listrac, St-Julien, Pauillac and St. Estèphe. This is where you’ll find wines that are deeper, more complex, acidic, with more structure and texture thanks to the tannins, and with notes of liquorice, blackberry and spices. This might be a bit strong to swill on its own, but goes beautifully with rich meats and cheeses, or perhaps something as simply but umami-rich as a mushroom omelette. Further south of the Médoc is Graves, which benefits from the same gravelly terrain as Haut-Médoc. However, they use more Merlot and Cabernet Franc in their blends to create wines that are more aromatic, but with good structure, and notes of chocolate, spices, vanilla and roasted coffee. Graves is also home to Pessac-Léognan, one of the youngest, but best known appellations. Over on the right side of the estuary you find Libournais, home to some of the most sought-after names in Bordeaux, in particular Saint-Émilion, Pomerol and Fronsac. Here, Merlot’s and Cabernet Franc’s dominance gives robustly plummy wines with a gentler character than their Left-Bank cousins. Saint-Émilion is especially renowned for its deep, rich and “fleshy” wines, but the highly diverse soils and blends used mean that choosing a Saint-Émilion is not strictly a task for the light-hearted, or light-pocketed. Finally, we have Bordeaux Supérieur which is part of the Bordeaux AOC appellation. Bordeaux Supérieur are noted for their robustness and complexity, with generously fruity, floral and spicy overtones. This is one of the most wide-ranging appellations, covering a huge area of Bordeaux … Read more

The Sweet Finesse of Fleur de Sel

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Fleur de sel which means “flower of salt” in French, is regarded as the best salt money can buy, thanks to its elegant snowflake-like texture and, to many, its sweeter taste Salt, or the sodium it contains, is one of life’s essential building blocks. It is also one of the basic ‘tastes’ that define how we experience food, namely salt, sweet, sour, bitter and umami. All these tastes interact with one another in different ways, but salt is kind of like the ring in Lord of the Rings, “one taste to rule them all”. In other words, it is what is known as a universal flavour enhancer. This is because of its unique ability to make sweet foods taste sweeter, and savoury foods more savoury. How does it do that? At low levels, salt reduces bitterness, but increases sweet, sour and umami elements, which is perfect for sweet dishes, while at higher levels, it suppresses sweetness and enhances umami, which is great news for your steak. And while it might be tempting to think that salt is salt, because sodium, after all, is sodium, not all salts are strictly created equal. Fleur de sel which means “flower of salt” in French, is regarded as the best salt money can buy, thanks to its elegant snowflake-like texture and, to many, its sweeter taste. The tradition of making fleur de sel goes back thousands of years, and is still practiced in parts of France, such as the Guérande in Brittany, where it is collected after forming a thin, delicate crust on the surface of evaporating seawater. Given the delicacy involved in harvesting this mineral, it is still required to be done by hand, which explains why fleur de sel is so much more expensive than other salts. While flour de sel is laced with a range of natural minerals that give it its full flavour, it contains little to none of the magnesium that gives other salts their bitter flavour. Because of this delicacy and sweetness, and price, fleur de sel is very much a garnishing and not a cooking salt. It’s not one you throw willy-nilly into a pan for boiling pasta, for example. But its range of uses is still quite wide. Fleur de sel’s higher moisture content also means it melts more slowly than other salts, so when sprinkled on hot foot, it retains its crunchy texture adding another element to the sensory pleasure of each bite. But a little light sprinkle can really bring a whole new dimension to desserts too. A few grains sprinkled on top of a chocolate mousse, or perhaps a glutinous rice ball, will add a soft but enlivening zing without the bitter punch that a traditional salt delivers. In Cambodia, Fleur de Sel is now produced in Kampot which has the perfect weather conditions for producing it. There, the natural processes are also still followed with much of the work from harvesting to drying being done by hand. It is the mark of a truly fine table.

Tamarind Over the Ages

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In an article entitled “Tamarind in the Cuisine of Angkor’s Villages: From the Memoirs of Zhou Daguan to Today”, Cambodian anthropologist Ang Choulean has explored the role this unusual, tangy-sweet fruit has played in the preparation of Cambodian cuisine and condiments down through the ages. Tamarind’s best moments are during the hot, dry seasons of the year, when the fruits are ripe and easily peeled. At this stage of its life, the seeds have hardened and are not used, only the pulp, which has a very different taste from its young, unripe form. One of the advantages these fruits offer is that they can be kept for a long time, and enjoyed all year around. However, the tamarind fruit’s annual life cycle presents an abundance of opportunity for Cambodia’s chef. Choulean begins with the famous memoirs of the Chinese emissary, Zhou Daguan, whose record of his time at Angkor is one of the most important eye-witness accounts of life at Angkor during the reign of the Khmer Empire. While his records never attempt to deconstruct Cambodian cooking of the time, Daguan does take time to regret the absence of two staple sauces considered fundamental to Chinese cooking, namely soy sauce and vinegar. In so doing, he explains that when Cambodians want to add an acidic flavour to their cooking, as vinegar would, they instead used tamarind (ampil). Choulean elaborates on the types of Cambodian dishes whose dominant flavour is acidic, and integrate tamarind to achieve that end. He divides these into liquid dishes, namely samlor mchou, and crushed solid foods. Tamarind is also an integral ingredient to sauces that accompany certain dishes, such as grilled fish. He starts to explore the wider context of how tamarind is prepared and consumed today by taking us through the life cycle of the tamarind fruit. This brings us a variety of dishes, including a sauce made with young tamarind fruits, which are crushed along with shallots, garlic mam herb, chillies and salt to create a crushed paste for a sauce to accompany grilled fish. Moving on in the year to September, the fruits in the tamarind trees have ripened and sweetened, but of greater interest to cooks are the leaves which they combine with lemongrass, galangal, garlic, prahok, salt, palm sugar, and finally holy basil which is saved to last, to create a warming samlor mchou, perhaps with crab. Next Choulean imagines the a Khmer household preparing a sort of inter-meal snack of papaya salad. He notes that Khmer papaya salad is quite distinct from its Thai and Laotian counterparts thanks to its use of prahok instead of shrimp paste (Thailand) or padèk (Laos). It should be remembered that a Khmer bok l-hong, prepared off the shelf, is very different from Thai som tam or Lao tam mak houng. The use of prahok instead of kapi (shrimp paste in Thai) or fish sauce (Laos) is one of its characteristics. Another distinction in the preparation of this salad is that while in Thailand and Laos, the acidic element of this salad is introduce by using lemon, or lime, in Angkor that end was achieved by the addition of tamarind. At the time of year of which Choulean is imagining, January, his cooks are having to make do with ripened tamarind fruits which lack the starp tang of their immature selves. Be that as it may, Choulean’s cooks carry on with crushing their ingredients with the crumbled flesh of a grilled fish and with grated papaya, all of which is to be served with peanuts and a set of vegetables. Choulean then describes the making of a fermented fish dish which is served with slices of fresh ripe tamarind. “The taste of this fruit in its entirety is sought here, the harshness and bitterness of the seeds correcting the acidity of the pulp…” Choulean brings his discourse back to Daguan to demonstrate continuity in the use of tamarind to introduce sour, acidic flavours even though, over the centuries since his visit, soy sauce and vinegar have become entirely integrated into the Cambodian culinary landscape. Indeed many households make their own vinegar. Adapted from an article in: Cambodge Mag

Hope on the Horizon

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Tourists are starting to make their way back to Cambodia, and the government is launching an eight-pronged strategy to help ensure they keep doing so Over the first nine months of this year, ticket sales for the Angkor Archaeological Park saw a 20-fold increase over the same period last year. More than 134,000 foreign visitors accounted for ticket revenues of $5.36 million for the Park, and also gave grounds for optimism for the future. “This heritage site is essential to attract tourists, create jobs and generate income for our people in the tourism sector,” Prime Minister Hun Sen said during a visit to the Angkor Park at the beginning of this month. During the pre-COVID-19 era, Angkor collected up to 2.2 million international visitors in 2019, generating $99 million in revenue from ticket sales, Angkor Enterprise reported. In 2020, the tourism industry as a whole brought in over $1 billion for Cambodia, a figure that plummeted to $184 million last year. The government is now targeting 7.5 million visitors over the next five years with an eight-pronged strategy published at the end of last month. The first four elements of the strategy cover developing creative and innovative tourism products and services, improving the quality of tourism services in accordance with recognised standards, supporting the training of tourism professionals, and promoting convenience and safety in tourism transportation and mobility. The other four aim to improve capacity building, research and promotion of Cambodian tourism, encourage the adoption of modern tourism technologies, initiate more key policies to support tourism development, and to strengthen tourism governance mechanisms and human resource development. According to the report, the Ministry of Tourism has defined major policies, plans and strategies for the next five years for effective management and development of the tourism sector. “Sustainable tourism development is a government priority to develop the nation and serve the best interests of the people,” says the report. Ministry figures reveal that Cambodia recorded 998,272 international arrivals in the first eight months of 2022, marking a 720 percent year-on-year increase. August accounted for more than a quarter of this, with 254,813, up 7.65 percent from July (236,697), which saw a 44.95 percent jump from June (163,298). Adapted from an article in Cambodge Mag

Fresh Flavours Wafting out of the Kitchens at Topaz

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Under the leadership of Executive Chef Sopheak Pov, ably assisted by Alain “Papa” Darc, the kitchen team at Topaz has been exceptionally busy lately redesigning our entire menu from top to bottom. We’ll be keeping some of your favourites (such as Salads Niçoise and Oysters au Gratin with Champagne Cream), and we’ve simply tweaked some others to create a fresh perspective, while some dishes will be entirely new. And some of them will be quite spectacular. It’s been a hard job having to taste them all, but thankfully someone’s got to do it! There are simply too many new or adapted dishes to mention in one article. And while some may argue that anticipation is the greater part of pleasure, we beg to differ where, say, a Rack of Lamb en Croute is involved. That said, here’s a preview of some of the changes you can look forward to tasting soon. Caviar has been long been a feature of our menu, and will always continue to be so. But so far we have always served it either on its own as an exquisitely luxurious starter, or as a finishing touch that adds a powerful bolt of additional flavour. Now we have centred caviar in its own dish on our starter menu with Caviar with Grouper Brandade, bringing together the earthy and mellow saltiness of quality caviar with a smooth purée made from potatoes, olive oil and grouper, a mild fish with sweet undertones that make it a perfect partner for the caviar. Among the recipes that we’ve tweaked you’ll find an old favourite, Roasted Beef Tenderloin, but this time with a Sauce Périgueux whose combination of earthy truffle flavours and the sharp, fruity tang of Madeira make a sublime counterpoint to the rich, juicy sweetness of a great steak. Another tweak can be found in another perennial hero, Foie Gras. We’ve served this on a bed of warm mangoes for the last few years, but now we’ve matched it up with a slick Apple Cider Sauce whose tart-sweetness distinguishes the richness of the foie gras in ways that will make you giddy. In a new twist on the menu though, we present Baked Foie Gras with Veal Sweetbreads and Black Winter Truffles in a Puff Pastry Crust. We’re not going to say much more than that, because the name speaks for itself. For those who are unsure though, sweetbreads refer to the pancreas or thymus of the calf. They are rich and exquisitely tender, with a subtle, even creamy, flavour. This is a dish to try as soon as you possibly can. Another new appearance on the menu comes from fresh out of the sea. This time it’s Pan-fried Turbot with Caper Sauce served with Sautéed Ratte Potatoes. Turbot is an Atlantic and Mediterranean flatfish with a sweet, mild flavour that’s slightly fishier than cod or halibut. Served with the tart-brininess of a caper sauce and the unique nut-butter flavour of Ratte Potatoes, we are confident that you’ll be hooked at the first bite. There are so many more, but that will simply have to wait for another time. After all, don’t forget that sometimes anticipation is the greater part of pleasure. And we will of course keep you informed of when you can expect to see all these and more on the fresh revamped Topaz Menu.

Meet our Photographer: Nataly Lee

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A genuine ray of light wherever she goes, it feels like destiny that Nataly Lee came to a profession that allows her to use the prism of her own eyes to make the world a more beautiful place for all of us. Nataly’s photography is defined by her mission to present what she sees in its most honest form, a living embodiment of the belief that “beauty is truth, truth is beauty”. So when we were choosing who we wanted to create one of the most important elements of our brand and image, she was hands down the obvious choice. Though born in Battambang, Nataly was less than a year old when her family moved to Australia. She didn’t see her natal-home again until almost 20 years later on a visit with her family. For someone who had grown up knowing little of where she came from, she says the trip was quite an eye-opener. But, some years later she started making an annual pilgrimage together with her husband. But it didn’t cross her mind to settle here permanently until 2011 when she realised that this is where she really needed to be. She made the move the day after graduating from a graphic design course back in Australia, and originally started working as a producer and designer for a film production company. A few years later, she set up her own blog to document the things she saw in Cambodia, to reveal their beauty to others as they had revealed their beauty to her. Of course she needed a camera for that, and so in 2014 her photographic journey began, almost by accident. “Photography for me was always a way to share and highlight all the things I saw around me. I believe there is so much beauty, even in the smallest things, and the reason I take photos and share them is with the hope that, through my eyes, others are able to see and appreciate some of those things.” Naturally in tune with people and the environment around her, Nataly also appreciates the opportunity that photography in particular gives to connect even more deeply with a subject, a person or a place. On assignment, she digs in to find out who her client is, what their story and values are and how she can create something that really resonates with them. “My approach is one that is based on empathy and understanding and what matters most to me are the people and the processes. I believe that if we focus on the right things, the results will always be meaningful,” she says. Nataly’s natural, simple and authentic style lends itself especially well to food photography though, and that is in fact her favourite subject and the one she finds easiest, though many photographers say they find food photography to be more challenging. As she was growing up, the fabric of Nataly’s world was defined by food—bother her parents are cooks—and she still loves getting in behind the scenes of the whole process so she can sit down with chefs and restauranteurs to find out what makes them tick. Her approach from there is straightforward: “I believe that my camera is just an extension of my eye. I never shoot with the intention of doing lots of retouching or editing. I shoot it (and edit it) the way I see it. Food will never look better than the way it is presented to you at the table, so my approach, really, is to capture food in its most honest form.” And it’s easy to see the results. So much of what you see on the social media channels for Khéma and Topaz is the result of Nataly’s work, images that are infused with light, elegance and beauty. Like food photographers, the rest of us often find food photography challenging too, even with all of the apps and editing tools available to us. To help create images that breathe life, Nataly has the following suggestion: “Always shoot in natural light, and think about the composition. You don’t always have to zoom in to see every detail of the dish and every ingredient. The background and the composition of the entire image is just as important as the food itself.” We’re very glad she picked up that camera eight years ago.

Le Rousseau — Simple, but Divine

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Two years ago, Khéma launched the first of its own range of branded artisan cheeses, Le Rousseau, a simple Fromage Frais named in honour of dairy consultant Nicolas Rousseau who spent months training our team in the ancient arts of cheesemaking. Fromage Frais, or fresh cheese, is probably one of the earliest forms of cheese developed by man, and it wasn’t just an important source of nutrition. References to it as a vehicle for letting the gods know how much they were revered can be found in the Hindu Vedas, the Old Testament of the Bible, and in early Buddhist and Jainist texts. Soft, thick, creamy and lightly tangy, Fromage Frais is one of the simplest cheeses to make and one of the easiest to start out with for those who may find the prospect of tucking into an aromatically lurid blue or leaky brie a little off-putting. It makes a delicious treat in its simplest form, smeared on a slice of baguette perhaps with a drizzle of honey, but is also highly adaptable for use in salads, or topped on grills and baked potatoes, and especially in desserts. For those watching their figures, the fact that it’s not ripened means it’s generally lower in fat than other cheeses and can be used as a low-fat, low-calorie alternative for cream in dishes such as Beef Stroganoff without sacrificing depth of flavour. The earliest evidence for cheesemaking can be traced back to the period between 7000 and 6500 BCE. By then, humans had long kept dairy animals, first goats and sheep and eventually the less gregarious cow, though mainly as a source of meat. However, the discovery at this time of pyrotechnology led to the creation of pottery which in turn led to huge advances in human food preparation because finally it could be stored, processed and transported without falling prey to the elements (we’re thinking ants!). This revolution led directly to the earliest forms of cheese, simple curds, separated and strained, i.e. a Fromage Frais, just like Le Rousseau. But simple should never be mistaken for unworthy. The Hindu Vedas were written over many centuries by a pastoral people whose lives were deeply rooted in cattle rearing. The texts reveal the pivotal and venerated role that dairy foods played in ancient India where they were valued not only as an integral part of the diet, but also for their role as offerings to the gods in religious observances. Later on, Buddhist and Jainist texts affirmed the importance of dairy products, including curds and fresh cheese, in the Indian diet. But this central place was not to hold, perhaps due to environmental factors, perhaps also due to the increasingly elevated status of the cow, and emerging prohibitions on animal slaughter. It seems clear too that the kinds of smelly, mouldy, even maggot-infested, cheeses—whose ripening may be compared to a sort of rotting—that were later favoured in Europe would have confounded a culture increasingly rooted in purity and vegetarianism. Early Christians also centred fresh cheese as a form of offering to the gods. The first reference to cheese in the Bible comes in Genesis when Abraham, the father of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, is subjected to a surprise visit from God and two of his angels that would put anyone’s day into a spin. Whipping up a meal that was fitting for such august company, Abraham put together a table that included freshly baked bread, veal, fresh cheese and milk. But even a harried Abraham was not the first of his time or place to offer fresh cheese to his god. Cheese and butter had been an integral part of religious practice and offering in Mesopotamia for more than 1,000 years. So the next time you see a Le Rousseau or other Fromage Frais, do not think ‘too simple for my tastes’. Instead think “well, if it’s good enough for the gods…” That is the beauty of simplicity. One delicious way of serving up Fromage Frais is a Cervelle de Canut, a rich and creamy dip whose origins lie in Lyon. It may be simple, but the results are divine, making it a perfect offering for guests, be they gods or otherwise. Cervelle de Canut (Serves 6-8) 200g Fromage Frais 20g Finely chopped shallot 10g Finely snipped chives 1tsp Finely chopped garlic 15g Finely chopped parsley 10g Strong Dijon mustard 15ml Red wine vinegar 25g Olive oil 100g Whipping cream, lightly whipped Sea salt and freshly ground pepper Put the fromage frais into a bowl and mix in the shallot, chives, garlic and parsley. Add the mustard, wine vinegar and olive oil and mix again until the texture is uniform. Finally, stir in the lightly whipped cream and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with: thin slices of baguette, lightly toasted, or crostini Grissini breadsticks and raw cucumber, celery and carrot batons. Credit for this recipe goes to the legendary Michel Roux, and his chef Stéphane Colliet.

The best of France with Franck at Khéma

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If you’ve been visiting Khéma Pasteur over the last few days, you may have noticed a fresh-faced Frenchman in chef’s whites about the place. And if you haven’t been introduced to him already, then we are very pleased to present Franck Grabowski, a pastry chef (patissier) with 25 years’ experience in creating delicious pastries, cakes, macarons, chocolates, sweets, ice creams and desserts back home in France. And now he’s turned his hand to working with our team here in Cambodia. Franck arrived here in April this year, originally settling with his wife, Montha, in Siem Reap, where they had planned on setting up a guest house. But we all know now what Covid can do to anyone’s hopes. And so he contacted Thalias. We weren’t actually looking for anyone at the time, but on inviting him for a three-day ‘trial’, decided to create a position for him and the skills he brings with him. Franck literally grew up with his hands dusted in flour. The patisserie he eventually came to call his own had belonged to his father since Franck was 13. After a spell in which he studied law in nearby Poitiers, Franck came back to the heart of things, and after studying went to work alongside his father in the mid-90s. After five years, Le Pêché Mignon (the “guilty pleasure”, or, “sweet spot”) became his own, and he has run it together with Montha and their team ever since. Or, until this year. Aside from working with her husband, Montha is key to why they are here now. Born in France, Montha’s family is Cambodian, with relatives still based around Oddar Meanchey. She and her husband had visited the country several times over the last several years, and it was on their last visit in 2016 that they started to put together the idea of making a definitive move. And then they did it. With Thalias, Franck has been charged, inter alia, with bringing the entire patisserie range up to date, which means re-conceiving and testing the recipes, with particular reference to the ingredients that are actually available rather than the ingredients he would ideally have to hand and also, just as importantly, with reference to the different environment and palates that prevail here. It’s a challenge with a great deal of adjustments at every level. At the same time, he isn’t afraid to experiment and to integrate new ideas and ingredients where he can. The task isn’t without other challenges too. It’s fair to say that both Franck and his team here at Khéma Pasteur have a “middling” level of English. However, one of the curses of a language with multiple origins is that there are always at least 20 different words for everything (contrary to many French people’s understanding of the English language!) It’s not easy to get to grips with the workings of an organisation when you’re having to effectively evolve a fourth language of your own out of one you sort of, but not quite, have in common and the two you don’t in which to do it. But that challenge aside, Franck is already working on new ideas and formulations for Khéma’s cakes and more. He’s reluctant to touch the Viennoisserie (croissants, etc.) because, as he says, they’re already better than he often finds in France. Cakes are more complicated for environmental and product-sourcing reasons, and also because he thinks they can be better adapted to Cambodian tastes, which are actually less sweet when it comes to sweet things than he anticipated. He’s already working on a some new versions of old classics that integrate local ingredients as well. So there is much to look forward to for him, with the challenges and all, and even more for us to look forward to on the other side of the counter. Keep your eyes open for the new ideas that will be coming out of Khéma’s kitchens soon!

The River of Sapphires

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A Chef with a Vision Cambodia’s celebrated master chef, Luu Meng is looking lean and relaxed as we meet for an early morning chat, I have not seen my good friend for a little while and note that he looks perhaps a little weary. A few of his newest dishes are soon placed before me, Meng wants some feedback. Whilst recent years have been challenging for us all, tourism and hospitality were hit particularly hard; Meng closed a few venues, opened a few others, adapted where necessary, changed a few things up, but as always, he kept looking forward. For as long as I have known him, (about 15 years), Luu Meng has always been looking ahead, and his vision is one that is broad and inclusive. Working with his partners, his teams, with governments, committees and organizations, he keeps looking not only at his own businesses and the many industries he is involved in, (hospitality, tourism, agriculture, aquaculture, logistics, food security, and more) but also looking out for his people and looking at how to keep getting better. Meng is always implementing ways to improve business standards and practices industry wide, searching to create pathways to success and to improving Cambodian people’s daily lives. I always enjoy Meng’s company; I look up to him and find him someone who is inspirational in my life. I am proud to call him a friend and cherish our shared passion for food and the art of the table. Talking shop with Meng is always an expansive and informative conversation. Today, I wanted to talk about the Giant River Prawn, (Macrobrachium Rosenbergii), which is prized by restaurants, chefs and gourmands in Cambodia for its sweet, rich, firmly textured flesh and its subtle, freshwater flavour. Luu Meng likes to refer to it as ‘Mekong langoustine’ and pronounces it ‘bang kang’ in Khmer language. Of course, Meng is able to discuss more than his dishes and the river prawn itself, and I am soon firmly ensnared in his lobster pot, as he informs me on the species history here in Cambodia, where the best one’s come from, when is the best time to eat them and how the supply chain can remain environmentally, ethically and commercially sustainable. That is latter point is important to Meng is not surprising, but it is vitally important for the nation and the species. According to the Asian Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Cambodians are the largest consumers of freshwater fish per capita in the world (Baran, 2010). With fish and other aquatic animals accounting for 76% of total animal proteins. Whilst according to a research paper published by Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems: Cambodia has one of the world’s most productive inland fisheries (Baran, 2005), based around the ecosystem of the Tonle Sap Lake. Inland fisheries have been central to livelihoods and food and nutrition security in Cambodia for centuries (Cooke, 2011; Sithirith, 2011), and continue to be so today (Hartje et al., 2018; Freed et al., 2020). Aquaculture has only relatively recently become the focus of sustained interest from research and development institutions in Cambodia. This interest aligns with predicted, and increasingly realized, declines in inland capture fisheries production. For example, a combination of drought and water impoundment by upstream dams caused reported fish catch from the Tonle Sap to contract 23% in 2020, prompting fears of imminent fisheries collapse (MRC, 2020). Such a collapse would threaten the livelihoods and food security of millions of Cambodians (IFReDI, 2013). Aquaculture is increasingly framed in Cambodian development policy discourse as having an important role to play in meeting demand for fish and providing rural employment. Meng gets his Bang Kang (Takeo Lobster) from the source, and serves it at Malis restaurant, where they offer the lobster whole, oven-baked in the shell. Before baking the bang kang is marinated in Prahok Ktis, (pickled mudfish with minced pork, coconut cream, a Khmer Kreoung of herbs and spices, and chilli). Foil traps in all the juices and flavour and the Lobster is served golden on a bed of Malis, (Jasmine) rice; where guests season it with Kampot pepper, Kep Salt and local lime juice to taste. Growing to around 32 centimeters in size, they make a delicious entrée or a main and Meng cooks the rice itself in a bang kang, gumbo-broth that is made including a magnificent, flavourful, creamy roux -made from the contents of the lobster’s head. Meng tells me that whilst the smaller lobsters have more flavour and texture in their flesh, the larger lobsters have much more cranial matter with which to make the roux, adding that this is a key component to the species exceptional deliciousness. Another recipe Meng likes for bang kang is to make a lobster soup with kaffir lime leaf, shallots, Kampot pepper, kreoung, onions, fish roe, the bang kang roux, add in lots of fresh herbs, fresh chilli and citrus juice, with whole pieces of lobster in the soup. Meng notes this is a very revitalizing and refreshing soup, and it is very popular with locals. Meng notes that the Takeo Lobster is very popular, it is a dish to impress and often served for special or important occasions, it is a highly prized ingredient amongst locals. The French in Indochina also loved to eat them and called them Saphira, named for their sapphire blue legs. Today, the species is once again developing an international following. Meng notes that tourists and visitors love to order the dish at his restaurant, and that there is now export demand for the Takeo lobster. For so many producers in the Agri-sector, meeting demand has often been about increasing supply at the risk of exhausting the resource or its environment. Here the way to meet demand will have to be through adding value and increasing the price, in order to preserve the species environment and keep them healthy and sustainable. Takeo province is sometimes called the oldest province in Cambodia or the cradle of civilization, for … Read more

For a Fizz that’s Fabulous, at a Fraction of the Price

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You’ve got something wonderful to celebrate and truly special occasions demand rivers of Champagne. That’s the rule isn’t it? But it’s a rule that comes with a price tag that can burst a lot of people’s budgets. But just because funds are not limitless, it doesn’t mean the fun has to be limited. Champagne is just one of France’s many sparkling wines, and there’s no reason why a party should fall flat without it. At Topaz and Khéma we offer Georges du Boeuf Crémant de Bourgogne, a dry sparkling wine from the Burgundy region of France whose lively bubbles and fresh flavours will spark up your night. It’s generally agreed that this is a wine packed with youthful vigour, and a vivacity that melts into smoothness in the mouth. Sparkling Burgundies have a history that goes back almost 200 years. Today, almost 20 million bottles of Crémant de Bourgogne are produced across 2,900 hectares, of which 200 are dedicated to creating Georges du Boeuf’s Crémant. Premium Crémant wines in the region can be produced from pinot noir, pinot blanc or pinot gris, while second category wines are made from Gamay Noir, Aligoté, Melon or Saucy. Georges du Boeuf Crémants are made entirely from Pinot Noir grapes. As a result, their sparkling wine is noted for its pale golden colour dashed with hints of pink, and the fine bubbles that gather and bead at the head of the wine. This is a perfect wine for an aperitif, but it is not at all out of place on the dining table either. Ideal with many starters, it will also make a lively partner for shellfish or river fish dishes, and is especially recommended for enjoying with smoked fish. It’s also great with chicken and other poultry. If those are prepared with fruits such as pears, then all the better. If you’d like to take it to the next stage, then a dessert with lots of fresh fruit will never go wrong. So all that’s left to do now is organise the invite list.