BBok bok bok bok is the the sound of mortar and pestle at work in the kitchen. (The Khmer term for papaya salad is bok lahong, which essentially means "pound papaya.") As I sit on a plastic chair beneath the wooden stilts of a house in Tmatboey, a village without electricity a few hours north of Angkor Wat, a woman grinds a kroeung—a quintessential Khmer spice mixture with a base that begins with lemongrass, garlic, turmeric, fish sauce, and galangal. She will add peanuts, vegetables, fish, and a little chili to create a soupy, savory style of amok, or fish curry, served with steamed rice. A good kroeung is essential to Khmer cuisine. Along with the banter of neighbors, the the chirping of a gecko, and the grunting of pigs, the sound of mortar and pestle makes this village complete. No bok, no village. No village, no Cambodia.
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