prahok

English

WOTD – 13 May 2017

Etymology

A Cambodian meal consisting of steamed rice, fresh vegetables, and prahok fried in banana leaves

Borrowed from Khmer ប្រហុក (prɑhok).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /pɹəˈhɒk/, /-ˈhəʊk/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pɹəˈhɑk/, /-ˈhoʊk/
• Rhymes: -ɒk, -əʊk
• Hyphenation: pra‧hok

Noun

prahok (uncountable)

1. A salted and fermented fish paste used in Cambodian cuisine.
   • 1905, G[erolamo] E[milio] Gerini, “A Trip to the Ancient Ruins of Kamboja”, in Asian Review, London: East Asia Association, →OCLC, page 96:

     Nor is the industry of fish-curing solely confined to salting, cleaning, and drying; but fish-oil and ichthyocol are extracted, and those mysterious concoctions prepared, which, under the name of pha-ak and prahok, are justly renowned as the most horribly stinking and repugnant products in this line, leaving far behind even the famed nüak-mam of Cochin China.

   • 2008, Neth Baromey, “Contexts of Livelihoods in BTC and SS Core Areas”, in Ecotourism as a Tool for Sustainable Rural Community Development and Natural Resources Management in the Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve, Kassel, Hesse, Germany: Kassel University Press, →ISBN, page 73:

     "Prahok" is the paste of fermented fish, and is one of the Cambodian staple foods. Prahok making activity is very common among rural Cambodians who migrate from their home regions once a year to settle temporarily in the areas close to the river or lake. Most Cambodians use Prahok for cooking (instead of using salt) and eating with rice.

   • 2015 August 27, Robyn Eckhardt, “In Siem Reap, Cambodia, local fare gets a chance to shine”, in The New York Times‎^[1], archived from the original on 22 September 2016:

     Basic preparations include khaw, in which caramelized palm sugar coats meat or seafood; soups called samlor (sweet or sour, made with prahok and sometimes coconut milk) and sgnaow (light broths flavored with prahok or fish sauce); and dips featuring prahok, eaten with fresh and blanched vegetables.

Translations

a salted and fermented fish paste used in Cambodian cuisine

• Khmer: ប្រហុក (km) (prɑhok), ព្រហក់ (km) (prɔhŭək)
• Vietnamese: mắm bò hóc, bò hóc

Further reading

• prahok on Wikipedia.Wikipedia