Bok l'hong

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A plate of bok l'hong

Bok l'hong (បុកល្ហុង; commonly romanized as bok lahong) is the Khmer version of a dish popularly known in English as papaya salad. The word l'hong means papaya in Khmer. The word bok refers to the ingredients being lightly beaten with a mortar and pestle.

Despite the use of papayas, which one may think of as sweet, this salad is actually savoury. There are many versions of this salad in Cambodia, but it will always include unripe papayas. Unripe papayas are also used as a vegetable in other Khmer dishes such as soups and stews. The papaya is prepared by shredding it into fine strips (julienned).

The dressing may include fish sauce, shrimp paste (also known as kapi), preserved crabs, and/or lime juice. The preserved crabs are small crabs fermented in a salty liquid. They are mashed in a mortar and pestle and added to the salad. It is usually seasoned with salt, sugar, and/or MSG.

Other vegetables that are commonly used in this dish are diced tomatoes and shredded carrots. The salad can be topped with crushed peanuts, chile peppers, and dried shrimp which are usually beaten with a mortar and pestle.