Beef and Banana Flower Salad
by Eleven One Kitchen, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
In the United States where I grew up, we only tend to eat the fruit of the banana, discarding the rest as a sort of natural "packaging", however it turns out that not only are many parts of the banana plant - the flowers, stem, and even peel - edible, they are delicacies in parts of the world.
I recently enjoyed a delicious mixed meat salad made from beef and the sweet, tender leaves of a young banana plant while visiting Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Special thanks to Lost Plate Food Tours (https://lostplate.com/), who operate fantastic food tours out of China, Thailand, Cambodia, and Portland, Oregon.
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| Cambodian beef and banana flower salad in Phnom Penh |
The salad is reminiscent of a Thai or Laotian larb but is made with a combination of distinctly Khmer flavors.
The base of the dish is sir-fried ground beef mixed with aromatic ingredients such as shallots, garlic, chili, basil, crushed peanuts, and (of course) paper-thin slices of delicate young banana blossoms.
The banana flowers don't have a strong flavor of their own but give a slight crunch and a delicate freshness to the dish.
The beef and banana flower salad is meaty without being too heavy, flavorful without being too spicy, and was a new combination of flavors for me. I rarely eat beef in my day-to-day life, but this is a dish I'd have again in a heartbeat next time I'm traveling through Cambodia.
Read more: Red Tree Ants with Beef and Spicy Basil in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
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| mixed beef and banana flower salad by Eleven One Kitchen, Phnom Penh, Cambodia |
Location
Eleven One Kitchen is located at Toul Tum Poung I, St 460, Phnom Penh 12310, Cambodia. This trendy and modern restaurant serves up classic Cambodian dishes with the owner's philosophy of sustainability and using high-quality local ingredients.
Also try their delicious fish amok, the national dish of Cambodia!
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