Steamed curry Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Steamed curry
Thai steamed fish curries (ho mok pla) in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Type	Curry
Place of origin	Cambodia or Thailand
Region or state	Southeast Asia
Associated national cuisine	Cambodian, Lao and Thai
Main ingredients	Curry paste, coconut cream/coconut milk, eggs
Variations	Fish amok

Steamed curry (Khmer: អាម៉ុក, amŏk [ʔaːmok]; Thai: ห่อหมก lit. bury wrap, ho mok [hɔ̀ː.mòk], Lao: ຫມົກ, mok [mók]) is a Southeast Asian type of curry steam-cooked in banana leaves. In Laos it is also roasted on embers. The base of the curry is made with a curry paste (Khmer: គ្រឿង, krœăng [krɨəŋ]; Thai: พริกแกง, prik kaeng) with or without the addition of coconut cream or coconut milk and eggs. A wide range of leaves and staple ingredients are also added to the dish, such as:

fish (Khmer: អាម៉ុកត្រី, amŏk trei [ʔaːmok trəj]; Thai: ห่อหมกปลา, ho mok pla [hɔ̀ː.mòk plāː]; Lao: ຫມົກປາ, mok pa [mók paː]);
bamboo shoots (Thai: ห่อหมกหน่อไม้, ho mok no mai [hɔ̀ː.mòk nɔ̀ː máːj]; Lao: ຫມົກຫນໍ່ໄມ້, mok nor mai [mók nɔ̄ː mâj] (often with minced meat inside));
chicken (Khmer: អាម៉ុកសាច់មាន់, amŏk săch moăn [ʔaːmok sac mŏən]; Thai: ห่อหมกไก่, ho mok kai [hɔ̀ː.mòk kàj]);
snails (Khmer: អាម៉ុកខ្យង, amŏk khyâng [ʔaːmok kʰjɑːŋ]);
tofu (Khmer: អាម៉ុកតៅហ៊ូ, amŏk tauhu [ʔaːmok tawhuː]; Thai: ห่อหมกเต้าหู้, [hɔ̀ː.mòk tâw.hûː]);;
algae (Lao: ຫມົກໄຄ, [mók kʰáj] (with Mekong weed)).

According to cultural anthropologist Penny Van Esterik, the Southeast Asian coconut-based curries are the result of Indianization, that in the 15th century after the Fall of Angkor, were introduced in the Ayutthaya Kingdom by Khmer royal cooks and later reintroduced back into Cambodia as the Siamese armies attacked into Cambodia. Nowadays, they are considered characteristic of individual Southeast Asian cuisines.

Cambodian steamed fish curry (fish amok)
Laotian steamed fish curry (mok pa)
Thai steamed seafood curry (ho mok thale) served in a coconut

Steamed curry facts for kids

See also