Method
- Whisk both rice flours, grated coconut, cooked rice, salt, 200ml coconut milk and water into a smooth, runny batter — like cream. Rest 30 minutes.
- Combine the remaining 150ml coconut milk with sugar and salt in a small pot. Warm until the sugar dissolves; do not boil. This is the topping cream.
- Heat a nom krok pan (a cast-iron mould with hemispheric wells) over medium heat until a drop of water dances. Brush each well with a thin coat of oil.
- Pour the batter into each well to fill about 70%. Cover with the pan's lid and cook one minute — the bottoms should set with a faint sizzle.
- Spoon the topping cream over each half-sphere. Add a pinch of spring onion, corn or taro to half. Cover and cook three to four more minutes; the shells should release when tapped.
- Lift each half-sphere out and sandwich them in pairs (bottom-to-bottom) to form full spheres. Serve warm; cold nom krok loses their textural drama.
Common questions
Can Nom Krok be made ahead?
Nom Krok is best made and eaten the same day, but the components can be prepped earlier — chop and measure the ingredients up to a day ahead, refrigerated separately. Final cooking takes about 25 minutes.
Is Nom Krok spicy?
Nom Krok as written is mild to mildly warming — the heat comes from aromatics rather than chili. Add fresh sliced chili or chili oil at the end if you'd like to push it spicier.
Is Nom Krok vegetarian or gluten-free?
Nom Krok is suitable for vegetarian (and vegan if dairy is omitted) diets.
How hard is Nom Krok to make at home?
Nom Krok sits at intermediate difficulty — total time about 45 minutes. The ingredients are not unusual but the timing requires attention.
Can Nom Krok be scaled up or down?
This recipe is written for 4 servings. To scale, multiply each ingredient proportionally; the cooking times stay the same up to about double the volume. Beyond that, expect to cook in batches because of pan size and heat distribution.
Cultural Note
Nom krok is the Cambodian cousin of Thai khanom krok — both share the same basic structure (rice-and-coconut batter cooked in well-pans) but the Khmer version is slightly less sweet and uses more coconut. The cast-iron well pan is a fixture of Cambodian street kitchens, and a tell-tale sign of an auntie who knows what she's doing. The savoury topping (spring onion) versus the sweet (corn) is a personal preference; sandwiching one of each is the move. Eating nom krok at a Phnom Penh evening market with a glass of iced coffee is a classic urban Cambodian afternoon.
