The pork and rice many cometh

It seems a lot of my regular haunts follow the same pattern when it comes to identity: whatever dish they specialise in, followed by the gender of the chef. Not so long ago I introduced you to the baii chhar lady, the ‘fried rice’ cart outside Wat Langka. Now, welcome to the wonders of the pork and rice man.

That is the famous pork and rice man who serves, well, pork and rice, into the early hours of the morning. Should you ever be in need of a late-night feed, I urge you to visit. By day, the southern end of Street 19 (near the corner of Preah Suramarit Boulevard) is like any other street in the area: a hodgepodge of small shops selling drinks and phone cards, carts rolling by laden with popcorn or coconut. However, a few hours after the sun sets, that all changes. Pork and rice man commences his duty fairly late by Cambodian standards, well after most people have had dinner. Round metal tables and plastic chairs are brought onto the footpath, while on the opposite side of the road an open charcoal BBQ is fired up and on it glistening marinated strips of pork start sizzling away.

I only ever order the standard baii sach chrouk (‘rice with the flesh of pork’). There may be other options, but to me late at night and usually after one too many beverages comfort is found in a trusted favourite. Grab a seat at any table and a waitress soon appears. A nod of the head to confirm an order of pork and rice with egg (definitely need a fried egg) and it’s all systems go. You can bring your own beer if you haven’t already had enough, although usually the waitress takes one look at you and knows you need a bottle of water. A pot of jasmine tea is found on each table.

And so the waiting game begins. Across the road the man himself, Mr Pork and Rice, stands next to his grill, decked out in an obligatory white singlet (or more often no singlet), cooking the pork to barbecued perfection. Smoke creates a haze around him while flames shoot out to give the tender meat a charcoal flavour. Sweet, sticky glazed and thinly sliced pieces of pork are placed atop broken rice, with an egg balancing on top like a halo. Out it comes to the table with freshly pickled cucumber, daikon and carrot. The meal is completed with a steaming bowl of broth, heavily flavoured due to the many hours it has bubbled away. Spring onion, garlic, coriander and no doubt plenty of bones and vegetables create this exquisite stock. Ladled onto the rice, it gives it an intense flavour which compliments the garlicky pork, vinegary pickles and hot chilli sauce. All those flavours provide such satisfaction and at that ungodly hour there is nothing you want more.

The pork and rice man is a great leveller. I’ve invited my tuk tuk driver along to eat with us; shared tables with random people and struck up great conversations – it’s as much a hit with half-cut expatriates as it is with Khmer youth and families heading home dressed to the nines after a wedding. He has saved many a person from the pain of a head-thumping, dry mouth hangover and continues to be my late-night meal of choice.

Mr baii sach chrouk can be found late at night at the southern end of Street 19 (near the corner of Preah Suramarit Boulevard)