Jeow Som

Serves 1
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Directions

  1. 1Finely chop the cilantro.
  2. 2Halve the limes.
  3. 3Add the red chilies to a mortar.
  4. 4Pound the red chilies with a pestle.
  5. 5Add garlic cloves to the mortar.
  6. 6Pound the chilies and garlic together.
  7. 7Add chopped cilantro to the mortar.
  8. 8Pound all ingredients in the mortar until well combined.
  9. 9Squeeze lime juice into the mixture.
  10. 10Pour in fish sauce.
  11. 11Add sugar to the sauce.
  12. 12Add more chopped cilantro to the sauce.
  13. 13Stir the sauce with a pestle to combine all ingredients.
  14. 14Stir the sauce with a spoon to ensure everything is mixed well.

Ingredients

  • garlic
  • limes
  • red chilies
  • cilantro
  • fish sauce
  • sugar

Equipment

bowlmortar and pestleknifecutting boardcitrus juicerspoon

Tips

  • When you call this sauce "jeow som", you recognize Lao food, you're showing up for your community and yourself, and you're sharing your ancestors' wisdom, knowledge, and culture.
  • The only cracks are how we talk about our food, but it can be repaired.