Kuy Teav is a Cambodian rice noodle soup similar to but distinct from Vietnamese Phở. It’s a popular breakfast item across Southeast Asia – with local variants like Hủ Tiếu in Viet Nam, Kway Teow in Malaysia, and Kuai Tiao in Thailand. It’s usually made with pork stock. It uses different spices and rice noodles than Phở. There’s a hint of sweetness to the savory dish, which often has a complex flavor unique to the toppings used by each local shop.
In Prey Veng, it was liver. In Phnom Penh, it’s been chunks of congealed blood.
I often had food poisoning during my first term in Prey Veng so Kuy Teav became my go-to breakfast when eating out. The steaming broth was visibly hot enough to kill off microbes. This is also why I started drinking coffee. Both Kuy Teav and coffee have since become favorites of mine.
Kuy teav is prepared with partially dry thin squarish rice noodles cooked by quickly immersing the noodles in boiling water. The noodles are then strained, placed into a bowl, and moistened with nutty, caramelised garlic oil. After dressing with a sticky brown liquid made of oyster sauce, soy sauce and a pinch of sugar, the bowl is then filled with a clear broth made from pork bones, dried squid, and sugar, and seasoned with a bit of fish sauce. Then the meat toppings are added, which may include an assembly of different types of meat, such as pork loaf, minced pork, pork belly, duck, seafood or offal. Availability is the main factor in what toppings are used in kuy teav; some versions can be quite humble and basic, using only some ground pork and perhaps some dried shrimp for protein, while others can be more time-consuming and extravagant. Finally, when the dish is presented at the table, the diner may add a number of garnishes and aromatics to customise the dish in accordance with his or her preferences.
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuy_teav
I’ve never really used these – first because they sit out all day and later because I grew to like the base taste as is.
I have many fond memories of eating Kuv Teay and drinking coffee in quiet provincial Prey Veng town. In my opinion, all quality Kuv Teay shops set a pot of weak tea out along with soup and coffee. This encourages sitting at the shop after finishing the soup and coffee, sipping tea while chatting with a friend or watching people drive by. It’s not quite the same in busy Phnom Penh.
This looks and sounds delicious.