Ang Dtray-Meuk

Ingredients

The squid

• 800 gfresh squid
• cleaned, bodies and tentacles
• scored lightly if large
• or small whole squid, left whole

The baste

• 3 tablespoonsfish sauce
• juice of 3 limes
• 4 clovesgarlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoonpalm sugar
• or brown sugar
• 2 tablespoonsoil
• 1 teaspoonblack pepper
• coarsely ground

The dipping sauce

• 3 tablespoonsfresh green Kampot pepper
• on the stem, if you can get it
• or 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
• juice of 3 limes
• 1 teaspoonsalt
• or 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 clovesgarlic, crushed
• 1hot chilli, chopped
• a pinch of sugar

For the grill

• charcoal
• bamboo or metal skewers
• soaked, if wooden
• long tongs
• a basting brush

To serve

• fresh herbs and lettuce
• sliced cucumber
• steamed rice, optional
• cold beer

Directions

1. Pull the head and tentacles away from the body. Cut the tentacles off just below the eyes and keep them. Squeeze out the small hard beak from the centre of the tentacles. Pull the clear plastic-like quill out of the body.
2. Rinse the body inside and out under cold water. Peel off the thin purple skin if you prefer. Cook it very fast or cook it very slowly. Fast means two or three minutes over high heat. Cut a shallow diamond pattern into the inside surface. Cut only partway through the flesh. That helps it cook evenly and it looks good.
3. Combine the fish sauce, lime juice and crushed garlic. Add the palm sugar and stir until it dissolves. Add the oil and the coarsely ground black pepper. The baste should taste sharp, salty and slightly sweet. Taste it and adjust before it touches the squid. Do not marinate squid in acid for long. Brush it on during grilling instead of soaking beforehand. The coals should be covered in grey ash.
4. Grill outdoors in open air only. A very hot griddle pan works indoors instead. Thread the squid onto skewers. Soak wooden skewers first so they do not burn through. Pat the squid completely dry before it goes on.
5. Lay the skewers on the hot grill. Grill them for about ninety seconds on the first side. Brush them with the baste as they cook. Turn them and grill the second side for a minute. Brush them again with the baste. It should have some charred marks on the surface. Take it off early rather than late.
6. Crush the fresh green peppercorns lightly in a mortar. Or coarsely grind the black pepper if using that. Add the crushed garlic and the chopped chilli. Pound them together roughly. Add the lime juice and the salt.
7. Salt and lime is the traditional combination here. Add a pinch of sugar to balance it. It should be sharply sour and clearly peppery. Let it stand ten minutes so the flavours infuse. Serve the squid straight from the grill. Serve fresh herbs and lettuce alongside. Grilled squid does not keep well at all.

Technique

• Squid has two cooking windows and nothing usable in between: two or three minutes over fierce heat, or forty-five minutes of slow simmering. Anything between makes it rubbery, which is the commonest failure with squid. This dish uses the fast window entirely, so the grill must be genuinely hot and the squid must come off quickly.
• Do not marinate squid in lime juice for long. The acid begins to cure the flesh, turning it opaque and firm — twenty minutes is the maximum. Better still, use the mixture as a baste brushed on during grilling rather than as a marinade, which is what the Kep vendors do.
• Pat the squid completely dry before it goes on the grill. Wet squid steams rather than searing and never takes on the char that the dish depends on.
• Score large squid bodies in a shallow diamond pattern on the inside, cutting only partway through. It helps them cook evenly and lets the baste penetrate. They will curl dramatically, which is normal and is why squid is usually skewered.
• Charcoal produces carbon monoxide, which has no colour, smell or taste and kills in enclosed spaces. Grill outdoors only, never in a garage, tent or shed, and never bring a used grill inside. A very hot griddle pan works indoors at the cost of the smoke.
• Wait for the coals to burn down to grey-ashed embers. Grilling over flames burns the surface and deposits soot, which tastes acrid rather than smoky.
• Frozen squid is genuinely good for grilling. Freezing breaks down some muscle fibres and can make it more tender rather than less; thaw it slowly and dry it thoroughly.
• Fresh squid smells of clean sea and nothing else. Any ammonia smell means it has gone.
• Tuk meric, the pepper and lime dipping sauce, is essential rather than a side. Serve it in individual bowls, which is the Cambodian way — more hygienic than one shared bowl and it lets each person adjust their heat.
• Kampot pepper holds a protected geographical indication and the fresh green form, picked unripe on the stem, is milder and brighter than dried pepper. Cambodian pepper production collapsed almost entirely under the Khmer Rouge, when plantations were abandoned and knowledge lost alongside the killing of vast numbers of people. The industry has been rebuilt only since the 1990s.

Substitutions

• Frozen fresh green peppercorns from an Asian grocer replace fresh ones on the stem.
• Green peppercorns in brine are a distant substitute, softer and lacking the fresh aroma.
• Coarsely ground black pepper makes a plain but still good version of the dipping sauce.
• Fish sauce replaces the salt in the sauce for a deeper savoury flavour; salt and lime is the traditional pairing.
• Prawns or firm white fish can be grilled and dipped the same way.
• A very hot griddle pan or oven grill replaces charcoal indoors, at the cost of the smoke.

Variations

• Kdam chaa, Kep’s fried crab with fresh green Kampot pepper, is the dish the town is best known for.
• Tuk trey, the fish sauce and peanut dipping sauce, is the other great Cambodian table sauce and is used with grilled meats.
• Grilled prawns and whole fish are sold from the same seafront grills and dipped in the same sauce.
• A version stuffed with minced pork and herbs before grilling is made in some places.
• Squid grilled and then tossed in a salad with green mango is a common Cambodian treatment.
• Some vendors serve it with a sweet chilli sauce as well as the pepper and lime one.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ang Dtray-Meuk?

Ang Dtray-Meuk is a street food from Cambodia: grilled squid brushed with lime and chilli, sold on skewers along the Kep seafront.

How long does Ang Dtray-Meuk take to make?

Ang Dtray-Meuk takes 20 minutes of preparation and 10 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Ang Dtray-Meuk?

Yes, within limits. Frozen fresh green peppercorns from an Asian grocer replace fresh ones on the stem. Green peppercorns in brine are a distant substitute, softer and lacking the fresh aroma. Coarsely ground black pepper makes a plain but still good version of the dipping sauce. Fish sauce replaces the salt in the sauce for a deeper savoury flavour; salt and lime is the traditional pairing. Prawns or firm white fish can be grilled and dipped the same way. A very hot griddle pan or oven grill replaces charcoal indoors, at the cost of the smoke.

What is the most important thing to get right in Ang Dtray-Meuk?

Combine the fish sauce, lime juice and crushed garlic. Add the palm sugar and stir until it dissolves. Add the oil and the coarsely ground black pepper. The baste should taste sharp, salty and slightly sweet. Taste it and adjust before it touches the squid. Do not marinate squid in acid for long. Brush it on during grilling instead of soaking beforehand. The coals should be covered in grey ash.