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Cereals and bread from Cambodia

Num banhchok (Cambodian fermented rice noodles)នំបញ្ចុក

Rice is soaked for 2 to 4 hours, ground into a runny paste and pressed into domes in calico bags. The fermented rice flour (shitogi) holds lactic bacteria, yeasts and moulds. The flour is pounded to a powder, worked into a thick paste and pressed through a holed tin into hot water as fresh noodles, commonly served at breakfast with curry or fish soup.

Fully documentedCereals and bread2.1 h – 4.1 h

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedFamily-scale process with no fixed recipe in the sources used here. Num banhchok is typically made on a family scale, about a hundred kilograms a day, and Cambodia has no standard manufacturing method.
Long-grain riceTraditionally a high-amylose rice (more than 22 % amylose); a 2005 study says hard, non-glutinous rice is the raw material, unlike the rice eaten boiled[yong2023][ikeda2005]
WaterFor soaking the rice and for the hot water the noodles are pressed into[khat2017]
SaltA 2005 study says the Cambodian process is characterised by grinding the rice and adding salt[ikeda2005]

Total time across the recorded steps: 2.1 h – 4.1 h

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
shapes, not to countLactic acid bacteriaYeastsMouldsClose-up: water moving into a grain

What changes: Rice soaks in water while lactic bacteria start to sour it

Step 1 of 6
Soak the rice
Time
2–4 h
Reported
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Yeasts
Moulds

Output: soaked rice.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

lactic acid bacteria, aerobic bacteria, yeasts and moulds are present in the soaked rice, and lactic acid is markedly higher in it

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Rice is soaked for 2 to 4 hours, ground into a runny paste and pressed into domes in calico bags. The fermented rice flour (shitogi) holds lactic bacteria, yeasts and moulds. The flour is pounded to a powder, worked into a thick paste and pressed through a holed tin into hot water as fresh noodles, commonly served at breakfast with curry or fish soup. Made in 6 steps over 2.1 h – 4.1 h. The longest step, soak the rice, takes 2–4 h (Khat L. 2017). Lactic acid bacteria and Yeasts and moulds do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2–4 hReported[khat2017]Soak the rice
AciditypH 3.8–4.4Measured[yong2023]Sell fresh

What makes this one different

Num banhchok is the Cambodian member of the Southeast Asian fermented rice noodle family. The sources describe a 2–4 hour soak, a ground paste pressed into domes in calico bags, and noodles pressed through a holed tin into hot water. A 2005 study says the process is marked by grinding the rice and adding salt.

Related ferments

Safety

The finished noodles are acidic (pH 3.78–4.35) but very moist, with a short shelf life. A Phnom Penh market survey found Staphylococcus aureus (1.8–4.8 log CFU/g) and Bacillus cereus (1.9–4.8 log CFU/g) in 30 samples and blamed a lack of sanitation by handlers and producers and poor conditions in the production line and markets.

Hazards the sources name: Staphylococcus aureus (1.8–4.8 log CFU/g in 30 market samples); Bacillus cereus (1.9–4.8 log CFU/g in market samples); Escherichia coli and other coliforms (E. coli 0.3–1.8 log CFU/g and total coliforms 0.4–3.6 log CFU/g in 30 market samples; coliforms were not detectable in only two samples).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Khat (2017) reports Cambodian folklore that rice noodles originated in Cambodia and reached China with Thun Chey, a third-century peasant exiled there, who sold num banhchok for a living. According to the legend it was the first time the Chinese ate rice noodles.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
  1. [ikeda2010] Ikeda M., Katoh M., Nagano H., Sawayama S. 2010, Characterization of the composition and bacterial manufacturing process for rice noodles in Cambodia, Journal of Home Economics of Japan 61(2):91–99, doi:10.11428/jhej.61.91 (abstract)paper
  2. [ikeda2005] Ikeda M., Katoh M., Nagano H., Akuzawa S., Omori M. 2005, Manufacturing process and cooking method for fermented rice noodles in Cambodia, Journal of Home Economics of Japan 56(11):827–833, doi:10.11428/jhej1987.56.827 (abstract)paper
  3. [yong2023] Yong P., Soem S., Mom V., Theng S., Mith H. 2023, Characterization of physicochemical properties and microbiological quality of Khmer rice vermicelli (Num Banhchok) collected in Phnom Penh capital, Cambodia, Techno-Science Research Journal 11(1):66–73, Institute of Technology of Cambodiapaper
  4. [khat2017] Khat L. 2017, Num Banh Chok, more than just rice noodles to Khmer, ASEAN News Today, 4 November 2017 (news feature)web
  5. [wp] Wikipedia, Num banhchok (folklore only)wiki