Cambodian coconut mushroom relish (wedding day dip)

Originally published in 2010, I've updated this post in 2026.

Inspired by the Cambodian wedding day dip I enjoyed at Chamkar Vegetarian Restaurant in Siem Reap in October 2010, this mushroom and coconut relish can be served with crudités, bread, fried rice crackers, and/or rice.

I've never understood why it was called wedding day dip, but I'm confident that any and all recipes you'll find when you google this recipe are derived from a meal at Chamkar. I believe it could be a veganised version of natang (ណាតាំង), a cousin of Thai khao tang na tang ข้าวตังหน้าตั้ง. Both use ground pork, but I reckon Chamkar subbed mushrooms to make it vegan. I honestly don't recall the original version too well given how many years have now passed.

Rather than fresh mushrooms, I opt for dried in my recipe. I have a collection of various dried boletus and morel mushrooms from Yunnan that I love to use. Porcini works great. Shiitakes too. You can either grind them into a fine powder or leave them a little chunky for texture.

My previous recipe involved blending everything into a smooth paste rather than cooking out the aromatics. I also inexplicably called for 1 tablespoon of grated coconut in addition to the coconut milk; though my recipes have become more complicated as my knowledge expands, I now avoid complicating recipes for the sake of it.

Print Recipe

Cambodian coconut and mushroom dip

Serve this rich and creamy coconut and mushroom relish with crudités, bread, fried rice crackers, and/or rice. Dare I say you could dip crisps in should you wish.

Ingredients

Paste

• 1 generous pinch salt
• 25 grams sliced lemongrass (from the root end of the stalk only) scant ¼ cup
• 5 grams galangal 2 teaspoons roughly chopped
• 5 grams fresh turmeric 2 teaspoons roughly chopped
• ¼ teaspoon makrut lime zest (you can also use a deveined lime leaf)
• 1 long red chilli or bird's eye, for a spicier verson
• 2-3 cloves garlic about 1 tablespoon chopped
• 25 grams shallot, sliced 3 tablespoons

Relish

• 20 grams dried mushrooms Use flavoursome varieties such as boletes, shiitake, morel, tea tree, etc
• 2 teaspoons oil preferably virgin coconut oil but vegetable or olive will do
• 200 millilitres coconut milk, divided Avoid low fat varieties
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon palm sugar
• 30 grams toasted peanuts, ground 3 tablespoons toasted and ground peanuts

Instructions

• First make the paste with a pestle and mortar. Pound the salt, lemongrass, galangal, and turmeric into a smooth paste. Then add each ingredient as it's listed, in order, one at a time, pounding each until smooth.
• Add the dried mushrooms to a spice mill or blender and pulse until fine. The texture is up to you â€" a little chunky or fine as a powder. You don't want any large pieces.

  Alternatively, if you don't have a blender, soak the mushrooms in warm water until soft. Then drain and finely chop them.
• Add the oil and 2 tablespoons of the coconut milk to a saucepan, along with the paste from step one. Heat on medium low, stirring frequently, for a few minutes until it no longer smells like raw onion and garlic.
• Add the remaining coconut milk, soy sauce, palm sugar, and mushrooms. Give everything a stir and continue to cook for 5-10 minutes. You should see some vibrant red oil rise to the top. Turn off the heat and stir in the peanuts.
• Leave to cool to room temperature and serve with sliced baguette, rice crackers, and/or crudités.