Meanings
- uncountableA salted and fermented fish paste used in Cambodian cuisine.
Basic preparations include khaw, in which caramelized palm sugar coats meat or seafood; soups called samlor (sweet or sour, made with prahok and sometimes coconut milk) and sgnaow (light broths flavored with prahok or fish sauce); and dips featuring prahok, eaten with fresh and blanched vegetables.
2015 August 27, Robyn Eckhardt, “In Siem Reap, Cambodia, local fare gets a chance to shine”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 22 Sep 20162 more examples
Nor is the industry of fish-curing solely confined to salting, cleaning, and drying; but fish-oil and ichthyocol are extracted, and those mysterious concoctions prepared, which, under the name of pha-ak and prahok, are justly renowned as the most horribly stinking and repugnant products in this line, leaving far behind even the famed nüak-mam of Cochin China.
1905, G[erolamo] E[milio] Gerini, “A Trip to the Ancient Ruins of Kamboja”, in Asian Review, London: East Asia Association, →OCLC, page 96"Prahok" is the paste of fermented fish, and is one of the Cambodian staple foods. Prahok making activity is very common among rural Cambodians who migrate from their home regions once a year to settle temporarily in the areas close to the river or lake. Most Cambodians use Prahok for cooking (instead of using salt) and eating with rice.
2008, Neth Baromey, “Contexts of Livelihoods in BTC and SS Core Areas”, in Ecotourism as a Tool for Sustainable Rural Community Development and Natural Resources Management in the Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve, Kassel, Hesse, Germany: Kassel University Press, →ISBN, page 73
Origin
- Khmerប្រហុក
- Englishprahok
Borrowed from Khmer ប្រហុក (prɑɑhok).
More words from Khmer
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Vietnamese mắm bò hóc, bò hóc
- mắm bò hóca salted and fermented fish paste used in Cambodian cuisine
- bò hóca salted and fermented fish paste used in Cambodian cuisine
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with prahok
Cite this entry
prahok. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prahok
“prahok.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prahok. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “prahok,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prahok.
Source: prahok on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.